Bargain Buy of the Week – 07th January 2013

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It may be a new year but like last year I keep finding French cars for sale on the Turners website. The country that gave us the Eiffel Tower and the baguette seem to be providing cheap but funky cars as well.

Take this Peugeot 206 XR Presence for instance. It’s red, small but perfectly formed, low kms and the basis of a very successful World Rally car. The Auction estimate…drum roll…$500 – $1500! You’d be lucky to get a 1989 Nissan Bluebird with 300,000km on the clock for that money on Trade Me.

But is it any good? I haven’t read the Dog and Lemon Guide review for the Peugeot 206 but, like all European cars in the guide, it’ll have a dodgy rating and recommend you run away. However, the recommended alternatives are run of the mill Japanese cars with much higher price tags, common as muck and, like all cars, will require servicing and repairs from time to time. And a 2003 5 door Toyota Echo with the same kms as this Peugeot will cost you around $7k. So if you buy the Peugeot for under $2k you’ll have 5k to play with should anything break and you won’t look like a 75 year old lady driving to the bowls club – which you will in the Echo. That’s got to be a result, I reckon. The auction is in Wellington this Thursday at 6pm