106 gti dependable as an everyday car??
Discussion
Hi first post in this section so be gentle. I'm considering buying a 98-99 106gti as a daily driver I have a budget of 2.5k. What I'm wondering is, given the age of car and budget available will the car I get be capable of meeting my driving needs, which are the following approx 20000 miles per year without being off the road (except for normal servicing).
How much are bits and pieces that generally go, and what do I need to look out for.
I suppose I'm essentially looking for a buyers guide and hints and tips from current/previous owners.
Any and all help is appreciated.
How much are bits and pieces that generally go, and what do I need to look out for.
I suppose I'm essentially looking for a buyers guide and hints and tips from current/previous owners.
Any and all help is appreciated.
patmahe said:
Hi first post in this section so be gentle. I'm considering buying a 98-99 106gti as a daily driver I have a budget of 2.5k.
Should get you a nice one.patmahe said:
What I'm wondering is, given the age of car and budget available will the car I get be capable of meeting my driving needs, which are the following approx 20000 miles per year without being off the road (except for normal servicing).
You could probably expect to get 2.5 - 3 years' (50-60k on top of its current mileage) dependable running from a 106 on that budget. But whether you'd want to is another question. They're great little cars to drive but can be a bit buzzy and tedious on longer journies. If you haven't already, get a decent length drive in one.patmahe said:
How much are bits and pieces that generally go, and what do I need to look out for.
Can't help there, I'm afraid - my ownership experience was short-lived for no particular reason and I now run a 306 GTi 6 as a DD. Thought about a 306?patmahe said:
I suppose I'm essentially looking for a buyers guide and hints and tips from current/previous owners.
Any and all help is appreciated.
The 306 GTi forum is excellent, look for an equivalent 106 site?Any and all help is appreciated.
HTH
i believe the 106 gti is supposed to be fairly tough, they probably get the odd electrical bugs like most modern Pug's but thats not that common, if anything is the weak spot i think it is the gearbox, if driven hard they may die before 100k. dunno how comfy it would be doing 20k a year?
I use mine as a daily drive and generally do 12/14k a year and all has been well .
Cant comment on the gearbox as mines done 90k and never missed a beat , same as the clutch , but other people seem to change them like their oil .
Main things to go on a 106 is the rear axle , the wheel/s camber in and need sorting , which can be a new axle or as i have done and had mine fited with new bearings and shafts .
The fuel pumps also seem to fail at regular intervals .
overall with the four years of owning one mine has been the best car ive owned.
Cant comment on the gearbox as mines done 90k and never missed a beat , same as the clutch , but other people seem to change them like their oil .
Main things to go on a 106 is the rear axle , the wheel/s camber in and need sorting , which can be a new axle or as i have done and had mine fited with new bearings and shafts .
The fuel pumps also seem to fail at regular intervals .
overall with the four years of owning one mine has been the best car ive owned.
Hi well i have a saxo vtr same car just different engine and i bought it 6 yrs ago and covered a lot of mileage (wales to devon once a month) and wales to brighton every other month) and in all honesty it was a great car gearbox went once but thats my job rebuilding them so that was not a problem and one rear axel but that was gone when i bought it changed it straight away and never had any more probs with it apart from a coil pack, and i still got it now dont really use it no more mind just sitting in the same place lol, i now have an audi s3 i must say its a little nicer tho lol.....
Early GTi's like the one I had (check profile) have weak H/G's which results in oil coming out the front of the block near the alternator.
Later ones 1999 on IIRC, were fitted with the same style metal gasket as the works maxi 1600's. Mine was my only transport it was dependable even when tuned up. Great fun.
Later ones 1999 on IIRC, were fitted with the same style metal gasket as the works maxi 1600's. Mine was my only transport it was dependable even when tuned up. Great fun.
r5gttgaz said:
Early GTi's like the one I had (check profile) have weak H/G's which results in oil coming out the front of the block near the alternator.
Later ones 1999 on IIRC, were fitted with the same style metal gasket as the works maxi 1600's. Mine was my only transport it was dependable even when tuned up. Great fun.
Thats one of the nicest 106's I have ever seen. I would love one, but insurance would be a bit steeper than Im wiling to pay!Later ones 1999 on IIRC, were fitted with the same style metal gasket as the works maxi 1600's. Mine was my only transport it was dependable even when tuned up. Great fun.
My friend has a 106 GTi. Its a very nice car but he has had lots of problems with it overheating and blowing the rad twice. I think his is just a bad apple, but they dony have the best reliability like most french hot hatches!
I think the switch to more robust headgaskets was earlier than 99.
Mine did thread one of the bolts that holds a cambelt tensioner (resulting in a pricey rebuild) but it didn't need much else in the 5 years I had it. Radiator is prone to damage from stones being kicked up - mine needed replacing at 57k miles. Not expensive at £100ish though. ABS sensors can fail, especially at the back where they're poorly protected from the road grime thrown at them - £55 each from Peugeot. CV joints can wear, unfortunately the driveshaft and CV are all one part, £80 exchange. Brakes, tyres, other consumables all cheap. If a gearbox died you can replace it with any 106/Saxo box - if mine had gone I'd probably have picked up a VTR box which I reckon would have had better ratios for A/B road driving and a longer 5th.
I found mine comfy on long trips (spent a week driving up to, around, and back from Scotland for a holiday, pretty much in the car all day!), they're just a bit noisy on the motorway as they're quite short geared. 80mph is 4000rpm and there's not a lot of soundproofing.
Mine did thread one of the bolts that holds a cambelt tensioner (resulting in a pricey rebuild) but it didn't need much else in the 5 years I had it. Radiator is prone to damage from stones being kicked up - mine needed replacing at 57k miles. Not expensive at £100ish though. ABS sensors can fail, especially at the back where they're poorly protected from the road grime thrown at them - £55 each from Peugeot. CV joints can wear, unfortunately the driveshaft and CV are all one part, £80 exchange. Brakes, tyres, other consumables all cheap. If a gearbox died you can replace it with any 106/Saxo box - if mine had gone I'd probably have picked up a VTR box which I reckon would have had better ratios for A/B road driving and a longer 5th.
I found mine comfy on long trips (spent a week driving up to, around, and back from Scotland for a holiday, pretty much in the car all day!), they're just a bit noisy on the motorway as they're quite short geared. 80mph is 4000rpm and there's not a lot of soundproofing.
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