What To Look For When Buying A 205 Cti

[olth01 0]

I have an appointment on Monday to go see and test drive a 205 CTI 1.6 from 1989.

The price is spot-on, and the car should be in excellent condition.

Is there anything I should pay particular attention to?

Here in Denmark, cars are plagued by rust. Where should I look?

I am very excited to try it, and hope that it is in as good condition as I am promised.

[dcc 855]

A convertable is a good start.

 

That car is a phase 1.5 by the looks of it, fitted with phase 2 seats.

 

I think common issues are rear screen, sills rusting, rear axle, engine rattles etc...

 

Make sure hood is good and tidy, also mechanism if electric.

 

Then ofcourse how tired are bushes, suspension and other mechanicals.

[jackherer 543]

Also check the condition of all the rubber window/door seals.

[Gaz205 50]

Do you really want a cti? Or deep down a gti but can't find a good enough example?

When I was looking I found some had a lot of wind noise when others didn't and also the hood cover (I can't spell the real name) is a bonus and check for cracked rear window

[olth01 0]

#2 The hood is manual, and brand-new. I´ll make sure it fits properly. During the tstdrive, I´ll keep an ear out for rattling and funny noises. And ofcourse test the handling. :-)

 

#3 Seals will be inspected, thanks.

 

#4 Actually, I have thought about replacing my bike (Yamaha MT 07) with a convertible for some time. I miss having my wife and kids with me, when its ice-cream-time at the beach on hot sommerdays.

And I have always been a fan of the old Pugs, so when I found this car, I knew that I wanted it bad. :-D

[Henry Yorke 269 3 Cars]

CTIs are all about hood condition usually. Check how split it is by the hinge behind the rear quarter window. Poke the bottom of the hood between the hinge and the rear of the car as there is a hood stiffener in there and it goes rusty. Similar is the metal which holds the rear screen down above the boot. Luckily these have been remade now as they are not available from Peugeot.

 

Drivers seats are often worn as they are cloth as standard, but yours has half leather. The rear seat backs are different on CTI's and you often get cloth backs in them or adapted GTI cushions which have been squashed.

 

Door top glass scrapers are usually split and not available now, so don't be surprised there. Watch for a crack at the top of the drivers door under this rubber where the glass pushes on the door skin.

 

Carpets can get tatty with no roof on and sun bleach so make sure this is in good condition.

 

Tonneau cover for the hood is a nice addition as it should come with one.

 

Suspension wise, they should be ok as they are not as stiff as a GTI and last longer, though check the rear beam like any 205. Front Track Control Arms are cheap and easy to replace and will stiffen up the front end.

 

No CTI's came on 1.9 wheels so these will be non standard.

 

Check the dash condition as they are often cracked, as people tend to run with the heaters on more in CTIs so they get heat cycled more and go brittle (is my theory).

 

I have seen a few with rusty cills and these are not easy to obtain now so make sure it is solid, along with the usual inner arches etc.

 

CTI's offer great value for money and are not prone to significant scuttle shake like other 80's cabriolets.

[Henry Yorke 269 3 Cars]

If you are haning this as a family car, just take note that thre are only 2 seatbelts in the back and they are only lap belts and not full 3 point seatbelts. You can make some harnesses quite easily to make them more secure, but just check that the wife is happy with it! They are a great experience to be able to take young kids out in them. All mine love my CTI, more so than the GTI.

[olth01 0]

#6&7 Thank you, I will bring your list with me.. I hope that I can convince her that, despite of its age and lack of safety-equipment, it is not a deathtrap. Fingers crossed...

 

The cars vin-number is VF320DB6223291480

 

What can you decipher from that?

[Henry Yorke 269 3 Cars]

Go to www.205GTI.info as you can tell some stuff on your VIN from there.

 

It sounds like it is just a standard 1.6 CTI. if you are lucky it will have power steering and electric windows (which I think it has). It shouldn't have an electric hood at that age. just check the rear beam doesn't look like /-----\ when you look at it from behind. it should look like I--------I

[steve@cornwall 100]

If you do notice the windy noise from top of screen whilst driving, it is likely that the closing handles have worn, limiting the mechanism travel. The wear can be built back up with weld .

[olth01 0]

#10 Nice to know. I´ll keep that in mind, if it becomes an issue.

 

Here are the vin-number data from www.205gti.info:

 

 

[Gaz205 50]

105ps??

[olth01 0]

According to the vin data yes.

[jackherer 543]

They didn't fit the 105ps 1.6 engine into post 1987 205s in the UK but obviously it was different in Denmark.

[Gaz205 50]

Apologies I missed the Denmark aspect

[olth01 0]

I bought it!

 

I brought a mechanic with me.

No rust, perfect underside, new hood.

It ran lumpy, but with new plugs and some attention to the distributor and the leads, all was good.

I haven't tried any other 1.6 cti, so I don't know how the power delivery should feel like, but I miss some power.

Luckily, one of my friends is a Peugeot mechanic, I bet he can make it perfect.

 

The bottom rubber windowseals on the the doors seems like they're to short?

Because of this, water had ran into the drivers door, and no electrics work here.

But this weekend I'm going to drain it and treat it before it rusts away.

The fog-light button doesn't work, and the hazard button, doesn't stay in.

 

All-in-all, not without fails and problems.

But most importantly, it's without rust..

 

Drove 400 km home without any problems..

Edited February 27, 2017 by olth01

[Gaz205 50]

Congratulations on your purchase, hope you get all the little bits fixed in time for summer ????

[steve@cornwall 100]

Looks nice. Same colour as my first one.

[flyfisher 6 2 Cars]

I've had several ctis I would say under rear seats around metal bungs hood as already said sills ripped faded carpets rust bottom of b posts rust corners of screen pillars rust inner wing seams this one you won't see but rust under petrol tank need tank out to see this a pain in the arse job but worth doing hope I haven't put you off all in all great cars well worth investing in but get a good un thanks peter