Buying advice and Hi!

[awattam]

Hi everyone, this is my first post, I'm looking for a 406 and need some pointers.

Basically I need the car to travel round Europe for 2 weeks, probably covering about 3-4,000 miles. I used to own a 306 TD and it was an amazing car, very reliable and excellent to drive, I need something a bit bigger now so I fancy a 406.

I'm looking to spend around £1000 so I'd be looking for a 1.9 TD and would like an estate if possible.

What should I be looking for when I buy? Are there any common faults which I should look for?

The 306 suffers from corroded Air Con pipes, creaky rear axles and knocking rear axle bushes. Are any of these problems shared with the 406?

Ideally I'd like to run it on vegetable oil, which would mean finding one with a Bosch pump. Are these fitted at random along with Lucas like the 306, or is there a pattern to which ones were fitted (build dates etc)?

[mjb]

Not much to watch out for with D8s really apart from the central locking/immobiliser system. Check the key plip works all door locks including the boot, and if there's an immobiliser keypad under a flap by the drivers knee, ask the seller for the code and make sure it works. The fix isn't cheap.

Apart from that just check everything electrical and use it as haggling ammo if it's broke. Check the windscreen, tyres and brake discs as replacement can cost. Make sure the spare tyre well isn't a swimming pool on saloons, and it may be worth shining a torch at the front suspension springs.

[Welly]

What should I be looking for when I buy?

A 2.1ltr 12valve td.

I don't think you'll have much success with Veggy oil realy (for what it saves you).

[steve_earwig]

Greetings! 2.1= Lucas (Epidemic), 1.9 = Bosch. The 2.1 is a very nice lump but a bitch to do any major work on 'cos it's massive, the 1.9's a bit of a slug (but there's things you can do about that if you've a mind to ). Did you see the price of vegetable oil lately?

As mjb says, make sure it all works; rotten condensors, front arb drop links, rear track arm bushes, the useless handbrake is a standard feature , there seems to be an outbreak of duff cooling fans and broken front springs just now...

[ianst28]

veggie oil is ok as long as you run a minimum of 70/30 diesel 70% veggie but like steve says it ain't cheap anymore i've been getting mine from costco and it's working out to about 85p a litre yes it is cheaper but it's alot of hassle at least diesel you just pull up and put the nozzle in veggie oil you have to pour in by hand
thats ok as long as you don't have the neighbours i do nosey bas^!rds

[awattam]

Thanks for everybody's advice, seems like there aren't any major problems to watch out for.

"2.1= Lucas (Epidemic), 1.9 = Bosch"

Do I take this to mean that ALL 1.9 TDs are Bosch pumped (OK for veggie) and all 2.1s are Lucas (NOT ok)?

I realise the price of veg oil has gone up but it should still save us a few quid, I'm kinda hoping it'll be cheaper in Europe too. We might end up just using diesel all the time, it is far easier to just fill up at the pump as someone said. I'm pretty tight though

[steve_earwig]

Do I take this to mean that ALL 1.9 TDs are Bosch pumped (OK for veggie) and all 2.1s are Lucas (NOT ok)?

According to Haynes (Bumper Book of Fun).

I just had a thought: you get pumps for heating oil at the petrol stations here, you're not meant to run your cars on them (work that one out!) but people do, my Transit ran on it fine but I'm told HDis won't. The 1.9 should, and probably the 2.1 as well. It's nearly 80p a litre here (the wnakers tax it just like any other fuel) but in the UK it's currently 61.5 pence a litre.

Here's the thing: WHat's to stop you getting a heating oil tank, shoving it in your garden, getting it filled up and -deleted for legal reasons-

[awattam]

Do I take this to mean that ALL 1.9 TDs are Bosch pumped (OK for veggie) and all 2.1s are Lucas (NOT ok)?

According to Haynes (Bumper Book of Fun).

I just had a thought: you get pumps for heating oil at the petrol stations here, you're not meant to run your cars on them (work that one out!) but people do, my Transit ran on it fine but I'm told HDis won't. The 1.9 should, and probably the 2.1 as well. It's nearly 80p a litre here (the wnakers tax it just like any other fuel) but in the UK it's currently 61.5 pence a litre.

Here's the thing: WHat's to stop you getting a heating oil tank, shoving it in your garden, getting it filled up and -deleted for legal reasons-

Hmm, not sure I trust the Haynes book of lies. I know what each pump looks like though so I can keep an eye on them when I'm buying.

The heating oil thing - I can't say I've seen it at petrol stations in the UK, but then I've never looked. It is however VERY illegal here to use it in a vehicle, and I think they'd really sting you if you got caught but Customs and Excise. Veg oil on the other hand is legal (up to 2500 litres a year). Not sure if it's legal in Europe too - looking at driving through Germany, France, Austria, Italy and Poland.

Errrm, anyone got a 406 estate they want to sell?

[steve_earwig]

Yes but it's a left hooker and it's registered here.

[awattam]

Yes but it's a left hooker and it's registered here.

Would love to fly over and then drive it back, that'd be an adventure! Be a struggle to sell when we get back though if it's LHD.

[steve_earwig]

Cost you a fortune too (price of cars here is insane)

It is however VERY illegal here to use it in a vehicle, and I think they'd really sting you if you got caught but Customs and Excise.

Apparently they will confiscate your car. The barstewards. Why would they be looking though? Tip off from the supplier??

[maglite]

Ok I'm surprised that nobody mentioned leaking shocks and bushes! Watch out for worn out bushes!... The D8's are aging a bit now and so therefore could have dodgy anti-roll bar links too. These are just common bits to check when looking at a 1.9DT. The Torque from the 2.1 is so much nicer. If you are going for the estate, I would definately suggest getting the 2.1.. i think the 2.1 has discs at the back too! (I think)

[steve_earwig]

Mine does!

I mentioned bushes, the usual ones seem to be the rear track arms. No-one's mentioned leaking shocks on this forum so I presumed the OE ones screw up in other ways.

I'm always worried that we're lining up someone with a dud so caveat emptor should still apply, we can list what we know about the cars but every individual one could potentially have a fault we've not come across. Maybe we should add to use your common sense, no good coming to us afterward saying "I checked every area you mentioned and it was fine but when I got it home I noticed it didn't have a floor in it"

[awattam]

Mine does!
I'm always worried that we're lining up someone with a dud so caveat emptor should still apply, we can list what we know about the cars but every individual one could potentially have a fault we've not come across. Maybe we should add to use your common sense, no good coming to us afterward saying "I checked every area you mentioned and it was fine but when I got it home I noticed it didn't have a floor in it"

Don't worry, I'm still going to have a damn good look over any car which I buy, it's just nice to know which weak points to look out for, specific to the 406. Every car has it's weak points somewhere and it's good to pay special attention to these, or even to be prepared for them to go wrong once you've bought it.

I need something which will be completely reliable for about 4k miles in 2 weeks so I'd rather solve any problems before we set off than be stranded somewhere!

The list of 406 specific things to look for so far seems to be.....

- Leaking shocks
- Worn bushes, especially those in the rear TCAs
- Immobiliser Keypad code is present and works
- Front anti-roll-bar links
- Leaks in the boot on saloons

Anything else to add?

Thanks guys, hopefully this will help me when I look for mine, and others if they find this post

[steve_earwig]

*racks brains - doesn't take long...* Broken springs, duff electrics, pulsing or U/S cooling fans, collapsed seat frames, dripping overhead consoles, stuck rear wash/wipe, warped disks (f&r), corroded rear disks, leaking coolant hoses, erratic gauges, sticking speedos (2.1 speciality), leaking ps pumps, rusty sills..............