Spot the grot

… where the muck gets stuck

control everything can be unreliable and replacement parts are hard to find. Replacement frames are hard to find, but the fabric is readily available, as are the plastic rear windows. Hard-tops aren’t hard to fine. Budget £250 for a decent one and repaint it if necessary to match your car.

Oily bits

Only as production was almost at an end was there a 2.0 HDI diesel option; all oil-burning 306s were otherwise fitted with a 1.9-litre four-pot. Petrol fans could choose from 1.4, 1.6, 1.8 or 2.0-litre petrol engines. The two biggest of these are part of PSA’S XU family and so is the 1.9 diesel; the 2.0 HDI is a development of this called the EW. That leaves the 1.4 and 1.6 petrol lumps which are TU units.

All 306 engines are strong and dependable as long as they have been well maintained, but the TU powerplant can suffer from a failed head gasket, so look carefully for oil leaks behind the alternator. The turbodiesel engines can also suffer head gasket failure and if an HDI engine won’t start it’s probably because the lift pump has failed in the fuel tank; budget £100 to buy a pattern replacement. All 306 engines have a cam belt that should be replaced every seven years or 72,000 miles; the GTI-6 cuts this to every three years or 30,000 miles. The TU and XU powerplants are interference-fit, so if the belt breaks the engine will be wrecked. Be wary of tappety cars – it suggests the belt has previously

broken and not all the valves were replaced; they might keep running or the valve could break off at any point, so it’s really a game of Russian roulette.

Three different transmissions were fitted –an automatic and two different manuals. All Tu-engined 306s got an MA transmission while the XU engine was mated to a BE gearbox in five-speed (BE5) or six-speed (BE6) forms.

As long as the transmission fluid is replaced occasionally (there’s no set schedule), the automatic gearbox will just keep going. Whereas the BE unit is durable, the MA tends to suffer from tired bearings and synchro rings, especially on third gear. Used gearboxes can be bought for £50-£200 while a full rebuild costs £300-£500. On 306s with the BE gearbox the clutch cable runs close to the exhaust and as a result it can dry out or deform, leading to a stiff pedal. The only solution is a replacement cable; budget £30-£40 for pattern parts, but on some models access is really tight, especially turbodiesels. The front suspension is generally tough, although the P bushes in the rear of the front wishbones tend to wear, which can result in very vague handling. The most practical solution is to fit heavy-duty items from the Peugeot Partner van, which fit straight in without modification; budget £30 per side for genuine parts. Check that the rear wheels are upright as the rear beam bearings can fail, leading to negative camber. Reconditioned rear beams are available;

many are done on the cheap and don’t last long, but plenty of decent ones are available too.

Trim and electrics

The 306’s interior is its Achilles’ Heel, as it was clearly built down to a price. The result can be squeaks and rattles galore, along with worn seat trim and scuffed plastics. Facelifted 306s are built to a higher standard, but they can still suffer from an array of glitches. One of the most common issues is a leaking heater matrix; replacements are available, but the dashboard has to be removed to effect repairs – and that’s a big job.

Most cars from 1998 had air-con but some came with an electrically operated tilt-and-slide glass sunroof instead. The sunroofs tend not to give many problems, aside from corrosion around the aperture of Mk1 models, there’s a good chance that the air-con won’t work. The aluminium air-con pipes run along the front of the radiator panels. The pipes corrode then split and replacement parts aren’t available, so you have to get the pipes made or live without air-con. At least the air-con pumps tend to be reliable, although the condensers get battered by debris; replacements are available.

The heater blower on cars with air-con runs as long as the ignition is on. Unsurprisingly, the motor wears out and new ones aren’t available. Expect squeaking from a motor that’s on its way out; if there’s no squeaking, it’s probably already failed.

When checking that everything works, home in on items such as the central locking, electric windows and electrically adjusted door mirrors. Switches and motors can play up, so pinning the problem down might not be quick or easy. Also, wiring looms break where they enter the front doors; the easiest way to fix this is to remove the door. Repair kits aren’t available, so you have to find secondhand bits.

All later 306s came with leather or half-leather and this tends to crack or split. Suede trim in the GTI-6 tends to wear badly and split. The most durable trim is the velour in the XSI and S16.