1989 PEUGEOT 405 Mi16
Used car addict Keith looks back at his best – and worst – classic buys. This week, a potent Peugeot 405 project bought as a non-runner. What could possibly go wrong?
WHY DID YOU WANT ONE?
I’d not long been working at Classic Car Weekly and was happily enjoying being paid to indulge my passion. Or should that be ‘affliction for buying cars I don’t really need – but really wanted’?
The Peugeot 405 Mi16 leapt out of the Projects section of the classifieds and called out to me. I called the owners on publication day and asked them about the car, and it all rang true. It had been in the family for years and recently left in a barn after it refused to start. So, I offered to buy it – and that weekend, strapped a trailer to my trusty Rover 75 and headed to Suffolk with my best mate Pete to help me drag it home, for better or worse.
WAS IT A JOY – OR A NIGHTMARE – TO LIVE WITH?
Well, it was a pleasure – even before it was mine. Pete traced the non-starting issue to a dodgy aftermarket immobiliser and fixed the car in front of the seller in about 30 seconds flat. Embarrassed, I offered the sellers more money for the car, but they refused, and I drove it straight on to the trailer. When I got it home, it was a case of giving it a full recommission (which was pretty straightforward because I owned a similarly-engined Citroën BX 16v) and cleaning and polishing it. There were a few faults, not least an engine filled up to the cap with oil, which meant draining the sump before going much further. After that, it was a full service and MoT (it passed first time) before just enjoying it. In the end, I kept it for about a year and used it as my daily driver – it never let me down once, unlike the disappointingly unreliable Citroën. It was comfortable, fast and every bit as good to drive as you’d expect of a fast Peugeot.
WHAT’S YOUR ABIDING MEMORY OF IT?
Is it bad of me to say that my favourite memories of the 405 Mi16 generally involved B-roads and revelling in this car’s wonderful handling and propensity to liftoff oversteer on demand? Yes, this was a proper driver’s car that rewarded you at every turn of the wheel, and as such it gave me massive amounts of pleasure. However, it shared my driveway with the Citroën, so I came to the conclusion that I couldn’t really afford to run – or insure – both of them on my modest journalist salary. That left me with a horrible dilemma – sell the Peugeot or sell the Citroën? Given the Peugeot looked better, was nicer to drive and proved more reliable, this was a done deal. But no, I ended up auctioning the Peugeot off and keeping the Citroën. So, my abiding memory is of how bittersweet selling it was. I got it back on the road, sold it for £1500 (not bad for a fifty quid car) and regretted it the moment its new buyer turned up grinning from ear to ear. I’d love to have that car back now.
WHAT ARE YOUR TOP TIPS FOR BUYING ONE?
All Peugeot 405s are getting thin on the ground, but the fast versions are incredibly rare. That rarity, at least, means that they’re worth real money, so people aren’t removing their engines to stick in 205 GTIs anymore. So if you’re lucky enough to find an Mi16 for sale, you need to follow a few hard and fast rules. Make sure that the cambelt has been changed, that the oil and filters have been renewed regularly, and if it’s been used on the track, that it’s had the sump baffled because they are known for oil starvation when driven really hard. The Mi16 engine is a very special thing, but requires lots of attention. As for the rest of it, watch for rusty engine subframes, inner sills and flaky electrics – avoid that little lot and you’re in a good place.