Diesel

It is a 406 Combi, and I would like to replace it with the newer (current) 407 model, having now done 65000 happy and troublefree miles in it.

http://www.peugeot.com/modeles/particulieres/407_v2/en/

My father-in-law has just bought a 307, a smaller model.

Peugeot are known for making good diesel engines (although I can also recommend Walter's excellent Opel model)

McTag
Now that car is exactly like what I'd be looking for. I'd like something sporty, yet roomy and a 4 door.
That car is awesome!

Is it a very pricey?

Peugeot doesn't sell cars in the U.S. or Canada. You'd have to import one yourself... Blah!

Yeah, I know. Grrrrrrrrrrrr!!!!!

Well, you could move to Europe and buy one.

Seriously, the sensible choice would be a car you can get serviced and fixed near to where you live.

I would not buy a smaller diesel car for Canada. A Toyota Echo will end up cheaper and more reliable by a good margin. The Toyota Echo can compete very successfully indeed.

BTW the reason why Peugeot are not sold in North America any more is that they are junk compared to the Japanese.

Consumer Reports is your best bet for comparative unbiased reviews.

I suppose, there aren't mayn smaller Diesel cars at all :wink:

In Europe where fuel prices are much higher, perhaps one could justify a diesel, but not in North America, with very high quality very economical inexpensive gas powered Japanese cars, and much cheaper gas prices, it's a no brainer.

Well, that's an opinion.

Japanese cars and French cars, as well as other countries' manufactures, are sold here in open competition and sell well.

So the consumers here do not agree with your sweeping, uninformed and unpleasant statement.

It was not unpleasant, it was factual, and no it is not simply "an opinion". Further, my views are far from your wholly unsupported claim of being "uninformed".

Check Consumer Reports for the quality of Japanese cars versus others. This year every single best category was a Japanese car. Check the long term service of repair records of Peugeot versus Honda/Toyota, it's no contest

If you believe that North America is not an "open market" (relative to Europe) you would need to show me how that is so, and if you agree that North America is an "open market" (relative to Europe) you would have to make a convincing argument as to why Peugeot failed miserably whereas the Japanese do very well indeed and are increasing market share every year. And the Japanese do very well not simply because of some perception of popularity but because of a long term proven track record of superior build quality and superior service of repair.

I should point out that General Motors does not make autos that are competitive with the Japanese either, and hence cannot sell all its vehicles, and in fact is in the process of eliminating 25,000 jobs while the Japanese are gaining market share so Peugeot is far from alone in this regard. And yes that's 25,000 jobs and eliminating not simply laying off.

I would also like to point out that simply because Peugeot has a level of popularity in Europe is not an indicator of it's build quality per se. Triumph cars had a quite high level of popularity in the UK at one time and it was certainly not an indicator of build quality.

I should remind you that the French government's huge backing of Peugeot and the sizable tariffs on Japanese imports do not make for a level playing field in Europe. In fact Europe has a strong protectionism bias as per it's auto markets.

Also I did a check on North American satisfaction with Peugeot and the euphemistic phrase was "acceptance of its aggravations."
http://www.findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_m1038/is_n3_v38/ai_16889361

Check out further reviews of Peugeot which do not fair as well as Honda / Toyota:

The nation has returned its verdict - the best-built and most reliable cars on the road come from Japan, while French and Italian brands are falling short in terms of making motors which really last the distance. That's the result from Driver Power 2006, Auto Express's biggest and best-ever reliability and satisfaction survey. Incredibly, 11 of the 12 most reliable cars are Japanese. At the other end of the scale, nine of the 11 models suffering from the most mechanical breakdowns are from French and Italian marques. And the most unreliable car on Britain's roads? You tell us it's the Peugeot 307. The questionnaires returned by more than 46,000 Auto Express readers reveal Honda makes three of the four most reliable motors in the Top 100,
http://www.autoexpress.co.uk/news/65609/driver_power_2006_the_results.html

Peugeot has a reputation for making unreliable cars that nobody (except the French) would drive. And, says Michael Booth, it's well deserved ...
http://motoring.independent.co.uk/road_tests/article310963.ece

Most of all, the 605 suffered from grave build quality issues that resulted in a large number of breakdowns or malfunctions, which severely damaged the car's reputation. It took Peugeot three years to bring quality under control.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Peugeot_605

1998 Peugeot 406 LX from UK and Ireland
"A poorly constructed unreliable joke
http://www.carsurvey.org/viewcomments_review_23525.html

I have just got rid of the car and I will never buy another Peugeot, they were unreliable and the customer service provided by the company was appalling
http://www.whatcar.com/car-review-readers.aspx?RT=%09%09%09176

My car is a GM-brand.



I'd thought we talked here about Diesel cars.

Certainly there are better cars as Peugeots, and outside France they don't sell very well - but Peugeot's Diesel engine have not only a long tradition but also are actually well reputated.

Like in USA, here in Europe, too, Japanese cars are highly praised by magazines and tests.
But as said, actually Montana asked about Diesel cars.

Timberlandko,

Really funny!!!!

My Peugeot 406 is my second, and I have had no, zero, problems with either of them, doing quite a high mileage.

My current one is the first diesel I have owned, and I am very happy with it.

Hondas are more reliable, according to published statistics, that is accepted but here perhaps for that reason the Honda is more expensive than a comparable size Peugeot.
So you pays your money and takes your choice.

I would like a new Honda Accord or an Audi A6 but I can't afford either.

Hi McTag,

I am glad you are pleased with your machine. Sometimes I get a bit zippy as I find the the auto industry pretty interesting!

No worries, Chumly.

I went to the Peugeot dealer today (because I had to go there with some other folks...it's a long story) and I had a look at the slightly-used 407s. I'm tempted to change now. It's a nice motor.

Can you give links to some independent road tests?

Chumly
I'm also getting very interested in educating myself on autos. I've made too many buying mistakes and I don't ever want to go through that again.
I know my mechanics a lot better than I want to know them and this time around I'm going with a brand new car and I want it to be the best made, most reliable, economic and enviormentaly safe car I can find that won't put me in the poor house.

So far the Jetta and the Jeep Liberty are the only diesel cars sold in this area that I like. When I compared the two, the Jetta beat out the Jeep.



McTag
Yeah, it's bad enough that I'll have to take my car 45 minutes away to have it fixed if I go with the Jetta. <sigh>

Oh, and thanks for the info, Chumly. Was an informative read :-)

Yeah, I'm pretty sure I wanna go diesel. From what I've read so far, it's the only thing that'll keep me from moving in with my mechanic.

Then your choices a very limited and you will not get the "best made, most reliable, economic and enviormentaly safe car I can find that won't put me in the poor house".

<shrugs oh well>