The 406 Has To Go :-(

[peugeot406rapier]

hello everyone, sorry i havent been here in a while ive had quite a bad work accident and my left leg was badly hurt and so ive been totally unable to drive, it all healed up okay now but its not the same and now its impossible to drive a manual with the numbness and the pain when in traffic so the 406 has to go soon, ive been using a 3.2 V6 Vectra GSI Auto its been fantastic ive loved it so im definatly going for another V6 auto so its got to be a 406 V6 so some good has come of it just a shame that my days of enjoying a manual have been cut short, so not knowing an awlful lot about the V6 as ive only had the HDi and 1.8 petrol can anyone tell me what to look for with the V6's? what the common problems are and how durable they are? ive seen a few cars and im hopefully looking this weekend at a few but it would be handy to go armed with some hot spots to look at under the bonnet! i want to put my car up for £1250 its probably a bit dear but its mint condition with only a small marks, full service history and 93,000 miles in china blue metallic does this seem a good price? (its a 2000 X 1.8 Petrol Rapier saloon)

[mjb]

can anyone tell me what to look for with the V6's? what the common problems are and how durable they are?

They're pretty solid lumps, but the auto box can have issues if the fluid's never been changed or is at the wrong level.

The ES9J4 (194bhp, old version, D8 and early D9s) has a manual throttle body and the ICV can get dirty resulting in a lumpy idle. Easily fixed, I've done a howto.

The ES9J4S (211bhp, new version, D9s from about 2001) has VVT and a fly-by-wire throttle which can be sensitive to a dodgy throttle position sensor.

The ES9J4S apparently has slightly smoother power delivery whereas the 194bhp version can be a little lacking under 4000rpm (I'm convinced it's a fixable problem with air delivery as my saloon was sweet throughout the whole range!)

I bought my ES9J4 at 170,000 miles because I know they are solid engines, although coil packs can deteriorate with age

[swiss]

That's a useful nugget of info, regarding older enjins still being reliable. I'm still hoping to trade up to a V6 some day and being able to confidently buy an older one would be a plus...

[mjb]

If you buy one over about 150k though, you should look for a clutch change in the history or be aware there's a large bill/lots of work in the future

[swiss]

Fair enough. Can say the same for my diseasel, though as luck would have it I know a man

Oh, and forgot to say sorry 'bout the leg to the OP ^^ Automatics are miles easier but just aren't as much fun IMO

[peugeot406rapier]

thanks for all the replies everyone! i was looking at a 52 plate Exec V auto with 65k on the clock with a full service history and 2 owners so hopefully this is the one! oh well its reassuring to know the V6's are pretty bullet-proof, ill just be at the pumps more often..nevermind you cant have it all! thanks again everyone if i get this one ill be sure to put up pics and more in depth info

Martin

[mjb]

oh well its reassuring to know the V6's are pretty bullet-proof, ill just be at the pumps more often..nevermind you cant have it all!

Can't have it all? I managed 707 miles to a tank in my V6 with 2 passengers (plus myself) and a boot+back seat literally FULL of luggage.



Mind you I was slipstreaming trucks most of the way... My usual is about 250-300 to the tank (lots of short urban trips so the car barely gets to warm up) and I think my "best" has been about 150 Was a fun day though

[darrenwall]

make sure the previous owner had the cam belt changed as on the v6 it is a very expensive job

[STALLED]

The V6's are brilliant. Never heard of any major problems with them - coil packs (given for any car of that age) and a slight oil leak from the top end...

Economy wise, there are comparable to the XU10 Petrols - Sub 10L/100km averages are easy to get!