General Comments:

When I bought my 205 I had just completed my driving test therefore it was my first car. I have never been disappointed since. Not only is she reliable, handles easily and cheap to run, she looks like a sexy hot hatch. This is all borne out by the amount of 205s you see knocking around the roads these days. These cars were built like tanks and were built to last, congratulations to the French for getting something right...;-)

Faults:

Nothing major went wrong, the previous owner replaced a lot of worn parts due to the mileage, including radiator, glow plugs, timing belt and brakes.

The most annoying issues are the condition of most electrical connections and the alarm that has been build in afterwards. Many connections have been 'repaired' by using tape, including one connection of a headlight. It got pretty hot after a while so that explained the plastic smell under the hood. I have replaced most of the connections with new ones.

I still have to do the alarm. It has been 'taped' in as well, resulting in part-time alarm function.

Front window blower no longer works.

Nothing else so far.

General Comments:

Excellent driving machine, love it when the turbo kicks in in fourth or fifth gear on the highway. A bit noisy, but that's inherent to a diesel in a small car; not much room for sound isolation.

Good handling too, especially after I've replaced the 15' 195/50 tires & Speedline rims with 13' 165/70's. Far less sensitive to trenches in the road. 205's are known to lean to the sides when taking fast corners, but it's not really bothering me. And despite cruising at +130 kmh most of the time, the fuel consumption is in the worst case still 1 liter for 16 kilometers. Not bad at all.

The only thing is the ugly spoiler on the boot lid, it looks like a picnic table. I cannot take it off because holes have been drilled through the boot lid. Luckily the car is black, including spoiler, so that makes up a little.

Faults:

New battery and alternator fitted.

Timing belt changed.

Glow plugs replaced.

All 4 wheel bearings replaced chasing a noise that turned out to be the last one!

Both drive shafts replaced.

Three sets of brake disks and pads in 30000 miles, one caliper replaced after seizing up on the shore of Loch Ness. I had to disconnect and clamp the hose, batter it with a hammer until it was free, and drive back to Inverness with only 3 wheels doing the braking! It pulled viciously toward oncoming traffic, but we made it.

Worn track rod end replaced.

Rear shoes, wheel cylinders, hoses and pipes replaced.

General Comments:

It was very economic, 50 MPG achievable on a run, and quite nippy for a diesel.

The body had absolutely no rust at all, and the interior was like new.

The engine had a strange habit of not switching off even when the key was removed. Stalling it in gear was the only way to do it. This would happen every once in a while, and I never go to the bottom of it. Anyone else out there had this problem?

The brakes were terrible, even after all the work I did on them, I'm told it's just a trait of the car.

It was just as happy at 70 MPH on a motorway or pottering around town.