Faults:

It was a pain to have to have the engine taken out to get the clutch changed, and then the head gasket replaced this year at 74,000 miles, but I managed to find willing mechanics.

General Comments:

The mechanics and electrics have been remarkably reliable, particularly as I have used the car exclusively for short journeys for many years.

Even though the output is only 50 bhp, it still goes fast when wanted.

The body is still very strong and rust free, and where rust has appeared, it is in the areas of previous bashes.

Faults:

Alternator and starter motor failed at the same time. While the alternator is a simple job to do, the starter motor was a little more involving having to remove an engine mount, radiator and battery.

10 amp fuse kept blowing when the radiator fan was on for any length of time. This cured itself after a year with nothing done except replacing the fuse.

Though the head gasket blow on a fast drive home in France, it had only just warped the head by.04mm, but this was enough to cause major problems. All compression checks showed no signs of head gasket failure. The remedy and cost far out weighed the cost of the car, but l had it fixed as the car really is fantastic to drive.

Radiator fins fell apart and caused the fan to stop. This resulted in over heating though it was caught in time. The cost of the new radiator wasn't cheap.

General Comments:

Despite its rarity and age the ZS still manages to attract the crowds and approving looks from on lookers who are mainly men and in the early 20's who want to race it. The rest of the on lookers are blokes in their 30's who remember them from years gone by, but were never brave enough to own a Peugeot and so stuck to Fiestas instead.

It really is Peugeot's best kept secret. Even the dealers have no idea what it is. Some places try to sell you 106 parts and can be quite adamant that there really is no 104.

Some won't like to hear this, but this was the start to the great 205 GTi. The ZS (no more than a foot longer than the Mini) really can hold it's head up high in the fast cornering though Gallic body roll is very much evident. But this isn't a problem as this makes the car extremely comfortable in day to day use.

Space from behind the drivers seat is limited and the rear seat is about as useful as wet socks are to someone with hypothermea. As for the boot, it gives a whole new meaning to "traveling light". That said, the rear seat does fold and l have been able to fill the little space with huge amounts of stuff.

As for it's go, it was a great ball of fire in it's day and CAR magazine rated it quite highly when they tested it against such machines as the Golf GTi, Talbot Sunbeam Lotus, Chevette HSR and Fiat 127 sport. It would also give an Alfasud a run for its money, but the Peugeot wouldn't be gone following winter.

Faults:

H/light & brake lights all fused when the spare/unused cigarette lighter leads shorted out. Engine dies occasionally when changing down gears on a hill.

General Comments:

Dealer has still failed to resolve the problem of the engine dying after 2 years of initially reporting it.