At last a decent 405

[carlo]

Well, I've been looking for a couple of years now for a decent Peugeot 405 Automatic to replace my lovely old green one (which I must have bored enough of you by now about how good it was.) I'd never really taken to the 406 I replaced it with. It may have been very quiet and refined but, crucially, didn't handle or more particularly STEER anything like as well as a 405. And my god was the 2.0 automatic 406 gutless - comes of a 16v engine with bugger all torque trying to power a 1400kg automatic I suppose.

 

So I bought this last week, a '95 405 Executive with, surprisingly, cloth trim - so a bit of a hybrid.

 

 

 

 

And now I realise why I love these things so much. Pin-sharp steering, great ride, torquey 8v engine and only 1160kg in weight. It's a cracker apart from the gash on the sill and some peeling lacquer. Previous owner has had it twelve years, cherished it and did about 300 miles a year so it's only done 68,000 despite having done most of those in its first three years.

 

Only real problem appears to be an oil leak somewhere, there's definately some oil spilling onto either the exhaust or casing causing a smell and some smoke whiffs from under the bonnet. Am going to get it steam cleaned next week to see if they can spot the problem. Apart from that I'm in love again.

 

And the other big decision is whether to leave it on the current alloys or fit my spare set of Harriers, and I'm starting to favour the Harriers.

 

 

Any suggestions on what looks better?

[M'coli]

Nice either way, but I prefer the look of the Harriers.

[babydriver]

Looks a nice place to be, well done and glad you are a happy bunny, I prefer the original wheels in my opinion.

 

Enjoy

[dieselnutjob]

that is nice

I prefer the eight spoke ones, whichever they are

[RoadworkUK]

I'd say keep it on the originals. The Harriers aren't quite "Executive" enough.

[Guest marcellogandini]

I'm not a fan of the original wheels, they look rather fussy. Late high spec 405s were fitted with Harriers so they look right on an 'N' reg.

 

Odd that it has a cloth interior, I wonder what happened there.

[scruff]

That's really nice

[tonedepear]

No idea about the wheels but that looks lurvely.

 

I'm a massive fan of posh velour over slippy cold/hot leather any day as well.

[catsinthewelder]

Very nice, great colour

 

I miss our old 405 estate, if it had been a diesel we'd probably still have it.

[PaykanHunter]

Nice find! This is a prime candidate for the Hunter/Paykan power-train conversion mate! The 405 is good, but imagine it as RWD!

 

Had a thread dedicated to them: viewtopic.php?f=1&t=10686&start=0

 

 

[boobydoo]

Glad you found something at last Carlo! That other one was a bit of a rotter wasn't it. Cars like this need enthusiasts like you to ensure that they survive their 'worthless banger' stage.

[406V6]

Can't agree with you about the 406. The steering and handling are as good as the 405s I drove in the past and the V6 engined 406 is a hidden gem. Very smooth, quiet and powerful yet my V6 auto is more economical than the 1.8 405 manual that I had for several months in the early 90s.

[Pete-M]

I like the original wheels, the ones in the second pic look like they've been nicked from a diesel 306.

 

Shame it's not got leather, do the Executives all have A/C? I know a lot of late 405s did.

 

I may have to get a 3.0 406 Estate some time. Quite like the idea of 'em.

[carlo]

I agree the 406 V6 is a bit more special - I had two when I was selling new Peugeots in the nineties. I still maintain though that the 405 has better steering than either of them, if not better handling. The Executive 405s were all supposed to have leather so not sure why this one hasn't. They seemed to mess around with the specs at the end with a few GTX/Exec hybrids surfacing.

[Luxobarges_Are_Us]

this is BANG TIDY! Excellent acquisition.

 

The current wheels are classier IMO.

[bigstraight6]

Nice one Carlo, it looks worth the wait! a good Peugeot 405 is a very fine car.

[Spottedlaurel]

I think the non-Harrier wheels are nicer. Great that you've found one, I like it when people settle on the right car that suits their wants and needs and strive to find and look after the best one they can irrespective of fashion/value/classic status. Many mid-90s cars are about as good as they need to be, few truly worthwhile improvements since then (IMO). From my limited experience of borrowing company cars in the mid to late-90s I'd rather go for a 405 over 406.

[carlo]

It's even better than I'd hoped for, just taken a few more pictures. Oil leak didn't turn out to be too serious.

 

 

 

 

Definately keeping this!

[Mr_Bo11ox]

WHat happened to the black one in the end?

[carlo]

WHat happened to the black one in the end?

 

Was blue actually, and I scrapped it. It had lost all compression after the garage put the head back on (whether they hadn't done it properly or whether it had other stuff wrong with it I'll never know.) Luckily I get on quite well with the local scrapyard (well he's had three of my Peugeots), so he's letting me have anything I need off it whilst it's still there.

[scaryoldcortina]

That reminds me, does anyone want a pair of black leather 405 executive front seats? I'm sick of tripping over them and I'm prepared to give them away for nothing. I counted up recently and I have more sets of leather seats than cars to put them in.

 

PM if you want them, I'm in Durham.

[ChinaTom]

Agree entirely regarding 405 vs 406. I had a GTXi followed by a 1.6 GL, then a STDT. Loved them all. 406 didn't seem to inherit any 405 DNA fun genes. The original wheels look nicer to me. Loved the stereo volume control that automatically went up and down with the car's speed. Never seen that on any other car.

[baldrickthecunning]

I like this a lot, looks much smarter than my 405 executive, and i reckon that if you try and make sure the centre caps stay on, the original wheels look nicer - although mine has harriers.