1989 Peugeot 205 CJ Cabriolet review from UK and Ireland

- Coolant hose split.

- New clutch & cable needed, the previous one had been fitted badly and was jammed half on, so wore out quickly.

- Handbrake cable broke.

- Hood slashed open by a vandal (not the car's fault), this is currently repaired by copious amounts of black tape until I can afford the money for a new one.

I had a 1984 205GT that I loved before and when it died, I had a year in between with a diesel Escort which I totally despised - it looked like a taxi, had wobbly handling and was slow. The feeling was apparently mutual as it disintegrating into rust during this period just to spite me.

I have had a few problems, mainly down to its age. But the whole it is reliable. The design still looks good, it looks nice with the roof down, and has a smart denim interior.

I always found 205's very good fun to drive. This model only has a single carburetor so there is a little less acceleration than my 1.4GT had. Being a cabriolet, it does lose some of the sharpness in the ride and roadholding because it is more flexible - on bumpy roads you get a fair bit of scuttle shake.

Overall, it's worth living through with the rattles, occasional leaks, draughts, and condensation, just to enjoy summer with the roof down. I love this car!