2003 Peugeot 307 SW SL 2.0 turbo diesel

Summary:

Nice car, but very poor build quality

Faults:

5 replacement indicator controls.

Rust spot on boot lid after 14 months.

Ball joints, drop arms and wishbones replaced at 21,000 miles.

Both electric door mirrors replaced at 24,000 miles.

CD changer replaced.

1 seat replaced and another stripped after around 4 months.

Front disks worn out after only 21,000 miles - not covered under warranty.

Horn fixed 3 times.

Plus several other niggling problems.

General Comments:

Great looking car. Very good handling and reasonable performance.

Plagued with constant faults since new resulting in numerous visits to dealer to get items fixed under warranty. No compensation at all from Peugeot who don't consider all of these faults to be an issue - after all that's what warranties are for!!

Will not buy Peugeot again, but will go back to buying Japanese.

Would you buy another car from this manufacturer? No

Review Date: 26th January, 2006

16th May 2006, 14:48

Coda (by original author) :

Finally traded the car in after problems with door mirrors (were replaced) and power steering. Peugeot's general attitude was one of "so what, we fixed all that went wrong". Personally I incurred around 25 visits to the dealer, 60 hours of lost time, and around £120 worth of fuel.

I will NEVER, EVER, EVER, buy another Peugeot. They are JUNK.

2003 Peugeot 307 GLX 2.0 HDI 110

Summary:

Pretty good, but some build quality issues

Faults:

4 weeks after I got the car, I was issued with a recall notice to have the voltage regulator replaced and the engine management chip updated as a small number had caused small electrical fires. The dealers did that while I waited, very efficient service.

After 19,000 miles the fly wheel went on my way back home from work. There was a vibration coming through the clutch pedal then a short time after, when changing gear, a bang and some grinding under the bonnet and no way of selecting a gear. Again, the dealer sorted the problem very efficiently and I had it back in under 24 hours.

The auto headlights and window wipers are great, but not perfect. They've activated as they should, but on 3 or 4 occasions, they wouldn't turn off. Only way I could stop them was to stop the car and remove the key.

Not a fault as such, but the retracting door mirrors sometimes stick part open, particularly the drivers side. Not sure why, one day its fine, the next it isn't.

General Comments:

Performance from the 110Bhp engine isn't bad considering the 307 is a heavy car. Fuel consumption is good with an average of around 48 MPG, up to 63 MPG on long motorway journeys.

Equipment levels are good, cruise control is excellent as is the climate control.

Leather upgrade should include heated seats - they are very cold in winter!

Build quality isn't of the highest standard. Some rattles are beginning to devlop and some trim is easily knocked from its mountings. I'm forever pushing the plastic tray under the hand-brake back in to position for example.

Great brakes! Handling is OK, but there is quite a bit of body roll compared to other cars in this class with average tyre wear (about 14,000 on the front, 20,000 on the rear).

Tiny glove box because of the fuse box location. Trays under the seats can be a bit stiff and because of the gap between the top of the tray and seat, thin items such as maps sometimes come out under heavy-ish braking.

Overall, the 307 is OK, but the build quality needs to be improved for the money.

Would you buy another car from this manufacturer? Yes

Review Date: 26th April, 2005

2003 Peugeot 307 HDi 110 SWse 2.0 turbo diesel

Summary:

The whole is, sadly, much less than the sum of its parts

Faults:

Odometer over reading from new until recalled at 11000 miles.

Locking wheel nut bent on first tyre replacement.

Intermitent loud "clunk" from front of car when stopping.

Car pulls strongly to left.

Air conditioning constantly blowing cold air at all temperature settings.

General Comments:

Tyre wear is more than twice the rate of my two people carriers, an 806 and Citroen Synergie.

The dealer wanted £70 to remove the damaged wheel nut, the tyre co. removed it with an air gun in seconds.

The dealer said there was no fault with the air conditioning on three occasions before a technician looked for a fault and found a dislodged sensor resting on a hot area.

Fuel economy is poor, 42mpg, this does not improve much if you are ultra careful.

Would you buy another car from this manufacturer? Yes

Review Date: 10th March, 2005

19th Mar 2005, 17:17

I am struggling to get 32MPG out of my 2.0HDI 90 piece of junk!

14th Apr 2005, 08:58

Well I have been reading all of these comments about the 307 with interest. Incl the year mine was manufactured (2002) and this years model (2003). Yes mine does have some niggly faults, the whole power outage at times, is a little frightening, especially at speed at night, but does come straight back on.

My flywheel has been picked up as faulty at dealership service, and is going in for replacement.

Tyre wear is a little heavy, but to be honest, this is the 4th Peugeot diesel I have had, and they all wear heavy on the front end.

I have heard of figures of 6000m, but I am boarding on 9k miles now, and still have 5mm tread.

Fuel consumption: I had a run to Paris and back from Portsmouth (via the channel tunnel) and got almost all way there and back on 1 tank. I was averaging 52mpg, on the trip computer, at speeds of 70-80mph.

This is a great car, its still a new car, and yes has faults, which I know are being addressed. I think the big difference is the dealership. I have a good relationship with mine, have purchased 5 diesels in the last 5 years, and they have been great.

Slightest problem, they have had the car straight in, and problem sorted.

Don't let this put you off :)

It's a great ride, has lots of toys, for a very good price :) (much faster and comfortable to ride than my previous 306 Meridian 90bhp model.

Take one for a drive, and see what I mean.

22nd Sep 2005, 19:33

Also drive an 03 Hdi 110.

Not happy with fuel consumption - car never goes over 75/80. Getting high 30's to low 40's on motorway.

Car also had problem with steering pulling to left, not totally corrected, still intermittent.

Almost had head-on collision due to this.

Spare wheel release cable temperamental- my cable sheared its housing and broke off completely- stuck with flat tyre at side of road.

Battery terminal came loose as my wife was driving uphill in carpark- total power failure. Not happy with this again.

Heavy clunking noise (sounds like engine mounts) when car is started/stopped.

Locking system fails intermittently.

Overall I'd drive anything, but I'm more than disappointed with this vehicle.

The only thing economical about this car is when its sitting outside my house - not moving.

Why aren't they as economical as the older ones???

27th Dec 2006, 01:45

I have an 03 307sw hdi 110 which I am only getting 32 mpg on mixed driving. Dealer has had the car on numerous occasions and cannot find anything wrong with it.I have brought it to a tuning expert who can tune any engine and he says there is nothing he can do with it. What can I do.