Peugeot Partner road test reports and car reviews

Peugeot Partner Tepee Outdoor 1.6 TD 2009

I have to start by saying that I have previously leased three versions of the Partner Combi and each one got better until the name was changed to Tepee. I am a gardener and carry plants, tools and bags of compost in the back which is easy with upward opening back door and sliding side doors. I referred ot it as the Tardis because I could always carry whatever I wanted. This latest version is more like a car than a working vehicle. The lining on the roof makes all three doors lower and the gap between the folded rear seats and the open side door is almost half the size of the previous models making it difficult to load the front of the load space from the side. Previous models had a useful storage space inside the rear door and above the side doors but these have now been filled in with a lining that makes the interior width much less. All the so called storage spaces on the dashboard and in the doors are much too small and don’t hold anything useful. The space between the front seats is flat and will not hold anything without it rolling off, the optional extra storage box should be standard. The rear seats do not fold vertically like the previous models again reducing the size of the rear load area. The fact that the rear seats can now be removed is no help because as well as a working vehicle I have to transport grandchildren so need to change from one to the other quickly. All in all the designers of this model have got rid of all the useful features for a working person like me and tried to make it more like a people carrier except they have included some internal roof bars, the use of which remains a mystery. I am surprised at the French doing this as they have a tradition of carrying livestock and goods in the back of normal cars. Finally, and it could just be my vehicle, there is an irritating knock which Peugeot say is my shock absorbers which they are about to replace. Could this be a call-in problem?