Peugeot 607

[Rob 131 Sport]

I just came back from a recent holiday in France and saw a number of Peugeot 607’s in daily service. Whilst perhaps not the most dynamic of cars they still look stylish, are comfortable and have plenty of space for a family. Launched in 2000, the earliest ones are approaching 24 years.

Much of the same positives could be said about their predecessors the 605 and 604. It’s a shame Peugeot never continued in this segment. The below picture was taken outside a Peugeot dealer in Sarlat (Dordogne), and was clearly a much loved car.

[Southerner]

The trouble being that nobody bought them, did they?

[CKY]

Southerner said:

The trouble being that nobody bought them, did they?

Not trouble necessarily - IME every one I came across on the roads was driven by what is now the epitome of a 'Peugeot driver' (a.k.a. Absolutely fking clueless and incompetent).

Preferred the 605 and 604 as mentioned in the OP, and if we're touting '00s French metal then the Citroen C6 is the ultimate barge Some nice roads around the Sarlat area, I recall camping on the river bank somewhere near Vitrac..

[Turbobanana]

I sold Peugeots new in the 605 era.

At that time Peugeot were at their dynamic finest: well balanced chassis with proper attention to the ride / handling balance, a touch of rear wheel steering to stabilise things, communicative steering and petrol engines as good as anyone else's - while the diesels were class leaders. Build quality was good, if not Teutonic, and a lot of the styling was done by Pininfarina, so not too shabby.

The problem seemed to be, that people's perception of the brand was that they only made small cars. Anyone after a larger car had by then been brainwashed into wanting an Audi, BMW, Mercedes or Volvo. In my time with the brand we had:

106 - cracking small hatch, joyful handling, fun, economical, good value.
205 - as above, but a decade older design-wise; brilliant diesels. Far better than a Fiesta, Uno or Nova.
309 - dull styling, but a good drive and seriously practical; just about indestructible. Better than an Escort (what wasn't?).
306 - great styling, superb handling, brilliant ride; far better than a Golf, Astra or Escort.
405 - OK, bucks the trend because these were really highly regarded, quite rightly; estate was brilliant. Beat the Cavalier / Sierra hands down.
605 - lacked it own identity: looked too much like a 405

[Sheepshanks]

I drove one for a couple of months as a loaner when my 406 company car had issues (which never got fixed) with its HPi petrol engine.

I used to look at them and think "who the heck would choose one of those?" and the weird thing is when I was driving one it really felt like people were staring at me, probably thinking the same!

Was a great 'sales rep' car though - I had a top spec diesel auto, with a lot of kit even down to things like electrically adjustable headrests.

[C5_Steve]

I think that's aged nicely!

[I-am-the-reverend]

Peugeot went to st almost overnight. The mid-late 2000's stuff is scandalously poor. The 207, 307, 308 plus all the Citroen crap that used reheated Peugeot bits like the DS3. Horrid to drive, shabbily built and just lowest common denominator landfill.

I had a 306 HDI and it was fantastic. The 205, 306, 405 and 406 etc were probably their high water mark.

[Kawasicki]

I drove the old 605 on atrociously bad late 90‘s Irish roads. It was a really pleasant, competent, car. I actually ended up doing a kinematics study on the rear suspension when I studied engineering… an impressive design!

[okv3]

I remember a friends Dad getting one on the very first day of the 51 plate back in September 2001(!). I was only 10 at the time, but I took particular attention to the car as it was the first 51 plate car I had seen, a big deal at that time especially as a car-mad child.

I remember thinking they looked a bit odd, a bit too long and the headlights/taillights too narrow. The passing of time hasn't been too un-kind I don't think, compare it to a similarly aged Citroen C5 and the 607 has certainly aged better. However I would still chose a Vauxhall Omega, just as I would have in 2001. Make mine a manual 3.0 MV6

[Rob 131 Sport]

CKY said:

Southerner said:

The trouble being that nobody bought them, did they?

Not trouble necessarily - IME every one I came across on the roads was driven by what is now the epitome of a 'Peugeot driver' (a.k.a. Absolutely fking clueless and incompetent).

Preferred the 605 and 604 as mentioned in the OP, and if we're touting '00s French metal then the Citroen C6 is the ultimate barge Some nice roads around the Sarlat area, I recall camping on the river bank somewhere near Vitrac..

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I am also very fond of the C6, but only saw this one on the whole trip when approaching St. Malo.

Mrs 131 Sport reluctantly took the picture from the passenger seat. She cannot understand my fascination with old cars.

|https://thumbsnap.com/vF31zXMS[/url]

[Jader1973]

Rob 131 Sport said:

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I am also very fond of the C6, but only saw this one on the whole trip when approaching St. Malo.

Mrs 131 Sport reluctantly took the picture from the passenger seat. She cannot understand my fascination with old cars.

|https://thumbsnap.com/vF31zXMS[/url]

I saw 2 on our recent holiday: one in Amsterdam and a German register one in Mallaig (in the rain).

[Simes205]

I was in France for the summer and saw a 604 in the road. Not seen one since about 1982, V6 version too!
Tres chic.

[SAS Tom]

I had one for a few months in 2019. It was dirt cheap and a lot of car for the money. It was specced like a house rather than a car. It had TV, double glazing, 4 heated seats, electric blinds. I thought it drove well for what it was too, you could even get a bit of lift off oversteer. Mine was a 2.0 diesel manual which didn’t really suit the car. I think a bigger engined auto would have been much better.

I got rid after 6 months as it kept having various electrical sensors die and the dual mass flywheel went. I didn’t want to spend more than the car was worth fixing it. The sensors weren’t major on their own but it was every other week something needed replacing and it became tedious.

[NNH]

Kawasicki said:

I drove the old 605 on atrociously bad late 90‘s Irish roads. It was a really pleasant, competent, car. I actually ended up doing a kinematics study on the rear suspension when I studied engineering… an impressive design!

Can you summarise what you found?

[lowdrag]

About the only Peugeot I loved on first sight was the 406 coupé. They got the lines just right in my book.

[Turbobanana]

Simes205 said:

I was in France for the summer and saw a 604 in the road. Not seen one since about 1982, V6 version too!
Tres chic.

Me too. The one I saw was a metallic brown one with old school yellow headlights and it was immaculate, particularly impressive as it was also towing an absolutely mahoosive trailer.

[Rob 131 Sport]

Turbobanana said:

Simes205 said:

I was in France for the summer and saw a 604 in the road. Not seen one since about 1982, V6 version too!
Tres chic.

Me too. The one I saw was a metallic brown one with old school yellow headlights and it was immaculate, particularly impressive as it was also towing an absolutely mahoosive trailer.

Of all the years (approaching 20) I’ve been coming to France as an adult with the children, I never saw a 604 (and it wasn’t for the lack of looking). Interestingly I did see one parked in an Abu Dhabi Car Park in 2009.

However during a holiday (Loire and the Vendee) in 2020 (the COVID Years) I finally saw one. This was in Saumur and I got talking (in my limited French) to the owner who was delighted to an English person taking an interest in his car and showed me round.

[Turbobanana]

Rob 131 Sport said:

Turbobanana said:

Simes205 said:

I was in France for the summer and saw a 604 in the road. Not seen one since about 1982, V6 version too!
Tres chic.

Me too. The one I saw was a metallic brown one with old school yellow headlights and it was immaculate, particularly impressive as it was also towing an absolutely mahoosive trailer.

Of all the years (approaching 20) I’ve been coming to France as an adult with the children, I never saw a 604 (and it wasn’t for the lack of looking). Interestingly I did see one parked in an Abu Dhabi Car Park in 2009.

However during a holiday (Loire and the Vendee) in 2020 (the COVID Years) I finally saw one. This was in Saumur and I got talking (in my limited French) to the owner who was delighted to an English person taking an interest in his car and showed me round.

Rather lovely, elegant cars I always thought. I was also fascinated by the unusual cutouts on the bottom of the tail pipes, as just visible here:


What was that all about?

[Dapster]

I had a mate at school who's dad owned a succession of Peugeots including a 604 V6 with velour upholstery. Probably still the most comfortable car I've been in. You'd see loads of them in France on family holidays in the 80s, ultra cool with yellow headlights.

They also had the most extravagant twin blade headlight wipers

[Rob 131 Sport]

Dapster said:

I had a mate at school who's dad owned a succession of Peugeots including a 604 V6 with velour upholstery. Probably still the most comfortable car I've been in. You'd see loads of them in France on family holidays in the 80s, ultra cool with yellow headlights.

They also had the most extravagant twin blade headlight wipers

They are just absolutely wonderful. The question is can you see our children talking about current cars in such a positive manner in 40 years time.