General Pug 207 Pricing

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General Pug 207 Pricing

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Have you seen the price of a base model 207 on launch date? £8995? That's just crazy considering it's being made in the Czech Republic (!)

The base model GP is £7589, madness.

Who do they think they are? VW?
 
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It's those greedy Frenchies at it again, the Clio is just as expensive. Think they can justify it by smothering their interiors in 'soft touch' plastics and adding several kgs to the weight. Which leads me to the next point - what is with the obsession with 'soft touch' plastics in small cars? I mean, how many of you out there actually lean forward and caress the dashboard? Good on Fiat not jumping on the bandwagon with the GP, as long as the thing's well screwed together and looks like some imagination has gone into the design then I think that's what counts. Would like to see Fiat getting a bit more adventurous in the dashboard design department though - remember the Ecobasic concept from a few years back?
 
'Soft touch' plastics give a feel of quality. With the GP, the coloured part of the dash is nice to touch whereas the upper section is hard plastic which doesn't bother me one little bit as it looks well put together. As for the Clio, they use the softest plastics around wxcept for the entry level models which all have HARD plastic dashes and still about 1300 quid more than an entry level GP!

Robbing gits!!
 
I hate French cars, particularly Peugeot.

Not only does the entire Peugeot range look utterly ridiculous, the cars are (as we have already identified) overpriced, and totally unreliable.

OK, let's not have any comments about the pot calling the kettle black, but if my car is parked up by the side of the road with the hazard lights on, at least I can enjoy the lines whilst I thrash it with a branch.

My company uses Peugeots on the fleet and every single one I have driven/been in has had some kind of electrical malady, or build quality concern. The plastics are soft touch, but they're not a patch on VW's soft touch if you know what I mean. It's like Fiat and the Stilo. Crap soft touch. And yes, who really cares about whether or not your air vent control feels like a sodding squash ball?!

It seems that on a French car, the attention to detail is always wrong. The dash has some nice materials, but these will decay and fall off and manage to look cheap and shiny within a few years. And whilst the dash looks and feels squishy, everything you touch and actually use (indicators, steering wheel, window switches, etc) feels flimsy.

The worst thing about the fact that the 207 is so expensive, is that they will still sell like hot cakes to blind, lemming like f*ckwitts who will snap up whatever they're told to on the TV, in HEAT magazine, or on Handbag.com.

The whole styling thing comes from pedestrian safety requirements. This is the reason the 407 and latterly the 307 look like a deep sea fish that has been squeezed very tightly such that it's eyes are about to bulge out of its sockets. It seems that they have said to themselves 'ok, our cars have to look like this now.... so lets pretend it's what we wanted in the first place.'

Those who remember that Peugeot used to make pretty cars aren't fooled.

And then there's the new Clio..... don't get me started.....!(n)
 
Bit of a missive I know, but why do people plump for cars which just don't cut it? It's something that constantly perplexes me.

If you're going to buy a car that breaks, it may as well look good.

Seems to me that if you buy a Peugeot you not only get a car that breaks, but also looks just stupid! I genuinely don't understand why anyone has bought a facelifted 307. The original wasn't exactly striking, the replacement is.... stupid.

Can't think of another word for it, although I did consider crazy, goofy and 'FUBAR.'

I was just thinking aswell, maybe Peugeot have shot themselves in the foot with the closure of the factory in Ryton - there has been a lot in the press lately about how it costs 10p to make each car in Eastern Europe rather than £1 in the Midlands.... perhaps people should expect the 207 to be a lot less?

No, actually these people don't read.

As for girlfriends and cars.... mine does as she's told. Her Fiesta will be replaced by a Panda in due course.......;)
 
Ha ha ha well said Alex. Bashing your car with a branch Bazil Fawlty style? How could you do that to your GP??

It pisses me off more than anyone how people seem to think French cars are so 'cool' or whatever. I must admit (you'll probably hate me for this) I did have a Renault Megane until I traded it in for my new GP which I got last week. For a while, I did like the Megane until they bacame 2 a penny and then I wanted rid of it.

I work at the docks here in Belfast and am fortunate enough to get a first look and drive at most of the new models that come into Northern Ireland. When the Clio first arrived here last year, there were people out and around it, looking it up and down etc etc and saying, yeah yeah that's quite nice acually blah blah blah blah. However when the new Grande Punto first arrived here in January NO-ONE batted an eylid even though it is 900 million gazillion times better looking than the dull as fcuk Clio!

I mean if you put a Renault or Peugeot badge on a GP everyone would be raving about it but because it's a FIAT people just didn't care. As the advert says 'Open your eyes'. After i ordered demo GP, I spent 2 months of listening to 'Don't buy a FIAT because this and that and the other'...it's almost like I was fighting people off to get the car that I WANT!!! 'Is it too late to pull out'! Really my ears were stinging. But now I've got it, it seems to have raised a few eyebrows.

I'm truely delighted with my new GP so **** anyone who think's it's uncool cos it's not French. ******s
 
LOL Alex has very strong opinions on the styling of new Pugs. I couldn't agree with him more. They've always been craply put together but at least they used to look nice; the days of the 205/106/306/406/406 Coupe seem long gone (n)
 
My Dad went from Alfa to Peugeot almost twnety years ago and has had a 205, 309, a couple of 306's and his present 406 coupe. All have been utterly reliable and the 309, which I drove after passing my test and my sister learned to drive in, covered 160,000 miles with no problems. The car was still on it's original clutch when my sister traded it in for her 206. It seems that the newer cars (307 etc) are not so good, which is why my Dad has held onto his coupe so long.
Unfortunately he's out of work now and wants rid of the gas guzzler (it's a V6 auto) and I'm trying to talk him into buying the wife's Punto as her new Grande Sporting is on it's way.
 
Bit of a missive I know, but why do people plump for cars which just don't cut it? It's something that constantly perplexes me.

I think you'll find that Fiat's marketing budget has historically been underfunded compared to the likes of PSA Group cars and Renault. For example, the Nicole/Papa campaign for the Clio in the 90s did wonders for sales and embedded it in the national consciousness.

Not only that but Renault didn't forget the impact it's RenaultSport models would have on the image of the rest of the range. Fiat has neglected its heritage of sporty, fun to drive performance models over the past (Coupe Fiat excepted), they forgot to develop the Abarth branding and 'halo' models. Why no RHD Barchetta? Why ape the Golf with the disappointing Stilo? Why no replacement for the Coupe? Instead, too many people remember Fiats of the late seventies that rusted and fell to pieces - it's clearly a massive failure of Fiat UK's marketing department that these prejudices still remain. I'm no marketing expert but Fiats have been fully galvanised for well over a decade now, why havent they shouted harder about this? Look at the turnaround Skoda have managed..

Nevertheless, I've a good feeling about the future for Fiat now. The GP is a massive hit and deserves to be and it looks like they might finally be exploring a few market niches they've neglected for too long. With new management at Fiat UK in Slough and finally a realisation on their part (it appears) of how important the UK market is things are definitely looking brighter. Let's hope the sales reflect this and Fiat starts making inroads into the dominance of Peugeot/Renault/Ford/Vauxhall in the UK.
 
I didn't know Fiat's are fully galvanised. Is this special or are all modern cars galvanised?
 
I can't recall the last time I saw a rusty Fiat. There are now no Unos or old Pandas left on the roads, so it's only the last 10 years or so models you come across, and they're all spotless.

Compare a 10 year old Fiesta to a 10 year old Punto and you'll see what I mean. The Fiesta's arches will be rusting out, it may already have new sills and the front chin spoiler will be ruined.

Fiat sorted out the rust thing a long time ago.

Actually, rust is not something people even think about these days, when it comes to ordering a new car. So few people keep their car for more than a few years that it doesn't matter. Most new car buyers wouldn't even know what rust was. It just doesn't happen any more.

These new car buyers are the ones who tend to buy Peugeots. They don't think about rust but they soon learn of the inadequate level of product development that goes on prior to their car being launched.

I was musing on the Peugeot thing the other day when I was stuck behind one of those hideous little 107's. Why in the name of Christ would you buy the Peugeot/Citroen version over the identical Toyota? When it breaks (which it will because although the engine is Toyota, the electrics are PSA) you'll face a much longer queue and appalling service at your dealer, which will be stuffed to the gills with 307s and 407s with crap electrical connectors, which have thrown a fit.

Down at Toyota, the dealer will see you the same day, fix your car first time and probably even wash it for you.

Nevertheless, expect the 207 to overtake the GP in the European sales charts very soon.
 
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