[Car_Overhaul] Laser Green 205 1.6 Gti

[Baz 421]

 

That is a lovely find Tom, good work! (not that it took a lot of that by the sounds of it you jammy b@stard!! )

[Tom Fenton 1,542]

Here are the couple of interior pics I took. Not great by any means but good enough from my phone.

 

Untitled by Tom Fenton, on Flickr

 

Untitled by Tom Fenton, on Flickr

 

Untitled by Tom Fenton, on Flickr

 

 

I put a few pics on facebook last night, a mate of mine grew up over the road from Ruth and her (now) ex husband George, he can remember this car when she had it.

[u47sb2 27 2 Cars]

Very nice car. If only gems like that could be found up in scotland! (a laser green 205 is on my 'wanted' list of cars!)

[jamesc 3]

Very Nice,

 

Does he want to sell the 106?

[Daviewonder 533 3 Cars]

I may think about selling my red turbo at some point

 

 

You can't do that

 

It's the equivalent of Keith Harris selling Orville. (sorry best example I could come up with)

[Bogsye 22]

Very nice car. If only gems like that could be found up in scotland! (a laser green 205 is on my 'wanted' list of cars!)

 

You've noticed that too. I think this is where they come to die?

 

Back on thread - Tom, good luck with the new aquisition. Looks lovely!

[Tom Fenton 1,542]

Does he want to sell the 106?

 

I have first refusal if he ever does decide to sell it

[eddie bullit 37]

Starting to dislike you

[MikeM 5]

Fantastic looking car Tom! What a treat for a car with all the history to turn up. Makes me wish that I had just tidied up my gti when I got it instead of going down the trackcar route.

I agree with the above posts regarding 205s in scotland, only ever seem to find them with a goosed 16v in them and rusty bits!

Hope to see more pictures after a good polish

cheers

[Tom Fenton 1,542]

So I'm off to collect this little beastie this afternoon, really quite excited!

[maxi 36 1 Cars]

Looks like a right little corker! Enjoy it mate, and I think your plan of enjoying it as a standard car is the best way forward.

 

Maxi

[Tom Fenton 1,542]

Thanks chaps. I picked this up yesterday, went for a drive of about 15 miles locally, it is by no means fast, but it really is nice just to pootle about in. It drives lovely, everything is nice and light, it is a pleasure to use. No smoking that I could see, all temperatures and pressures good, if anything it feels slower than I remember my red 1.6 to be when it was standard, but I've an idea this is probably that it has never really been thrashed especially, librarian owner for 8 years then old gent for 12 years.

 

Pictures are to follow, I am already starting to collate a list of bits and pieces to attend to, but there is nothing much, just silly things like the door check strap pin has been replaced with a bolt, the rear valance doesn't line up properly, the drivers door has a dent that I hope a good dent man can sort, etc.

 

Another bit of news, after I'd agreed to buy it, John who was the past owner has been in touch with Ruth who was the owner before, she does remember me, and apparently still has some paperwork/documents that go with the car! So I will be in touch with her soon to pop round to see her and see what she has!

 

The docs that came with the car are great, John had also saved a number of magazine articles, one from a 1991 Autocar, and another Which! magazine from 1991 with an article review hot hatchbacks. All this is great stuff and just adds more and more to the history of the car.

[Tom Fenton 1,542]

Here are a few pictures, this is approx 20 mins after I picked it up, all I have done it driven it to where I took the pics.

 

Untitled by Tom Fenton, on Flickr

 

Untitled by Tom Fenton, on Flickr

 

Untitled by Tom Fenton, on Flickr

 

Untitled by Tom Fenton, on Flickr

 

And finally, another nice discovery, it has both the original Peugeot keys, one has not been used as it still has the textured finish to the plastic. Plus it also has the dealer keyring plus the original key tag with code on it.

 

Untitled by Tom Fenton, on Flickr

[Richie 32]

Looks great that mate bet your well chuffed. I've never seen a lazer on the road before, only ever at shows. Is a very cool colour.

[Henry Yorke 269 3 Cars]

I've seen it in the flesh today and it has virginal inner wings and it is hard to find anything it really needs. A nice little classic to store for the future. I'll give you a shout when the classic magazines come sniffing about for a standard 1600 for a feature (usually short notice though!)

[cybernck 402 1 Cars]

What's going on with that rear wiper, FFS! ....................

[Tom Fenton 1,542]

It works a treat, it just needs moving, its on the list!

[feb 47]

You are a very lucky man! (no, not jealous at all!)

It looks like a well looked after car in great condition body wise (at least).

How much did it set you back if you don't mind me asking? PM if you don't wish to mention publicly.

[Tom Fenton 1,542]

So a little more history to add to the list.

 

This morning I phoned up Ruth who owned this car from 1992 to 1999. She remembered me from when I did some work on her 206 GT which replaced this car. She said she had a few bits of paperwork so I arranged to call round this afternoon.

 

I arrived and she was more than pleased to see the car again! She was also quite suprised at the condition- apart from a couple of things she said that the car was pretty much in the same condition as when she last saw it in 1999- a credit to how John has looked after it.

 

The paperwork turned out to be tax discs from 1996 to 1999 (I already have them all from 2000 onwards), an old MOT cert that was missing from the rest, and a bill for a new downpipe wire ring and fitting.

 

I asked her where she bought the car from, it turned out that she got it from the Brighouse auctions, in 1992, as a 40th birthday present to herself, on the 16th April 1992, so the car was just over 12 months old having been first reg'd in March 1991, with 16,000 miles on the clock. She paid £6800 for it, and was quite peeved that Pikes in Rotherham would only allow her £1800 against it in 1999 when she bought the 206 GT.

 

The story from before then is that a gent Mr Potts, bought the car for his son, who was going to University in York, to travel from south of Mansfield to York. This probably explains the 16k in its first year. What happened after that to mean it went up for sale I do not know.

 

Ruth also had some pictures from 1992 from when she first got the car, she is going to scan these and send them to me. There is a bit of a dilemma here though, as these pictures show it with its plates from the dealer who originally supplied it, from Lowdham near Nottingham. The car at present has all the plates and stickers from Pikes in Rotherham, who supplied it to John, so the dilemma is whether to keep it as it is, or to try and get repro plates and bits made to return it to the Lowdham info. Jury is out at the moment on that one.

 

So a few pictures

 

On Ruths drive, where the car lived for 7 years

Untitled by Tom Fenton, on Flickr

 

Ruths 206 GT that replaced the 205

Untitled by Tom Fenton, on Flickr

 

Both cars together

Untitled by Tom Fenton, on Flickr

 

Finally Ruth sat in her old car, you maybe cannot see in the pic but she had a huge grin and was really pleased to see it!

Untitled by Tom Fenton, on Flickr

 

Also interesting, whilst I was there for about an hour, 3 people on the street walked past and remembered the car, asked Ruth if it was her old car etc.

[maxi 36 1 Cars]

This really is quite a heart warming little story. Its nice to see the little pug was loved all its life, to me this is what the little gti's are about, they all have their own story to tell.

 

Maxi

[Tom Fenton 1,542]

So as she promised here are the photos from 1992 when Ruth first got the car.

 

Untitled by Tom Fenton, on Flickr

 

Untitled by Tom Fenton, on Flickr

 

Untitled by Tom Fenton, on Flickr

 

Untitled by Tom Fenton, on Flickr

 

Untitled by Tom Fenton, on Flickr

 

Untitled by Tom Fenton, on Flickr

 

And finally, this shot from 1999 when Ruth part-exchanged the car at the local dealer against her 206 GT, car in the showroom at the local main dealer.

 

Untitled by Tom Fenton, on Flickr

[DaveW 6]

Talk about time warp! of that 1st old pic on the drive

[Tom Fenton 1,542]

The old pictures are great aren't they, the other thing that struck me is how modern the 205 looked at the time against the Cortina which also wasn't that old.

 

After a look at the pictures I did a bit of research and it appears that John Harrison of Lowdham Peugeot dealer is still going (I think anyway). So my next plan is to get in touch with them and see if there are any old hands still working there who may remember the car or have some stories about its owners. A very long shot I know, after 20 years, but it has to be worth a try. Even if there is no one that remembers it, I'm tempted to take it down there anyway, for a few photos of it on the forecourt.

[welshpug 1,661]

Worth a shot definitely, local parts man and a few of the Master techs were around when the 205 came out

[Phil H 16]

Car looks very nice. Get some number plate decals with the dealers name on, and get some of the larger font number plates made up, then a rear window sticker, tax disc holder, key fobs etc. They may still have some dusty old ones about that are from the era.