To celebrate the many different perspectives that every driver brings to Auto Trader’s owner reviews, today we’d like to welcome our first ever guest blogger to provide a designer’s-eye-view on the Peugeot 207.
Kristan Fletcher runs his own design company in the North West called Passion8 About Design and indeed he is passionate about many things in life – including a particular penchant for motorbikes. So you can imagine his concern when his wife suggested taking their Peugeot 207 convertible on a family trip to Wales. We won’t spoil it, we’ll let Kristan (who’s 6ft 5) tell you how he got on.
“What the wife wants…
PEUGEOT 207 1.6 16V GT 2dr (Review date: 10th March ’11)
“You will fit in it!” the wife said when I dared to question whether it was a suitable car for a family trip to Wales. Being 6ft 5″ (and wanting a quiet life) I certainly tried to squeeze in (to the muffled screams of children as I attempted to adjust the seat, only to crush their legs in what little space there is at the back) but to be honest it wasn’t bought as a family car for long journeys… but it is what the wife wanted!
She fell in love with it as soon as she saw it… it certainly looks distinctive and stylish, just right for an image conscious district nurse! After owning a number of rag-tops in the past this was our first experience of a folding hard-top and its brilliant, once you remove the woman clutter from the boot and pull the safety screen into place!
Inside the build quality is not too bad, although I’m sure over time things will start to rattle, squeak and drop off. The seats are comfortable but not made for tall people. With the drivers seat at its lowest and furthest back its all very cosy. With the roof down its fine… although the screen rake makes getting in and out a challenge.
On the road it drives ok, not as sporty as it looks and you really have to rev the engine hard to get it to respond. It handles… well-ish. Steering is very vague (probably doesn’t help that the wife never checks the tyre pressures) and seems to take on a mind of its own over bumps. With so much play in the wheel you’re never sure what the wheels are doing.
But none of this matters to the wife. As long as she has ‘Take That’ in the CD player, the roof down and the wind in her hair she’s happy with this car.”
Overall score: 2.8 out of 5
So the 207 cc might not be the sportiest of convertibles but its good looks gives it instant appeal. When we reviewed it back in 2008 we marked it slightly more generously than Kristan, giving it 3.8 out of 5.
Though he likes motorbikes, cars and (although he’s based in Manchester) Liverpool FC – design is what Kristin does best. So if you’d like to see a selection of his work check out Kristan’s blog and you can follow him on Twitter: @KristanFletcher.
If you enjoyed reading Kristan’s review and want to contribute one of your own, review your car today and you could be in with a chance of winning £500.
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