30,000 km with a Peugeot 106 – From the Old Box

The Peugeot 106 was only a small car, but one that brought great expectations when it was introduced at the end of 1991. At AutoWeek we were therefore very curious how the 106 would behave over a longer period of time, so we decided to use one as an endurance tester. A 106 XR 1.1, to be precise, a version that left the showroom in large numbers. With 1993 in sight, it was time to look back at our first 30,000 km with the little Frenchman. They were very nice, but not entirely without problems.

The 106 was clearly not a fan of the ever-decreasing temperatures. Several times we had to deal with starting problems in cold weather: “At 20,000 km, the problem was looked at, but without success. The little one continued to behave grumpy at a cold start. At 26,363 km, the injection computer was replaced. A fairly rigorous measure , but … unfortunately not enough. We again caught the green Frenchman ‘wanting to turn’. That was shortly after a cold start, following a wet night. It looks a lot like a chronic cold.” Usually a second start attempt was enough to get it to life and then the 1.1 ran without problems, but it was still disturbing, especially with a car that was still almost new.

Another problem that emerged was possibly more difficult to charge the car itself. After someone of only 1.65 m got into the Peugeot and adjusted the driver’s seat, the seat was stuck. So tight that it couldn’t move. We thought that was ‘undoubtedly due to incompetent and ungentle lashing’, so we didn’t blame the Peugeot for it. At the same time as the injection computer was replaced, the chair was restored, much to the delight of editors who were taller than 1.65 m.

In a positive sense, it was noticeable that the Peugeot 106 turned out to be a nice travel car despite its size. “The biggest compliment we can give the one-zero-six so far is that the three-and-a-half-foot-short Frenchman feels like a car of a much larger size. The suspension comfort, handling and (to a lesser extent) the performances are well done. Only when you look back do you realize that it all ends pretty quickly behind your back.” AutoWeek reader N. De Vries came to a similar conclusion, who we allowed to exchange his Opel Vectra for our endurance test-106 for a week. He was pleasantly surprised by the comfort for the size of the car. However, he did find the engine noise a bit annoying on longer stretches of highway.

Finally, a clear plus was the consumption of the 106. The 1.1 consumed an average of 1 liter of petrol per 14.72 km over more than 30,000 km. Consumption was even more favorable in the last roughly 10,000 km: 1 in 15.9, we thought that may have had to do with replacing the injection computer. In any case, we went into the rest of the endurance test with confidence, although there would be some sputtering starts due to the cold weather. Despite that ‘cold’, the 106 turned out to be good for a long life: it was not until 2014 that the little Frenchman disappeared to the scrapyard.