Faults:

The previous owner blew the head gasket at 80000 km. This seems to be a common problem of the 106.

New brake discs and brake pads were needed at 120000 km (the car was 6 years old then). With the same service, the exhaust muffler was replaced.

Every year the handbrake cable gets stuck. Every year the dealer thinks it needs replacement. Every year they manage somehow to make it work again.

After replacement of the spark plugs, one spark plug cable cap started to "leak", causing intermittent failure of one cylinder. It took a few visits to the dealer, before they could find out what was wrong, and they only charged a new cable. Chapeau!

There was something broken in the rear light circuitry, causing currents in the wrong places which nearly melted the plastics away.

General Comments:

The 1.1 engine is very noisy on motorways. But the fuel mileage is great, 6.5 l./100 km on average is not uncommon. And because the car is very light, it is surprisingly quick!

Road holding is good for such a small car, though it suffers bad from side wind susceptibility.

The seats are not very comfortable. The car is really designed for city use.

When looking for a used 106, avoid the XN 1.0 model at all cost.

Faults:

Blew a fuse when turning on both the radio and the map-light...

General Comments:

Great car, on paper very slow, but it feels very quick! I drove an Impreza once, did 240 km/h: driving my 106 at 135+ is really more enjoyable!!!! (Impreza was glued to the road, only thing that could tell you you were driving this fast, was the juddering of the rearview mirror and the speedometer [of course]).