Should I buy a 206cc with major electrical problems

[ccblue]

Hi all from New Zealand — I'm new here, but quite interested in the 206cc. We haven't bought one yet but one has come up for sale which is an excellent price because it has some significant electrical issues.

It's a 2003 1.6 auto with only 47,000km (29,000 miles) which is a major part of the attraction. Also it's asking price is $4,900ono compared to the $10 - $12,000 it would probably normally go for here.

For comparison, I could spend $1,000 more ($5,900) and get a good working '02 206cc but which has done 166,000km (103,000 miles).

The one in question seems in fine condition (only seen photos so far) but the problems are described as follows:

This vehicle has some electrical issues which needs to be fixed. Vehicle start and drives ok
It shows airbag fault, ABS fault, vehicle speed no singnal fault, due to that vehicle speed needle in the instrument cluster does not work, roof can not open.When i open car central locks automactically start opening and closing car few time then ok.

In other words:

* airbag fault
* ABS fault
* no speedometer
* non-functional roof
* central locking behaving oddly

My thinking is that to get ALL of those problems from independent causes is extremely unlikely. I'm hoping there's some central thingy which I could replace and magically fix the lot and drive away in a low-mileage bargain. That's the optimist in me!

Would love to hear some opinions from people with more knowledge than me about what is the likely culprit for all the above symptoms.

Thanks for any thoughts.

Jeff

[GrandadMonkey]

I wouldn't bother unless you are very experienced working on these cars, but if you like a challenge and have access to cheap secondhand spare parts, have a go.

I wouldn't waste my money on it myself. I'd buy a good one instead.

Welcome to the forum.

[Capncol]

You might be lucky and find the problems are caused by something like a failing battery, but it's one heck of a gamble.
Unless you're very skilled in vehicle systems including multiplex (can bus) and have the diagnostic equipment needed to interrogate the systems, I would give this car a miss and buy one that is working.

[Enright]

Col, when did the multiplex models start? I thought it was 04/05, which might make an 03 slightly easier to work on, but please correct me if I'm wrong.

As for the issues:
Airbag fault could be down to the Comm2000 unit behind the steering wheel (provided you know the car's definitely not been crashed). Very easy fix, and the only issue that has occurred to us since owning the car. Could be up to a couple of hundred dollars for the replacement part for you though - we had a handy donor.
However auto gearboxes are less common, and the vehicle speed sensor issue/ABS fault may be due to a problem in that area. I would expect them to be linked but separate to the first problem.
Fixing the speedo issue (which could just be a dodgy sensor) might get your roof operating, otherwise you'd have to go down the usual route of checking microswitches.
I wouldn't expect the central locking issue to be linked at all. I would have thought it was just another microswitch/actuator issue, and with a CC you've only got a couple of likely suspects.

I found when I sorted my other half's CC out that the diagnostic equipment wasn't too expensive, and it's now even cheaper. Put "Peugeot Lexia" into eBay and you'll get lots of reasonably priced hits. Then go to http://www.peugeotforums.com for info on how to download and activate the software to run it (Peugeot Planet 2000). You need a laptop that can run Windows XP, or has the capacity to run it as a "virtual machine".

If you're reasonably handy with fault diagnosis and repair (or like me are just stubborn enough to say "I'm not going to let it beat me!), then it could be worth doing. You'll certainly get to know the car quite well in the process. You've just got to be prepared for it to be unusable for a while until you get it sorted, which can get a bit demoralising. Good luck, whichever route you choose.

[gazza82]

Multiplex started to appear in 2002 .. and it's likely it was across the range of cars. Our 2002 1.4 HDi is mux .. the 2001 cc is non-mux.

Easiest way to tell is the radio stalk on the steering column: long and thin, pre-mux, short and wide, mux.


I got a Lexia cable system from aliexpress ... took a few days to reach the UK ... but was less than ebay offers. (It's probably where most of the ebay cables come from before the sellers put on their markups!)

[ccblue]

Thanks all for your thoughts. The Peugeot Lexia diagnostic tool looks really interesting — I think I'd want it even if we get a good working 206 cc instead of this one. If we got this broken cc, would a donor 206 have to be a cc? Same year or not? Sounds like they changed a fair bit electrically through the years.

Might be wisest just to hold off for a bit and see what other good cc's come up for sale. The average mileage seems pretty high on the current lot for sale — around 150,000 to 160,000 km (93,000 to 99,000 miles).

Does the cc hold up well at that kind of mileage?

[GrandadMonkey]

At that mileage you can expect to need replacement of clutch (if a manual) or gearbox (if an auto), exhaust, timing belt and water pump (if not already done), brakes, suspension, wheel bearings, battery and tyres - just like any French car. Probable electrical glitches too such as starter motor and alternator. Depends what has already been replaced and how well it has been serviced and looked after.

[Capncol]

If we got this broken cc, would a donor 206 have to be a cc? Same year or not?

Even two same models of the same year can have significant differences. Just search this site for people who have tried to change seats to see what I mean.

[Enright]

Thanks all for your thoughts. The Peugeot Lexia diagnostic tool looks really interesting — I think I'd want it even if we get a good working 206 cc instead of this one. If we got this broken cc, would a donor 206 have to be a cc? Same year or not? Sounds like they changed a fair bit electrically through the years.

Might be wisest just to hold off for a bit and see what other good cc's come up for sale. The average mileage seems pretty high on the current lot for sale — around 150,000 to 160,000 km (93,000 to 99,000 miles).

Does the cc hold up well at that kind of mileage?

Yes, its a good tool, although being a French translation to English, some of the software is a bit counter-intuitive at times. Still, it's worth having just for fault diagnosis and resetting of fault codes. Over here garages often charge £40 just to connect your car to a machine, and that's before even touching anything mechanical. So if you only use it to dispel any potential BS twice, then it's paid for itself!

You might find my project thread interesting: http://www.peugeot206cc.co.uk/viewtopic.php?f=1&t=13625 I attempted a model with an even worse history than the one you're considering, and learnt as I went along (with help from this forum). If you were to get a donor, I would say yes, get one as similar to yours as you feasibly can, because there are some pretty subtle but very significant electrical changes. Plus it's handy to have your own parts bucket parked outside if anything goes wrong!

I totally agree with your philosophy of buying something at a bargain price that you can then sort out at your leisure. Even if it ends up costing money to sort out you've still spread the cost rather than having to find it in one lump sum, so it's like buying it on hire purchase! Then of course there is the aspect of gaining familiarity and confidence with it, so you know the car well and are less scared of tackling bigger stuff if the need arises.

Go on, go for it - you know you want to!