Peugeot 307 1.6 Rapier

Comfortable drive over long distance, exceptionally fuel efficient for a petrol 1.6, although comfortable if driven with care also exciting if you drop a gear and put your foot down the car has real personality which is rare to find these days unless you can afford a Ferrari.

Overall the car gives its owner exactly what a driver needs a comfortable safe drive that is also very spacious for passengers and a large boot. it copes well with a round trip of 140 miles a day and does not struggle with any type of road condition it just keeps on going it is an absolute joy to drive a shrewd buy I don ' t think I will ever own a better car hence why I have rated so high I will be gutted when it's time to "upgrade ' I may even just keep it as a second car I love it that much.

I love my Peugeot 307 but the annoyances, niggles and backup from the dealership means I won't buy another Peugeot.

The Peugeot 307 offers fun exciting driving. Far better than my Ford Mondeo st24. Quick, nippy and fun throughout the gears. Fell head over heels with this car. Get excited every time I drive it.

Good value new purchase, £11,500 with 3 years interest-free finance. Cheap to insure (group 6). Love the exterior styling and colour-coded paint and alloys. Like the high driving position and CD. Don't like the poor fit and finish, trim that is rattly, seat fabric that detaches itself at whim, indicator stalks that are as fragile as eggshells, vibrations at 2,500 revs, horn that works only when it wants to. Uninspiring handling and performance. I'm going for a BMW 3 series next when this is 3 years old.

I had wanted a Peugeot 307 1.6 Rapier since they first came out. Their styling is typically French and Peugeot. I chose the 1.6 Rapier as it blended a few extra toys in, better wheels, body coloured bumpers, mirrors and door handles with little extra cost based on the LX. Not only that, the Rapier does away with the god-awful wood-look plastic trim found on the LX and GLX and replaces it with aluminium (well, aluminium coloured plastic). What is the fascination with car makers filling cars with this rubbish? If they are going to put wood in a car, then do so. If they are going to put plastic which looks like wood in, don't. Still, I digress. The car is very comfortable, holds 4 adults well and has plenty of head room for front seat passengers. If you are freakishly long like I am, you will need the drivers seat quite far back, which can cause a problem for the person behind you. Safety is good, with 6 airbags, electronic ABS with brake force distribution (I have to say, I have driven many cars and the brakes on the 307 are probably the best I have ever seen. It is very rare the ABS will cut in, even on slippery stuff, the wheels are seemingly glued to the road). Mine has automatic headlights which I find cut in a little bit too often for my liking, but that is a mere niggle rather than complaint. The dash is well made, everything fits into place with everything else, and the CD autochanger finishes it off well placed under the radio for easy access. I do like the central screen which displays all radio and warning messages rather than little random screens littered here and there. This is a big car, the whole thing is enormous. It does not fit in our garage which fits a Vauxhall Astra in easily. It feels big inside aswell, but gives a nice airy cabin. The car is relaxing to drive but is not a drivers car. Performance from any of the engines is mediocre. All struggle to shift the weight of the car (apart from the most expensive turbodiesel which of course is very expensive). Despite their reluctance to get you going, they all cruise very well. The 1.6 is geared quite low so adding a 6th gear would not go amiss on the motorway. It is very spongy to drive; relaxed and cossetted but you cannot have fun on the twisty B roads - it rolls too much.The boot can swallow a deceptively large amount of gear. Everything about this car is good, except for 2 things. 1. They are plagued with little electrical faults, or Gremlins as I like to call them. That is typical of Peugeot however. Mine has had a few, but nothing serious. 2. Fuel economy. This is absolutely abysmal for the engine size. Okay, I admit that I always have the aircon switched on and I am either driving round the city or lugging lots of heavy photographic gear on location, but even so, I'm lucky to get 30mpg from a run and 25mpg round town. This puts running costs a little on the high side. I spend £80 per month in petrol and I only drive an average amount of miles. Compared with the family Corsa which dos a similar amount but costs half in petrol, it puts it into perspective. Still, you can't have everything in a car. Normally I replace my cars every 2 years, but now that time is approaching, I like it so much I'm going to keep it a couple more. The 307 is a great family car and very enjoyable to live with. It may not always be plain sailing, but where's the fun in plain sailing?