Hi
I was thinking of buying a 2001 1.6 306 estate. Price £1800. Does anyone know what these cars are like for reliability and fuel consumption. Its for my wife to use as were expecting our first child. Any advice would be really appreicated
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The engine in this vehicle is the PSA TU5 engine. I have the same engine in my 2002 Citroen Berlingo.
I've had no problems with the engine over 75,000 miles, and while I'm no expert, I suspect that most people would say that this engine is about average for reliability. The Peugeot 306 is probably a bit below average for reliability.
Fuel consumption depends on the way you drive, and on the condition of the engine. I used to average about 39 mpg, but have slowed down and made a deliberate effort to save fuel in recent months, and have gotten it up to 45 mpg. But other people will tell you that they get around 35 mpg. I suspect that the official combined mpg figure is around 39.
Edited by tyro on 06/10/2008 at 21:03
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p.s. I take it that you have already read the review in the Car-by-Car breakdown on this site, which outlines the reliability problems of the 306.
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I've had two 306's as company cars, and owned one myself. In my experience, they're good, tough cars. The 1.6 is the pick of the petrol engines as well. Surprisingly lively, and will do an easy 35 mpg, with 40 if careful. I ran a 2000 X 1.6LX hatch for a while.
Most of the 306's iffy reputation is due to the 16v petrol engines fitted to the bigger models which are fragile and problematic. They suffer from all manner of common faults from idle stepper motors, and blown ignition coils through to premature cambelt failure. Of the three cars I had, the 1.8 16v was the only unreliable one, and every problem related to the engine, or the gubbins controlling it. The diesel, and the 1.6 petrol were trouble free. The 8v TU engine in this car has been around for donkey's years, and apart from getting "tappety" with miles, they tend to go on and on.
As for durability, I know someone who had 180,000 miles from an 2.0i 8v XSi model. Apart from increased oil consumption, it still drove beautifully.
The 306 is still a great drive too. IMHO, still better than the mk1 Focus (rides better, and more feel through the steering), although the experts disagree.
If it's a good example, it will serve you well. Still a very nice car to drive, reasonable to work on, and a lot tougher than many people think.
Cheers
DP
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Thanks a million guys, I know the fella selling the car and its had one owner from new (2001), with only 37000 on the clock.
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