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Friday, 12th of March 2010

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Peugeot 107 1.0 Verve road test report

1.0 Verve

Funky design and frugal use of fuel make the 107 the ideal car for the young, newly qualified driver. Budget should not prove a problem with a starting £7,795, the 107 also offers low insurance grouping of 1E, ideal for those yet to gain their first year’s no-claims bonus. Definitely a budget city car, the 107 most appealing feature has to be its super efficiency with both fuel and money. The Verve special edition road tested here adds some extra kit including air con and cool styling touches for some added allure.

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Performance

The Peugeot 107 Verve which we test-drove is a top-of-the range special edition launched in January 2009 along with a revised look for the whole 107 range, and was supplemented Peugeot’s slightly creepy DriveSexy advertising campaign. In terms of performance this is of little consequence since whichever variant you opt for, you get the same one litre, three cylinder petrol engine. Simplicity is the key for Peugeot 107 range, with no diesel option and one 2-Tronic (an electronically controlled manual that operates as an automatic) transmission option on the mid-range Urban variant. The little 107’s sole engine generates 68 bhp and 70 lb of torque at 3,600 rpm while it achieves 0-62 mph in a sedate 14.2 seconds. Well not exciting or powerful, but what do you expect? Ok so it is slightly behind sister car, the C1 (which shaves a few nano-seconds off and manages 0-62 in 13.7 seconds) but it matches performance of Toyota Aygo, the two cars with which the 107 was developed with and shares the same platform. Although the figures don’t sound astounding the Peugeot 107 actually feels very brisk, responsive and proves to be a nimble pleasure to drive. While it is best suited to city life, the 107 still manages to buzz along happily on the motorway too.

Ride & Handling

The agile little 107 handles itself actually pretty well, the ride is smooth and the handling is precise enough. Feedback is fair through the steering wheel, the only let-down is the more than ample vibration especially once you push the little dear over 30mph, when the vibration through the pedals becomes more marked. Other than that the 107 stays true to its city origins and is nimble, offering a tight turning circle of just 9.46 metres for easy parking and manoeuvring. It is so light that a sudden gust of wind could prove tricky on the motorway but its lightness is a massive asset when you look at fuel efficiency figures. These alone look great but when you drive it, it seems to do even better than its stated figures but we will come back to that.

Build Quality & Reliability

The nicest surprise with the 107 is the quality of the interior, with stylish textured plastics and easy-to-read dial layout and slick design around the central console which gives the 107 something to be proud of. Equally the exterior is nicely styled thanks to Peugeot’s revision of the 107 look at the beginning of the year, giving the 107 a new front with a revised cross-linked grille. At the rear, the style of the 107 continues with an attractive dark glass rear windscreen. The Peugeot 107 Verve special edition features extra equipment over the popular 107 Urban model including air conditioning, 14” alloy wheels, a rev counter, Verve floor mats and external Verve identity badges. Available in Laser Red, Raven Black and new Electra Blue, and exclusive to the Verve -the new Mandalin Orange (as pictured). The plastics are durable and the fabrics basic yet stylish meaning that the 107 will still look good even after the kids have scrambled through it with muddy feet and kicked and scratched the plastics. The 107 gives away its budget price bracket thanks to the rear windows that open as a hatch, the absence of a door on the glove box and of the absence of electric mirrors even on the range-topping model. However quality of this vehicle stems from its robustness, ensuring that it should still look good a few years down the line rather than aiming for a short-lived showroom shine.

Safety & Security

Euro NCAP of four stars for occupant safety, four for child and two for pedestrian is very good for such a tiny car, although safety and security features are fairly minimal. Driver airbag, passenger airbag come as standard while the Urban and Verve models gain side airbags. Additionally the 107 offers front integral head restraints, adjustable rear head restraints, seat belt pre-tensioners, two ISOFIX mountings (except on the entry-level Urban Lite model), ABS with EBFD (electronic brake force distribution) and CSC (cornering stability control). No alarm but an immobiliser as standard and central locking on all but the basic model.

Space & Practicality

Only a four-seater, you are never going to buy this car for space but despite its tiny appearance externally, the 107 make excellent use of internal space. Legroom in the rear is not bad as long as your front seat occupants aren’t the tallest of people. Headroom is limited, as is the room to manoeuvre your legs, thanks to the slightly strange arrangement of the pedals, which seem to make it easy to jerk the pedals. The handbrake to seems to be in an odd place, low down and sat quite far back, other than that the 107 layout is sensible and ideal for those with small children (although with little ones in tow, I would opt for a five door model like the one we drove). The boot is not bad either and certainly isn’t the smallest in its class, although it is accessed through the glass tailgate which leaves a high lip to haul luggage over. With split-fold rear seats, the maximum capacity of the boot comes to 751 litres with the seats down or a minimum of 139 litres with the seats up.

Ownership & Value

Definitely one of the most frugal cars I have ever driven, you almost have to pinch yourself and check the fuel tank gauge isn’t painted on since it barely seems to move. This has to be one of the most appealing aspects to the 107, and just what you would expect from Peugeot, who have a great reputation for producing no-nonsense green cars. The official figures states 62.7 mpg (combined) although I reckon you can eek even more out of the tank if you try. With CO2 emissions just 106g/km, the Peugeot 107 will cost just £35 a year in road tax. Add into to this Peugeot’s three year warranty, 1 year Peugeot Assistance cover (provided by the AA) and low insurance grouping, the 107 will provide a cheap and reliable motoring for years to come. Starting price of £7,795 for the entry level Urban Lite rising to £8,845 for the three-door Verve or £9,195 for the five-door edition we drove, the 107 is also competitively priced. With an increasing number of motorists looking to downsize, the Peugeot 107 is suitably positioned to hold its value well when you come to sell this charming little city car. An ideal buy for the newly qualified driver.

Submitted: 26/06/2009 14:27:00

Performance

This compact and smiley 107 with its 1.0 litre three-cylinder petrol engine really does not disappoint when nipping in and around the busy town traffic, after all this is what it was designed to achieve and even on the motorway it certainly knows how to hold its own, pulling nicely when pressure is applied to the throttle, maybe not so great on the uphill climbs though. This where it begins to struggle, but all in all a great little goer and gear change is smooth and accurate.

Ride & Handling

The responsiveness of the handling is fairly exact, but stumble upon a slightly uneven surface, country lane or speed bump and you really feel every nook and cranny of the road, its saving grace is that the seats are very comfortable, which almost makes up for the harsh ride. The engine noise is surprisingly loud for such a small car and initially, when I started it up I had to double check I was driving a petrol and not a diesel as at idle there is a wicked vibration throughout the whole cockpit. There was also a lot of road noise to be found and even when I put the radio on to drown out the sound I was less impressed with the quality of the system. Parking is easy though especially into those hard to reach spaces that a bigger car would shy away from. The visibility from all angles is great and the almost oversized wing mirrors help with this.

Build Quality & Reliability

The dash is well laid out with all dials and gadgets within easy reach, although the handbrake does seem to be positioned a little too far down for comfort. The addition of a rev counter I though was a nice little extra too. The interior plastics are of a good quality and really like the finish on the seats, that almost have a sporty/retro look. Very well finished. The general build quality of the 107 is to be expected of a Peugeot, well rounded and sturdy.

Safety & Security

For a small car I felt comfortable and secure with the knowledge of having four airbags and a Euro NCAP crash rating of 4. Convenient central locking and a lockable fuel cap.

Space & Practicality

The 107 offers ample amount of space in the front for driver and passenger, although little room in the back especially if you have the front seat right back (So if you are tall and have tall passengers then it could prove a tad tricky). It’s a benefit that the 107 offers the 50/50 split rear back seats as if you are looking to do a full shop for the week for a family of four you may struggle with the boot space alone, as it is minimal, but is perfect for nipping out to get bits and bobs. Additionally there are lots of little cubby holes for handbags (or man bags) and even comes with two cup holders, perfect for popping into Starbucks or McDonalds on the way into work for a coffee.

Ownership & Value

With an average fuel cost of £783 for 12,000 miles (which is changeable obviously with the current petrol prices!!) and a 12 month RFL of £35 as it falls into Cat B based on the low CO2 emissions, the 107 really does offer great economical and low cost motoring. Servicing and maintenance should be relatively reasonable too as most Peugeot dealers are running all sorts of deals and incentives to keep servicing within the dealer network. Service intervals are one year of 10,000 miles whichever occurs soonest.

Submitted: 26/06/2009 14:24:09

Performance

The Peugeot 107 Verve provided an entertaining driving experience. It is a small car with a small engine and although it also has small levels of power (68 Bhp) it is also very light and therefore not without spirit and punch. The engine sounded like it wanted to work and when pushed operated very smoothly. Motorway speeds where actually accomplished with relative ease, the rev counter was nearing 4,000 rpm at 70 mph but there were no sounds of protest from the little power unit.

Ride & Handling

This section is usually the big selling point for Peugeot, they pride themselves on providing a comfortable ride and entertaining handling and you can see that even in the ultra low budget , no-frills 107 they have tried to continue to deliver in this department. The little 14 inch alloy wheels are crucial to this, as they are not too big for the car the 107 doesn’t crunch into road imperfections and make driving the 107 sometimes not unlike driving a go-kart.

Build Quality & Reliability

As previously mentioned in this report the 107 is a light car, that is in part down to it’s diminutive size but also down to the fact that Peugeot have not tried to fill the car in with reems of sound proofing and other comfort orientated equipment. Inside the car for example the door panels are without padding and the sound of road noise does reach quite high levels, as does the sounds of the engine as it moves up the rev counter. In recent times there have been issues with the electrics and computer diagnostics in some of the Peugeot range during the vehicles life-span, the 107 however is a simple car with a simple engine and we do not predict any problems. It is worthwhile commenting that there are a lot of diesel and petrol Peugeots on the road today, driving along happily with well over 100,000 miles on the clock, I know a few people who drive them!

Safety & Security

Front side airbags, front pass SMART airbag with deactivate switch and SMART driver airbag are all standard on the 107. ABS and electronic brake force distribution are standard also as driver aids. A Transponder immobiliser which is rates to Thatcham category 2 should help keep the thieves at bay and with a car such as this you wouldn’t expect too much unwanted attention anyway.

Space & Practicality

Peugeot have made the 107 available in 3 and 5 door variants and we drove the 5 dr. Four adults could actually sit in the car although the comfort of the rear passengers could be described as less than a certainty. As a result of trying to fit four passengers in such a small car the boot is very shallow indeed and not much use for any sizeable objects. As a young persons car the Peugeot does make sense, if you are looking for a vehicle to carry the family around then you are looking in the wrong place. To be fair to Peugeot they have never marketed the 107 as such a car.

Ownership & Value

At £9,195 OTR for the Verve model, you could probably find cheaper alternatives in the class A vehicle market to the Peugeot 107 Verve, you may not however find such alternatives provide you with as entertaining a drive and such good levels of comfort. The road tax is £35 per year which is reflective of the emission level of 106 grams of C02 per Km. Cars in this class tend to depreciate at the slowest rate so the 107 should keep a reasonable amount of it’s value over the first three years. MPG is definitely worth a mention, Peugeot advertise a COMBINED 62.7 MPG, we can only say that we had it for a whole week, the car did a lot of mileage and we barely used half a tank!

Submitted: 26/06/2009 14:20:54

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