Faults:
Recall at 1st 12000 mile service, since the odometer was not corresponding with the actual service indicator - 400 mile inaccuracy.
At 50mph or above the wing mirrors vibrate in the air flow, which oozes poor build quality.
Poor panel alignment between front wing and doors is slightly out which makes the car look as if it has been involved in a minor fender bender- when it hasn't!
At 37,000 miles the Mass Air Flow sensor failed, causing poor performance while the engine is warming up - i. e no acceleration and unable to shift the car past 20 miles per hour until the coolant temperature reached 70 degrees. In addition to this, on cold winter mornings you get thick acrid white smoke from the exhaust while this is happening, sometimes accompanied by an 'Anti-Pollution System Fault' message on the screen.
The windscreen developed a crack, without being struck by anything, have been told that this was stress induced.
Horn operation leaves a lot to be desired since the horn works intermittenly, suspect the switches on the steering at fault, since you have to pound the steering wheel to get a hoot.
Suffered complete bulb failure on all my rear lights one evening - to replace, you have to remove the entire plastic clusters from the body work - try doing that when its wet and cold!
Clutch makes a moaning and groaning sound at times; this has occured from 45,000.
The engine has always sounded squeaky and rattle when pulling off with low revs - does not sound like a new car at all, neither does it sound well screwed together.
The air conditioning leaves a very foul cheesy odour when switched off.
The multi-function display washes out under even the most minor of temperature increases, leading to missing pixels.
The outside temperature display is grossly inaccurate since it seems to be out by a good 5 to 6 degrees.
Audio quality is completely rubbish, even the most moderate of bass tones will drive you crazy as the door trim panels rattle with distortion. The high end notes are too clear making it hard on the years as the tweeter speakers are a little too effective, despite changning settings on the stereo.
General Comments:
Though in fairness, the air con is very effective on very hot days- just don't switch it off until you reach your destination.
Handling is pretty good for a car of this class, where you can have a reasonable amount of fun throwing it into bends on twisty roads.
For long distance cruising the car is very quiet, and the engine delivers moderate fuel economy - around 45MPG on the motorway.
Parts are very expensive for this car, it's a Peugeot 307 not a Mercedes/BMW/Jaguar. Oh and don't trust the dealers, took my car for a service and all they did was change the oil - £150 for that, when in the owners manual there is a whole list of things they should have done.
This car is great when it works properly - though being a french car, don't expect that reality to last too long, since it will give you nasty little surprises - you fix one thing and then 1-2000 miles later another little niggling issue will start to develop. It has never broken down on me, it has just left me with a very bitter taste in my mouth regarding the marque and generally the entire french car industry. That's why the car I just aquired is German! ;-)
13th Apr 2011, 02:02
Be careful and do not touch the additive tank if you suspect a leak. The liquid is potentially carcinogenic on skin contact and gloves and mask must be worn if dealing with it. Of course in true Peugeot style, they stick it under the car in a flimsy plastic bottle or a bladder protected by a dinky weak super thin aluminium cover.