1988 Peugeot 205 GTi review from UK and Ireland

The seats on the older models especially the drivers side suffers from bad bolster ware down the left side so it need attention. Exhaust was blowing at 129000 miles and was replaced with a magnex system which second hand cost less than a new system from a dealer. Faulty earth on the fuel pump led to starting difficulties along with worn CV gaiters for the MOT. Rear lights needed rewired for MOT and reverse lights have become intermittent. Electrics do tend to become troublesome on higher mileage cars. Engine is solid though, especially if regularly changed with synthetic oil, I use Castrol Magnatec and change every 5k. Especially if you drive them hard. Front tyres ware quicker than the rear so change them over every 3 months to have an even ware distribution..

This is the second 205 I have owned and generally speaking its small frustrating things that are at fault and not major work such as the cylinder head etc. The car can be expensive to work on. For example to get to the starter you have to remove the Inlet Manifold. The clutch can be an expensive part to replace if going to a garage, mainly for labour. The Car handles very well, like a go-cart, but beware in the the wet as the 1.9 with rear disc brakes can be difficult to control at speed getting thrown into corners. My car is a 1988 model 1.9. This was intentional as I didn't want a model after 92 as they have catalytic converters that reduce the car by 10 brake which caused a reduction by 1 second on the 0 -60 time. Do not buy a car that is burning or leaking oil especially on a 205. Burning oil means worn oil or piston rings that really means your engine is going to the big party in the sky. Expensive to get fixed unless you can do it yourself. If this happens uprate the engine to a GTI6 306 2.0 or the 406 SRI turbo. These are the best modern equivelents. The seats on the 205 are very comfortable and keep you locked in, however the car is French and does suffer from those irritaing rattles. For the money you will pay if you find a good one, you will have the best hothatch ever built, my friends have have Renault 5 Turbos, Corrado VR6s, Mitsubishi Evo 6s, Saxo VTS'S all perhaps faster, but not as much fun or as much value for money as the 205.