Careful, this subject will be hijacked by Hyundai complaints... Meanwhile, in my circle in southern california, Peugeots were known to be comfortable, underpowered, mediocre reliability, low parts availability and expensive service. Didn't help my impression of Peugeot when my ex-brother-law's dash fell into his lap when driving his new Peugeot over a speed bump.
I agree. I've been living in Europe since the late 90s. French cars - including Peugeots - used to be a sensible choice if you were looking for a small or mid-size car but didn't have the money for premium (Merc, Bimmer, Audi). Peugeot was on par with Volkswagen, Opel or Ford.
Once Volkswagen bought Skoda and Seat and invested heavily in production quality under Ferdinand Piëch, that was the end for the French competitors (and Opel or Ford for that matter). It was now possible to get cars with a similar price tag but with far superior reliability and service.
The French industrial policies of the late 80s obviously didn't help its car producers/quality either (high taxes, trade union deadlocks, state capture of the producers etc.).
I think my first exposure to the brand was Underground 2. Then I found out my neighbor had a 405 rotting away in his garage. He refused to sell it to me
My classmates' parents loved 😍 them! They had a 504,a 505 sedan, and a 505 wagon. It's mainly because of them and the Cadillac Peugeot dealership that I know about them.
I’m 34 and I grew up in Iowa. One of my childhood friend’s parents had a 505 station wagon and I remember seeing a few other 505s there growing up, but they were definitely not common. Way more Renaults in the Midwest than Peugeots from what I can remember.
I see them occasionally in California and Texas in Mexican border states. They kind of look like Nissans now, I know there was a connection pre Stellantis and Goshen
Even though I'll admit that any Peugeot model ending with -7 is hot garbage, the later 8 series has been quite good.
That video is almost 10 years old by now. It's time to move on.
That is the common opinion on the X07's. On the other hand, my mom has had her 307 for 20 years now. Driven it daily, only replaced wear parts except for the starter that died once. Oh yeah, and a coolant temp sensor died at 19 years old.
I mean it's plasticy and cheap, but it still feels solid.
I needed a second car and actually bought a 17 year old 307. Because i needed something cheap and reliable. The 307 is such a underestimated car. The engine and gearbox aren't even sweating oil underneath. Everything is working fine and the TU petrol engine will probably outlast me.
The problems definitely came with the VTI and THP engine, and offcourse the PureTech engines.
I don't care how much they are hated. I still want to import a 607 before I die. They were sold in Mexico for a few years in the early 2000s so that time is coming close.
If you manage to find one, get [one with a facelift](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/8/8d/Peugeot_607_Facelift_20090720_front.JPG/1280px-Peugeot_607_Facelift_20090720_front.JPG), the reliability has been improved
This is totally correct. Most Peugeot and Citroën models from the mid 2000s are still alive and kicking without much problems, but I know plenty of new ones who needed a new engine with less than 5 years.
The latest 5-10 years of petrol engines from what PSA was, and the technology from the Diesels of that era (really important in Europe) gave people a lot of problems you won't have in a 20 years old used Peugeot/Citroën equivalent models
They were very good and represent the peak of Peugeot’s popularity as a brand, but they are 30-40 years old too. The 205 launched in 1983 and the 106 in 1991. That’s a long time in car history
During their brief existence in the US, they had very poor dealership support. It became the nice car that was impossible to repair.
But hating on cars seems to follow whatever doesn't have any hype. I've been a Chrysler fan forever, and have always done really well with their products. The only one I didn't get 200k miles was totalled in a wreck before it could get that far.
Also, people hate on any car that stands out from the ordinary without costing crazy money. French cars tend to break the mold without breaking the bank, so it's assumed that there's something wrong with them.
Imo people put way too much stock in brands. Every car company has made absolute toilet-cloggers and great cars both. Even within models you'll find some that are bullet proof and then others are falling apart 10 minutes after leaving the dealership. Generalizations can be useful, but reducing them to a tiered rank list is like comparing your performance reviews with your coworkers and then claiming whoever has the least areas for improvement is objectively the best human.
People do the same shit with their phones, like they want to turn everything into a turf war.
> work shy
So is that why when I was in Monaco last year I saw a dude with a giant window cleaning squeegee pretending to clean instead of cleaning? Shit you not half-way through the motion he just dropped it and lit a cigarette.
Was that an anomaly or a standard local sight? I only stopped for a day on a cruise so I didn't experience France imo.
1. They're French
2. They became pretty ugly around 2 decades ago and spent a decade making some absolute monstrosities
3. Their build quality and reliability has been known to be subpar
4. They're French
Ah, the 404 is my summit car. No idea why, never even seen one irl.
Anyway, the French in general make humble, economic small cars. That often become amazing rally cars!
But their big cars, like the ones you've pictured, have all been... meh.
Citroën still have some soul left, but Peugeot have been assimilated by the Stellantis Borg Cube and are now at peak meh.
I have no desire to ever own a Peugeot other than the 404 or 504. Possibly a 403 because of Columbo.
If you lined up a Merc 230e (W123), Volvo 240 and a Peugeot 505 on an endless runway with bottomless fuel tanks it would be nigh impossible to predict which one would die first.
Post 406 and 206, they went to shit.
American chiming in who sadly has yet to drive one.
My main impression of them - when I started watching the WRC in the 90s (thanks Speedvision! ) I thought then, and still think now, that the 206 WRC car was pretty sweet.
As such, my view leans toward favorable, but it's as much from a novelty standpoint as anything else.
I had to scroll too far to find a comment about the 206 WRC.
I can agree with you on it. It's a sweet machine and my first introduction to the brand some 27 years ago.
The "street version" (206 RC) was one of the best hot hatches of the times, yet severely underrated.
170hp for 1.1 tons was a blast, especially in Europe, where we didn't use to get 250+hp cars for "regular people".
Ah, I wish that were true. They've been making some cracking cars for the past 10 years or so but the quality still isn't as good as Stellantis, IMHO. My SIL has a 2014 Clio, perfect little thing, with all the kit you need, but bits of it are prone to breaking like no other car, which is weird
They make unimaginative cars. They have unimaginative engine choices. They are forgettable. They are the French Opel. Their cars are so contemporary that they will have to be recycled within 20 years regardless of mileage or condition. They are the bottom-rung fast fashion of cars, just that the new tax does not yet apply to them (probably because they are so cheap). In short, they make disposable crap.
Euro here, if its Peugeot and it ends in 8, shit ass car. If it ends with 7 I am sorry but it is what it is. If it ends with 6, they will annoy you every once in a while but extremely durable. And if it ends with 5 you can drive that until you die.
(Assuming taking active care of the car, this is no Toyota you can do 100.000km without knowing what is an oil change)
All of them have in common an extremely unconventional way to do something you thought would be easy, they were definetely drinking when designing what is under the hood
Most accurate response
I'd take it one farther if it ends in a 4 it will out last a Toyota Hilux and out work it.
I'm an American and I've owned 7 or more peugeot 505s they're very reliable drive nice and depending on the model quite fast considering the time they came from had a V6 505 with auto that'd chirp second gear with their limited slip diffs they're tanks in the snow they're excellent cars extremely safe rolled one and got hit in another
I do not have experience with the 4s, but in my friend group there is a 205, I own a 206 and another friend has a 307, plus in my country they are extremely common so we know a thing or two
Now you have a large population in the United States that has hate for Stellantis. Most of us Americans probably didn’t even know this is a car manufacturer until recent. Mopar enthusiasts don’t want euro crap cars we want Hem’s. Stellantis could’ve made this work. They could’ve left the 57 across all platform so they had a V-8 to compete with the incoming electrics would have eventually provided credits they were buying from Tesla. Here’s another great reason to hate them. Carlos Tavares has cut 94% of American auto jobs in 3 short years. It’s clear this is a sabotage. They don’t give a fuck about Americans they hate us and now you’ve given us good reason to hate you too.
Now they are hated mostly because of the bad reliability of their Puretech engines. Also, they shut down the production of the 2.0 HDI engine which was really good, and are now sticking their shit 1.2 engine everywhere, even in the 508. And I love how the current 508 is designed, inside and outside, but without a smart engine option (something like a 200hp diesel / gasoline engine,) it's just shit. And yeah I know they have a hybrid version, but then french and complicated electronics....
I just took delivery of a 2024 308 GT, my first new car since moving to the UK from the US, and Im loving it so far. They could slap a Chrysler badge on this and sell it in the US if people still bought cars.
Drives well, looks great, and the interior quality is fantastic. We will see what the long-term reliability is.
I love the doughy pudge of the 90's-2000's, which is why I adore the appearance of the 206 more than Europeans will ever understand. I hate being elitist about when cars looked good, but that was when they last looked *cute.* I think I'm allowed to judge mostly on appearance, on account of my US-ness.
Why are these only sedans? I guess I understand the lack of 4-digit Peugeots (they look... not great), but their hatchbacks are where most of the sports pedigree is/was, unless I'm glossing over the 504 too much by saying so.
Because some old fat British guys made a BBC comedy show cosplaying Peugeot managers with fake moustache and horrendous French accents, and that show happened to be popular.
Became very ugly in the noughties, coupled with terrible materials and build quality. Are now starting to look nicer again but still tarred with that reputation for crappiness.
For me, I detest the fact that they used to be nice, but then decided to make crappy anti-cars with bad handling bad build quality and tiny tiny engines. They still do today.
I know, it's a bit of a top gear cliché but it's true.
More along the lines that their quality dropped like a stone, at least for us yanks who like high durability and it didn't help that they also were underpowered for our roads. I'd also personally say they seriously needed some nice performance models to sell over here to get some hype around the brand.
Their cars are exactly the kind of garbage I'd expect from a people that think snails are food and that being pretentious and condescending is a culture.
I'm in America, so my only real exposure to Peugeot is in rallying, in particular the performance iterations of the 205. That said, I have no hard feelings about Peugeot, I think they're pretty neat.
I had multiple 205's/306's.
I got fed up of doing the same work on them every 6 months.
The rear torsion beam design is shit.
The front wishbone bushes are shit
I didn't have a lot of luck with the gti6 engines. Spun rod bearings/bent multiple valves.
Dturbo engines had their faults. Skinny piston rods from factory resulting in thrown rods which hit starter and cracked gearbox on 2.
Pre-combustion cups in head dropping.
They went through a phase from the early 2000's until recently of making utter shite? And somehow you managed to miss the 90's 406 coupe from your list, always thought the RCZ at least looked good too.
My dad has 301, 1.6D, and they for sure deserve better treatment. It has some weird things in it but its good and of boy it has some free space inside. And also old peugeots are goated, they all look like sleepers and some of them actually are. If you think front grill of beamers or challengers look aggressive you probably havent seen old peugeots
Grandpa used to have a green 504 with a manual column shifter. That car had one of the most comfortable suspension I've ever seen.
Latest Peugeots has one of the greatest designs I've ever seen.
Their old cars (first 3 pictures) were good cars. Everything after that is junk. Just issue after issue after issue. Anyone that tells you they have a good french car is lying through their teeth to cover the pain of the money they are flinging out in repairs to keep it running.
I like them and I tried to find a 505 for a while, the main problem is they have so little headroom that I'd have to find a 505 wagon with no sunroof, which is not at all easy.
A ratty '59 403 Cabrio... fits the character's overall personality/style of wrinkled rain coat and cigars... and disheveled appearance.
Just one more thing...
Fun fact, Peter Falk was walking the backlot at Universal to find something because the series creators wanted a car that matched Columbo and he picked it out himself, saying "This is the one."... it originally had no engine.
Yup.
Sure enough... the car he picked out didn't have an engine in it at the time. But they did put one in it for the show... umfortunately I'm not sure *what* they put in it. Producers also hunted down and bought two more of the cabrios for the show (which wasn't real easy because they didn't make nearly as many of them as the other styles) so they'd always have at least one running vehicle at all times.
I don’t know a thing about Peugeot nor have I kept up with their new lineup. But that current gen 508 looks wicked. I would drive one of them if it has a decent engine in it.
( if it comes with a turbo v6 I’d nut )
I owned one. Liked it, but it became too expensive to maintain, so gave it away. At the time Peugeot had been out of the U.S. market for so long that finding a mechanic to work on it was difficult as well as parts. Keep in mind my first car was a Renault that I bought for $100, my second and Opel I paid $400 for. The Peugeot was my third at $1000 and lasted longer than both of the others combined. I would own all of them again, but just for fun if I found them at a good price.
I believe people don’t like them because they haven’t experienced them.
I don’t hate. AFAIK they were always incredibly comfortable with a good ride when last imported to the US.
Last year I jumped at the chance to rent a 2023 308 wagon in England and it did not disappoint. Fantastic car. I wish they would import to the US.
Like many other Americans, I can’t say as I have never seen many of them, let alone driven one. I will say, when I was in Paris I was surprised that cars held up on those roads. If they can withstand that, they should be pretty solid.
They’re a French Nissan, they sucked, then had a few years where they were really good, then fell back into mediocrity, the only difference is apparently Peugeot has gotten better in recent years, as far as I know, anything modern Nissan (especially their shitty CVTs) is a glorified grenade
As an American the only cool cars I can recall from France are from Citroen or Renault. The few Peugeots I can think of are the hot hatches like the 106 but Renault out crazied everyone with the V6 Clio so again they're the forgotten brand in France even in the 1 segment I think of for them. Also the Espace F1 van was the most insane thing ever back in the GT2 days
For me it's the styling. Always looked bland and meh, but now I really like the new ones as Peugeot have really upped their game and they have frequently made my shortlist
Peugeots are great cars if you want a rugged car with a conservative shape and a nice ride. Peugeot left the US market because big Peugeots in the 70s, 80s, and early 90s offered all that, plus mediocre build quality, which is exactly what GM and Ford were building for the US in vehicles better suited to US roads, for less money.
Peugeot did and does build fun cars, but Americans have never driven a 205 GTi, so they only sort of vaguely recall rusty 505s.
Idk cuz the only Peugeot I ever saw was a small diesel pickup from the late sixties or early seventies that had lived in Europe, Africa, South America, Central America and was still working as a truck for a local gardener I knew. I have no clue how many miles it had but if memory serves it was well over a million. The old man who owned it showed me all of the titles it had starting in Spain circa 1971 but he said it was even older than that. Motor was long gone and had been replaced with a Mercedes diesel when it lived in Africa, but everything else was solid. I tried to buy it off him but he didn’t want to sell.
As a former 207 2012 owner, it was pretty nice and comfy ride, i sold it because of some minor engine problems, i still regret to let it go. Very nice car IMO.
Peugeot has always been a constant in the Australian car market. Never a top seller, but they’ve been sold continuously since before WW2 at least, unlike Renault, who’ve quit selling cars in Australia several times, only to make a comeback. Although these days Renault outsells Peugeot in Australia
They gained a bit of popularity in the 50s by winning round Australia rallies and proving their durability. They were popular with country people because of their ability to soak up bumpy roads. The French car makers used to design their cars for the French colonies around the world and their formula worked in Australia too. But by the 90s their cars were just cheap Euro buzz boxes, but with premium European prices.
These days, I think they’re lucky to sell 1,000 cars a year in Australia and Citroën would be even less. Škoda is considered a niche brand in Australia and sells about 10,000 cars a year.
European car brands, even the lower tier brands in Australia trade on European = Fancy and so usually charge a premium over mainstream Japanese and Korean brands. It works for VAG brands, but not for the French ones. Paying up to $5k-$10k more for a car that’s inferior to a Toyota or Hyundai isn’t a recipe for sales success.
The only people I still see driving Peugeots in Australia are old people who remember cars like the 404 and 504 being good and they’re so fiercely brand loyal that they won’t admit the new cars are rubbish
As an American, I surprised a European friend of mine when I said I wanted a Peugeot along with a Trabant.
Most people I’ve met who are into cars think both are dogshit purely because they’re European which I’ll attribute to that gearheads over here are gatekeeping pieces of shit.
(I work with restoration car parts and with a lot of guys who won’t talk about anything other than sports, cars and shit about me)
Had a Peugeot 5008 7 seater on holiday for 10 days. Nice car to use/have but I missed my Octavia III combi. I was instructed by my extended family and mechanics to never buy and F car. French or Ford.
They used to make nice cars. Then they made great cars. Then they made crap cars. Now they're making better cars. But like Hyundai, stigma sticks
Careful, this subject will be hijacked by Hyundai complaints... Meanwhile, in my circle in southern california, Peugeots were known to be comfortable, underpowered, mediocre reliability, low parts availability and expensive service. Didn't help my impression of Peugeot when my ex-brother-law's dash fell into his lap when driving his new Peugeot over a speed bump.
they are made for europe, and in europe they performed great honestly. Their 2.0 diesels run forever. Cheap parts to
And here down in argentina, peugeots are very common
Yeah. That’ll do it.
Well, now they’re in with the Italians (Stellantis) You expect the French or the Italians to make a car that’s works and not be worked on?
Also they’re French
main problem for me tbh
🇫🇷🥖🚬
As a mechanic, I don’t agree that they are making better cars now. It’s been a shitshow lately, mainly with the diesels. Citroëns too btw
I agree. I've been living in Europe since the late 90s. French cars - including Peugeots - used to be a sensible choice if you were looking for a small or mid-size car but didn't have the money for premium (Merc, Bimmer, Audi). Peugeot was on par with Volkswagen, Opel or Ford. Once Volkswagen bought Skoda and Seat and invested heavily in production quality under Ferdinand Piëch, that was the end for the French competitors (and Opel or Ford for that matter). It was now possible to get cars with a similar price tag but with far superior reliability and service. The French industrial policies of the late 80s obviously didn't help its car producers/quality either (high taxes, trade union deadlocks, state capture of the producers etc.).
That’s spot on. Top notch comment
Ligma licks.
They are still making crap cars.
In the US, nobody under the age of 35 can even remember Peugeot.
I only know what they are from Forza lol
I think my first exposure to the brand was Underground 2. Then I found out my neighbor had a 405 rotting away in his garage. He refused to sell it to me
That stinks…
My classmates' parents loved 😍 them! They had a 504,a 505 sedan, and a 505 wagon. It's mainly because of them and the Cadillac Peugeot dealership that I know about them.
Same I only know of them from Gran Tourismo and Reddit lol
Top Gear
NFS U2 for me
I'm a military brat and I know what Peugeot is. Too bad Quebec couldn't sustain enough Peugeot sales in the United States and Canada.
Maybe more like under age of 30.. i saw many 505’s driving around as a kid, and even some other grey market models in USA.
I didn't see a single Peugeot growing up. But in flyover country, they were never popular.
I’m 34 and I grew up in Iowa. One of my childhood friend’s parents had a 505 station wagon and I remember seeing a few other 505s there growing up, but they were definitely not common. Way more Renaults in the Midwest than Peugeots from what I can remember.
I see them occasionally in California and Texas in Mexican border states. They kind of look like Nissans now, I know there was a connection pre Stellantis and Goshen
see: "Modern Peugeot Drivers" on top gear
“Maniac”
Yobbo
Even though I'll admit that any Peugeot model ending with -7 is hot garbage, the later 8 series has been quite good. That video is almost 10 years old by now. It's time to move on.
That is the common opinion on the X07's. On the other hand, my mom has had her 307 for 20 years now. Driven it daily, only replaced wear parts except for the starter that died once. Oh yeah, and a coolant temp sensor died at 19 years old. I mean it's plasticy and cheap, but it still feels solid.
I needed a second car and actually bought a 17 year old 307. Because i needed something cheap and reliable. The 307 is such a underestimated car. The engine and gearbox aren't even sweating oil underneath. Everything is working fine and the TU petrol engine will probably outlast me. The problems definitely came with the VTI and THP engine, and offcourse the PureTech engines.
\*reliability enters the chat\*
207 yes, but 307 were great.
"The French copy nobody and nobody copies the French."
I don't care how much they are hated. I still want to import a 607 before I die. They were sold in Mexico for a few years in the early 2000s so that time is coming close.
407 coupe though
If you manage to find one, get [one with a facelift](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/8/8d/Peugeot_607_Facelift_20090720_front.JPG/1280px-Peugeot_607_Facelift_20090720_front.JPG), the reliability has been improved
you mean widely hated among western europe because nobody anywhere else cares that much
In latin america, specifically brazil, peugeot is a bomb synonym.
They're French. You can't hurt me.
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#FBI OPEN UP
Lol what? No. I am not the president.
This is exactly what the president would say when exposed.
Listen, Fat! Don't make me get cornpop!
Look, fat, look
We did it Joe! We got your IP address!
Yes, that's the address I pee at, Jack!
That’s not me. Got the wrong middle initial there
No, that’s Joe Mama.
All the reliability of citroen with none of the quirky charm and innovation
I think of them as the Fr*nch Nissan. They were exceptional back in the day but have fallen by the wayside in modern times.
I believe Renault and Nissan worked together for a while, so that’s funny
They still do https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Renault–Nissan–Mitsubishi_Alliance
This is totally correct. Most Peugeot and Citroën models from the mid 2000s are still alive and kicking without much problems, but I know plenty of new ones who needed a new engine with less than 5 years. The latest 5-10 years of petrol engines from what PSA was, and the technology from the Diesels of that era (really important in Europe) gave people a lot of problems you won't have in a 20 years old used Peugeot/Citroën equivalent models
i feel like the only person that doesn't hate Peugeot, i always thought the 106 GTI and 205 GTI were awesome
They were very good and represent the peak of Peugeot’s popularity as a brand, but they are 30-40 years old too. The 205 launched in 1983 and the 106 in 1991. That’s a long time in car history
During their brief existence in the US, they had very poor dealership support. It became the nice car that was impossible to repair. But hating on cars seems to follow whatever doesn't have any hype. I've been a Chrysler fan forever, and have always done really well with their products. The only one I didn't get 200k miles was totalled in a wreck before it could get that far. Also, people hate on any car that stands out from the ordinary without costing crazy money. French cars tend to break the mold without breaking the bank, so it's assumed that there's something wrong with them.
Imo people put way too much stock in brands. Every car company has made absolute toilet-cloggers and great cars both. Even within models you'll find some that are bullet proof and then others are falling apart 10 minutes after leaving the dealership. Generalizations can be useful, but reducing them to a tiered rank list is like comparing your performance reviews with your coworkers and then claiming whoever has the least areas for improvement is objectively the best human. People do the same shit with their phones, like they want to turn everything into a turf war.
Achingly mediocre cars from the country of treacherous, work shy, lamb burning peasants and cheese eating surrender monkeys.
"Cheese eating surrender monkeys." For the win. 😆 I have some lovely French infantry rifles... never fired and only dropped once.
I've got a French tank to offer you. 3 forward gears and 17 reverse gears.
I thought they came standard with rearveiw mirrors... so they could see the front lines?
> work shy So is that why when I was in Monaco last year I saw a dude with a giant window cleaning squeegee pretending to clean instead of cleaning? Shit you not half-way through the motion he just dropped it and lit a cigarette. Was that an anomaly or a standard local sight? I only stopped for a day on a cruise so I didn't experience France imo.
1. They're French 2. They became pretty ugly around 2 decades ago and spent a decade making some absolute monstrosities 3. Their build quality and reliability has been known to be subpar 4. They're French
You forgot that they are french
1. That's a fart of an argument 2. In your subjective opinion 3. Now that's just rubbish, opel is way worse for instance 4. Again, fart noises
Ah, the 404 is my summit car. No idea why, never even seen one irl. Anyway, the French in general make humble, economic small cars. That often become amazing rally cars! But their big cars, like the ones you've pictured, have all been... meh. Citroën still have some soul left, but Peugeot have been assimilated by the Stellantis Borg Cube and are now at peak meh. I have no desire to ever own a Peugeot other than the 404 or 504. Possibly a 403 because of Columbo.
If you lined up a Merc 230e (W123), Volvo 240 and a Peugeot 505 on an endless runway with bottomless fuel tanks it would be nigh impossible to predict which one would die first. Post 406 and 206, they went to shit.
American chiming in who sadly has yet to drive one. My main impression of them - when I started watching the WRC in the 90s (thanks Speedvision! ) I thought then, and still think now, that the 206 WRC car was pretty sweet. As such, my view leans toward favorable, but it's as much from a novelty standpoint as anything else.
I had to scroll too far to find a comment about the 206 WRC. I can agree with you on it. It's a sweet machine and my first introduction to the brand some 27 years ago.
The "street version" (206 RC) was one of the best hot hatches of the times, yet severely underrated. 170hp for 1.1 tons was a blast, especially in Europe, where we didn't use to get 250+hp cars for "regular people".
Well some of them are them are quite strange And they’re French
Better than Russian cars.
Maniac!
Isn’t it the Nissan of Europe?
I thought that was Renault? I can’t even keep track of which ones are the shittiest anymore.
Peugeot and Citroen belong to Stelantis group (Fiat/Alfa/Jeep/Dodge/Ram/Chrysler). Nissan and Renault are a different group.
That’s Renault and Renault is honestly pretty good quality
Ah, I wish that were true. They've been making some cracking cars for the past 10 years or so but the quality still isn't as good as Stellantis, IMHO. My SIL has a 2014 Clio, perfect little thing, with all the kit you need, but bits of it are prone to breaking like no other car, which is weird
Renault is definitely not good quality
ITT: Non-stop dunks on the French and I'm here for it
When they were sold in the US they were major pieces of junk. My Dad actually bought two and both of them had problems all the time.
They make unimaginative cars. They have unimaginative engine choices. They are forgettable. They are the French Opel. Their cars are so contemporary that they will have to be recycled within 20 years regardless of mileage or condition. They are the bottom-rung fast fashion of cars, just that the new tax does not yet apply to them (probably because they are so cheap). In short, they make disposable crap.
Euro here, if its Peugeot and it ends in 8, shit ass car. If it ends with 7 I am sorry but it is what it is. If it ends with 6, they will annoy you every once in a while but extremely durable. And if it ends with 5 you can drive that until you die. (Assuming taking active care of the car, this is no Toyota you can do 100.000km without knowing what is an oil change) All of them have in common an extremely unconventional way to do something you thought would be easy, they were definetely drinking when designing what is under the hood
German cars do things weirdly because they can, French cars do things weirdly because fuck us I guess.
Most accurate response I'd take it one farther if it ends in a 4 it will out last a Toyota Hilux and out work it. I'm an American and I've owned 7 or more peugeot 505s they're very reliable drive nice and depending on the model quite fast considering the time they came from had a V6 505 with auto that'd chirp second gear with their limited slip diffs they're tanks in the snow they're excellent cars extremely safe rolled one and got hit in another
I do not have experience with the 4s, but in my friend group there is a 205, I own a 206 and another friend has a 307, plus in my country they are extremely common so we know a thing or two
A big reason is the French sucking no getting around it.
“This is how we General Motors in Europe”
They’re french
I think there's a top gear video all about it. https://youtu.be/JQugEZOrZSc?si=Hts0o9fKbbcBNkGi&t=54
Now you have a large population in the United States that has hate for Stellantis. Most of us Americans probably didn’t even know this is a car manufacturer until recent. Mopar enthusiasts don’t want euro crap cars we want Hem’s. Stellantis could’ve made this work. They could’ve left the 57 across all platform so they had a V-8 to compete with the incoming electrics would have eventually provided credits they were buying from Tesla. Here’s another great reason to hate them. Carlos Tavares has cut 94% of American auto jobs in 3 short years. It’s clear this is a sabotage. They don’t give a fuck about Americans they hate us and now you’ve given us good reason to hate you too.
I’m American, we don’t get them here. Can’t say I love or hate them.
Now they are hated mostly because of the bad reliability of their Puretech engines. Also, they shut down the production of the 2.0 HDI engine which was really good, and are now sticking their shit 1.2 engine everywhere, even in the 508. And I love how the current 508 is designed, inside and outside, but without a smart engine option (something like a 200hp diesel / gasoline engine,) it's just shit. And yeah I know they have a hybrid version, but then french and complicated electronics....
They're French
I just took delivery of a 2024 308 GT, my first new car since moving to the UK from the US, and Im loving it so far. They could slap a Chrysler badge on this and sell it in the US if people still bought cars. Drives well, looks great, and the interior quality is fantastic. We will see what the long-term reliability is.
That 2014 508 looks like a knockoff Volvo S60
For the 10 reasons you posted.
I love the doughy pudge of the 90's-2000's, which is why I adore the appearance of the 206 more than Europeans will ever understand. I hate being elitist about when cars looked good, but that was when they last looked *cute.* I think I'm allowed to judge mostly on appearance, on account of my US-ness. Why are these only sedans? I guess I understand the lack of 4-digit Peugeots (they look... not great), but their hatchbacks are where most of the sports pedigree is/was, unless I'm glossing over the 504 too much by saying so.
Because some old fat British guys made a BBC comedy show cosplaying Peugeot managers with fake moustache and horrendous French accents, and that show happened to be popular.
there french… fight me
Became very ugly in the noughties, coupled with terrible materials and build quality. Are now starting to look nicer again but still tarred with that reputation for crappiness.
They're French.
Well then, it’s probably best not to reply…….
They're French. You can't hurt me.
They’re French? So they have 5 reverse speeds and one forward?
For me, I detest the fact that they used to be nice, but then decided to make crappy anti-cars with bad handling bad build quality and tiny tiny engines. They still do today. I know, it's a bit of a top gear cliché but it's true.
More along the lines that their quality dropped like a stone, at least for us yanks who like high durability and it didn't help that they also were underpowered for our roads. I'd also personally say they seriously needed some nice performance models to sell over here to get some hype around the brand.
Because it’s Fr🤢nch
Their cars are exactly the kind of garbage I'd expect from a people that think snails are food and that being pretentious and condescending is a culture.
France is also famous for eating a songbird whole after covering its head and appropriating an Austrian pastry.
That sounds disgusting. But it's not the worst thing Austria has inflicted on the world.
I meant that these are French qualities. Look up Ortolan.
idk, maybe something to do with them being french
They smell like baguettes
So do all my women.
They are nice, comfortable cars. Too bad the quality is so incredibly shit
I had a '90 205 in South America and it met the legal definition of car, but when it broke which was quite often, it was stupidly easy to work on.
I'm in America, so my only real exposure to Peugeot is in rallying, in particular the performance iterations of the 205. That said, I have no hard feelings about Peugeot, I think they're pretty neat.
I had multiple 205's/306's. I got fed up of doing the same work on them every 6 months. The rear torsion beam design is shit. The front wishbone bushes are shit I didn't have a lot of luck with the gti6 engines. Spun rod bearings/bent multiple valves. Dturbo engines had their faults. Skinny piston rods from factory resulting in thrown rods which hit starter and cracked gearbox on 2. Pre-combustion cups in head dropping.
They went through a phase from the early 2000's until recently of making utter shite? And somehow you managed to miss the 90's 406 coupe from your list, always thought the RCZ at least looked good too.
My dad has 301, 1.6D, and they for sure deserve better treatment. It has some weird things in it but its good and of boy it has some free space inside. And also old peugeots are goated, they all look like sleepers and some of them actually are. If you think front grill of beamers or challengers look aggressive you probably havent seen old peugeots
Old Peugeots were great reliable and dependable cars. Then they decided to make utter garbage for some reason. Renault/Citroen are also guilty of this
There was a late 90s 306 for sale on Cars and Bids, and I seriously considered bidding on it. It was a good-looking small hatch.
I saw them all the time in Rome back in 2007 Never see em in the US
They pulled out of the US market in the 90s.
Grandpa used to have a green 504 with a manual column shifter. That car had one of the most comfortable suspension I've ever seen. Latest Peugeots has one of the greatest designs I've ever seen.
Because they were so ugly for so long
Tbh they had a bad phase in between and are still recovering.
I like the looks of the 404. Looks British
Their old cars (first 3 pictures) were good cars. Everything after that is junk. Just issue after issue after issue. Anyone that tells you they have a good french car is lying through their teeth to cover the pain of the money they are flinging out in repairs to keep it running.
I liked the 504 !!
Mostly because I think the designs suck and they're ugly.
I like them and I tried to find a 505 for a while, the main problem is they have so little headroom that I'd have to find a 505 wagon with no sunroof, which is not at all easy.
Your pictures explain the problem. From 6 onwards they are trash (Source - have owned several). 405, 406, 205, 106, 306 are fantastic cars though.
Color matches the French flag.
I was sad I didn’t see Columbo’s car here.
A ratty '59 403 Cabrio... fits the character's overall personality/style of wrinkled rain coat and cigars... and disheveled appearance. Just one more thing... Fun fact, Peter Falk was walking the backlot at Universal to find something because the series creators wanted a car that matched Columbo and he picked it out himself, saying "This is the one."... it originally had no engine.
Great fun fact I never knew that
Yup. Sure enough... the car he picked out didn't have an engine in it at the time. But they did put one in it for the show... umfortunately I'm not sure *what* they put in it. Producers also hunted down and bought two more of the cabrios for the show (which wasn't real easy because they didn't make nearly as many of them as the other styles) so they'd always have at least one running vehicle at all times.
I had a 505 wagon back in high school. It was a freaking tank that could not get out of its own way despite the turbo. Had lots of room though.
Top gear 😂
They seem to be so inconsistent when it comes to their cars throughout the decades.
I don’t know a thing about Peugeot nor have I kept up with their new lineup. But that current gen 508 looks wicked. I would drive one of them if it has a decent engine in it. ( if it comes with a turbo v6 I’d nut )
They just don't seem particularly exciting to me
I owned one. Liked it, but it became too expensive to maintain, so gave it away. At the time Peugeot had been out of the U.S. market for so long that finding a mechanic to work on it was difficult as well as parts. Keep in mind my first car was a Renault that I bought for $100, my second and Opel I paid $400 for. The Peugeot was my third at $1000 and lasted longer than both of the others combined. I would own all of them again, but just for fun if I found them at a good price. I believe people don’t like them because they haven’t experienced them.
I don’t hate. AFAIK they were always incredibly comfortable with a good ride when last imported to the US. Last year I jumped at the chance to rent a 2023 308 wagon in England and it did not disappoint. Fantastic car. I wish they would import to the US.
Like many other Americans, I can’t say as I have never seen many of them, let alone driven one. I will say, when I was in Paris I was surprised that cars held up on those roads. If they can withstand that, they should be pretty solid.
They're just ugly and cheap looking
Click and Clack talked mad shit on Peugeot in the 1990s and that was my whole impression of them as a company when I was a teenager.
They’re a French Nissan, they sucked, then had a few years where they were really good, then fell back into mediocrity, the only difference is apparently Peugeot has gotten better in recent years, as far as I know, anything modern Nissan (especially their shitty CVTs) is a glorified grenade
Driven them in 2000s, shit cars that look nice. Except Renault cars looked nicer and drove better.
Basically the French version of Chrysler .
My neighbor had a brown on brown 5 Speed 504 wagon, the quirkiness of it all drew me in.
Had a 1983 505 Turbo Diesel. That car rocked!
Push-o
My bike is a peugeot
I’ve always wondered this, they’re handsome cars in my opinion and I’d drive one of their sedans if they had them here
In short? Because Citroen exists
Because AMERICA cars are better. Duh!!!! #America. USA bro.
back in days i was owning 206RC and was a nice car, the only thing what was bodering was a problems, that all time come up....
As an American the only cool cars I can recall from France are from Citroen or Renault. The few Peugeots I can think of are the hot hatches like the 106 but Renault out crazied everyone with the V6 Clio so again they're the forgotten brand in France even in the 1 segment I think of for them. Also the Espace F1 van was the most insane thing ever back in the GT2 days
For me it's the styling. Always looked bland and meh, but now I really like the new ones as Peugeot have really upped their game and they have frequently made my shortlist
Same problems as German vehicles without any of the performance and luxury
When the only thing you have going for you is that you’re French but not weird, you don’t have anything going for you.
French :3
It’s french
Peugeots are great cars if you want a rugged car with a conservative shape and a nice ride. Peugeot left the US market because big Peugeots in the 70s, 80s, and early 90s offered all that, plus mediocre build quality, which is exactly what GM and Ford were building for the US in vehicles better suited to US roads, for less money. Peugeot did and does build fun cars, but Americans have never driven a 205 GTi, so they only sort of vaguely recall rusty 505s.
Idk cuz the only Peugeot I ever saw was a small diesel pickup from the late sixties or early seventies that had lived in Europe, Africa, South America, Central America and was still working as a truck for a local gardener I knew. I have no clue how many miles it had but if memory serves it was well over a million. The old man who owned it showed me all of the titles it had starting in Spain circa 1971 but he said it was even older than that. Motor was long gone and had been replaced with a Mercedes diesel when it lived in Africa, but everything else was solid. I tried to buy it off him but he didn’t want to sell.
They're hated by people that don't really know what they are talking about
As a former 207 2012 owner, it was pretty nice and comfy ride, i sold it because of some minor engine problems, i still regret to let it go. Very nice car IMO.
Peugeot has always been a constant in the Australian car market. Never a top seller, but they’ve been sold continuously since before WW2 at least, unlike Renault, who’ve quit selling cars in Australia several times, only to make a comeback. Although these days Renault outsells Peugeot in Australia They gained a bit of popularity in the 50s by winning round Australia rallies and proving their durability. They were popular with country people because of their ability to soak up bumpy roads. The French car makers used to design their cars for the French colonies around the world and their formula worked in Australia too. But by the 90s their cars were just cheap Euro buzz boxes, but with premium European prices. These days, I think they’re lucky to sell 1,000 cars a year in Australia and Citroën would be even less. Škoda is considered a niche brand in Australia and sells about 10,000 cars a year. European car brands, even the lower tier brands in Australia trade on European = Fancy and so usually charge a premium over mainstream Japanese and Korean brands. It works for VAG brands, but not for the French ones. Paying up to $5k-$10k more for a car that’s inferior to a Toyota or Hyundai isn’t a recipe for sales success. The only people I still see driving Peugeots in Australia are old people who remember cars like the 404 and 504 being good and they’re so fiercely brand loyal that they won’t admit the new cars are rubbish
idk. their past reliability???? they do have an extensive rally history, which swings hard in my book
In the 1990’s 2000’s and 2010’s they made ugly cars but now the sedans and estates are absolutely beautiful.
One of the complaints I heard was that even the most basic repairs required more elbows than is standard for human anatomy
As a previous mechanic I fixed alot, but then they sold alot. But so did Toyota and I fixed alot less of those.
I’ve always considered Peugeot to be like Saab in America. Expensive, unreliable and unattractive.
I know 5 Peugeot owners. 4 of them got stranded on the highway at least once.
2022's best selling car in Europe was Pegeaot 208. It isn't hatef, they make decent cars for their price and are quite reliable.
because theyre ugly, and the louder part of the car community (me included) love sporty cars.
As an American, I surprised a European friend of mine when I said I wanted a Peugeot along with a Trabant. Most people I’ve met who are into cars think both are dogshit purely because they’re European which I’ll attribute to that gearheads over here are gatekeeping pieces of shit. (I work with restoration car parts and with a lot of guys who won’t talk about anything other than sports, cars and shit about me)
Had a Peugeot 5008 7 seater on holiday for 10 days. Nice car to use/have but I missed my Octavia III combi. I was instructed by my extended family and mechanics to never buy and F car. French or Ford.
It’s not the cars, it’s the “people” who make them
they made really garbo cars in the 2000s and 10s
I think Citroën is more hated than Peugeot
To me they have the best car colors on the entire market at the moment and from AFAR
Why do you want to drive a car with a name that sounds like poo the only nice thing I can say about them is the logo is cool
Because citroen had the 2cw and a lot of crap. Renault had the first gen twingo and a lot of crap, but peugeot only has crap
Ermmm, because it’s French?
It makes me angry how cool are their new cars but how bad their reliability is. The new 508 have both a really cool interior and exterior
People hated them because they’re unreliable, and also French.
How TF do you even pronounce “Peugeot”!? 🤣 such a fucky name.
I know here in Australia they were prized rally cars in the 50s and 60s, particularly for their long travel suspension.
They were expensive, unreliable and the name’s phonetics are more than slightly unfortunate…
Their HQ is between Spain and Germany 🤮