1994 Peugeot 306 XRDT review from Australia and New Zealand

I guess we bought this car at the stage where it was starting to need general things replaced.

Front brake pads, and rotors replaced when we bought it.

Rear brake shoes, cylinders replaced at 143000km. Cylinders had weeped (read leaked) and it was all crappy in the drum, meaning the back brakes didn't work.

Heater matrix was leaking when we bought the car. This is a very tricky replacement because the dashboard must be removed. It's easy once you have done it once though. The hardest bit was the very tight fitting plumbing connections on the firewall.

This car is a little pocket rocket. The 1.9 turbo diesel really pulls strongly. I have turned up the boost a little on this car, and upped the on-boost fueling so it's got a lot of pull when the turbo is up to pressure. When off-boost I have left the fuel rather lean, which makes feathering easy for economical driving. 0-100 is in less than 10 seconds now!

More of a city car than a highway cruiser, due to the shorter wheelbase of the car and the more basic interior than the 405, but it is still great on the open road.

Economical for sure, over 635km (580 highway and 55km city) I got an economy of 6.3L/100km. It was driven spiritfully and had three people with luggage, so was a completely full car. I strongly believe that this car is capable of much better economy should one want to drive sensibly with a lighter load.

Handles like a go-kart. It's got a little bit of understeer, but I still feel confident that it will take me where I point it, and that it won't surprise me. Being a small Peugeot, it features the lift-off oversteer, great fun when you are expecting it. It's not something that you come across unless you are trying to oversteer, so shouldn't be an issue for most drivers. The car wanders a little with the slope of the road, but apparently a wider tyre could remedy that.

Road noise is pretty good. Engine noise is better than the 405 diesel for some reason. I think the engine in this one is quieter to begin with.

The interior is quite basic with no fancy stuff. Mine is a base model so that is to be expected. At least it doesn't feel cheap at all. The seats are very basic, but are still supportive and comfortable on a long trip.

When you fold down the back seats, you have enough boot space to fit a single mattress in there! It's surprising just how much space Peugeot seemed to find in the car.

Highly recommend this car to anyone who is in the market for a small hatchback, as it's versatile. Use it on the highway or in the city, 4 passengers is no problem. boot space is good but it doesn't have much vertical room.

A HDi Dturbo would be on my shopping list if they were available here in NZ!