Marte Mejstrik wrote:
>I'm just tossing out a genral inquiry to the group: If you could
>have your choice of any 505 out there, what year and model would it
>be? I own a '85 505 GL SW and a '88 505 STI which are both my daily
>drivers depending on the day. I ask the question because I would
>someday like to own another 505 that I would tweek out to as close
>to perfect as I could, and was just curious as to what is thought to
>be the best 505 Peugeot ever rolled out.
>
They all have different personalities. Figure out what is your own
personality and match it to yours. You have to ask yourself what *YOU*
value. Maybe if you talk about yourself and your driving style a bit,
and what you like/dont like about your 505s, somebody can say, hey,
that's how I feel too and I find that the 505 XYZ is the best!
For example, as far as handling goes: altough the 1989 V6 5 speed is
tought to be the ultimate 505 by some (particularly due to the body
style - mostly the front bumper which is like the early euro bumper),
it's also about 200 lbs (varies depending on options) heavier than the
previous year V6 (and heavier than any of the 505 WAGON). Altough this
is extra weight is all over the car, it's still an increase of a bit
over 8%. Considering also that the 88 STX V6 is 100 lbs heavier than the
similarly equipped turbo and that all that weight is at the front, you
can see how these various cars would have different handling
characteristics. Similarly, different springs and other things like that
make for different handling. Same thing for trim levels. GLX is much
lighter than STX but a bit barebone in some aspects. The 86 turbo, IMHO,
is the closest "driver's car" as it gets in the 505 series. Or do you
value comfort at all cost? Somewhere in between? An 83 STI for example
is much more comfortable than any of the more recent 505s with the
lower, sport, suspension. Early seats also are more comfortable. But
early cars might be a bit unnerving for an occasional driver (kids,
spouse etc). It is also harder to find earlier cars, particularly one
that wouldn't require a new paint job.
Auto or 5 speed: again, this needs to match your personality, engine and
car. 5 speed is not always best. For example, I much prefer a stock 505
turbo auto to a stock 505 turbo 5 speed. With mods (like blowoff valve
etc) it might be a different story. Beside, the ZF 4 speed is just great
in how it works. If you just want to relax and get from point A to point
B, you let it shift for you. If you want to be a bit more involved, for
example in tight esses or in city driving, you hold the gears in 1st,
2nd, 3rd, OD (altough you cant force upshifts, when do you really need
that feature). I've always enjoyed driving 505s with auto tranny,
altough on my V6 I would gladly swap the auto for a 5 speed.
Wagon or sedan: sedan of course wins on handling. But handling is not
all in life... Are you a family man, do you go camping, to the beach,
etc? Wagon is the vehicule of choice. You already own one of each so you
can easily decide on that. Well... I dont know. I've owned 3 sedans and
1 wagon (2 V6, 2 turbo). The Wagon is so practical... The SW8 is one of
the most clever setup I've seen. So many variations in seating
arrangements. Sometimes I pull the center section passenger side seat
(the one that is a single) and it becomes a 7 seater with super easy
access to the rear seat. If I need to move a large computer rack, I
remove the whole center section and fold flat the back seat, I then have
the same lenght capacity as the 5 seater. Or you can convert it to the
"limo" mode as I call it if you have people sitting in the third row and
the second is out of the car. Peugeot was showing a concept minivan some
months back, using that layout. Of course if you never have more than 2
people in the car and never haul anything and the trunk of the sedan is
sufficient, the sedan is probably a better choice. Shorter wheelbase so
it's easier to drive around and park (altough the longer wheelbase is
better at absorbing road asperities, I've found, particularly with the
wagon loaded).
Maintenance and other costs: Turbo is highest $$ maintenance, then V6,
then 4 gas, then 4 turbo diesel and finally 4 cyl normally aspirated
diesel. A Turbo that is not well maintained and properly tuned is no fun
owning and driving. A V6 will take an incredible amount of abuse. Also
in that same decreasing order is the fun factor, but MPG inversely
proportional. In these days of higher gas prices that might mean
something to you and your wallet. Having said that, it is possible to
drive the Turbo gas in a way to get better mileage than the V6. The V6,
it doesn't really matter how you drive it, you cant improve much your
MPG without extensive modifications to the vehicule (in the area of the
exhaust in particular). Of course, none of the gas engines can match
what you can do with a diesel.
If you want something different, try to track down Ray O'Donnell. I
haven't seen him on the list for years now. Maybe he's ready to sell his
V6 wagon... Or buy an SW8 with blown engine (or engineless) and have a
V6 transplant done. Or import a 505 Dangel 4x4, or even one of the
pickup variations...
In conclusion, what is really amazing about the 505 is just how
versatile and varied and how capable its design turned out to be. Hats
off to whoever pushed the project at Peugeot in the 70s.
Ciao,
Francois
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Received on Wed Mar 9 08:21:11 2005
