deo. The old cor hooter is now on


I


inescapable port of the modern urban soundscope, and research has shown that we ore o long wa y off yet towards standardising horn sound. Jamjar cars, one of Britain's Internet


retailers, recently staged the world's first academic study into the car's audio warning system, with the help of Professor Theo Van Leeuwen, an expert in the meaning of sound at Cardiff University, South Wales. Prof Van Leeuwen rated each of the


25 tested horns on several criteria - volume, pitch, tension and also roughness. These criteria were used to produce


a Car Horn Quotient (CHQ), and the top CHQ figure, 10.5, was registered by the Mondeo. Runner-up, with a figure of 10 , was the Honda S2000. But when it comes to more discreet


sounds, the Audi TT Quattro, register­ ing 5.5, beat the Citroen Xsara Picas­ so (6.5). Visitors to the www.jamjar.com


website can actually "road test" the car horn sounds, from an upmarket Mercedes C200 to a trendy BMW Mini.


Professor and his horns test H 14 n r 0 5 Thursday, February iOth, 2005 FrestonsGroup.Com © SSS™™™ I


T has just been announced that the most aggressive car horn on the market belongs to... the Ford Mon-


t* ‘ *,


e r e is a test that will define your age. If Peugeot means Gallic luxury and sophistication, you are probably


over 40. If the brand instead conjures up images of manic hot hatchbacks, you are likely thirtysomething. It, on the other hand, it means sensible, well built but large­ ly unspectacular cars, you are in a younger age group again. With the 407 medium-range car, Peugeot


is aiming to fuse the best of all these genera­ tions, offering a sophisticated, well-built car that is as good to drive as it is to look at. It is a tall order and one that many rivals have fallen short of achieving. As with all the best Peugeots of yore, the


lines are elegant, sleek and fluid. The wind­ screen is steeply raked back, giving a very sporting appearance. Peugeot is keen to stress that the 407 is its


very first car to feature double wishbone front suspension, which may not mean a great deal to many but in essence sums up


the French company’s commitment to han­ dling excellence.


Many cars these days have so-called mul­


tilink rear suspension systems, but most per­ severe with a simple strut front sot up. In offering a more sophisticated front suspen­


sion system, Peugeot has raised the bar again. Four petrol engines and two diesel units


are offered, the diesels including a particu­ late emission filter and tho.se with manual gearboxes compliant with Euro4 standards,


thus sidestepping the 3% benofit-in-kind surcharge. 'Fhese HDi diesels comprise a 1.6-litro


unit with 110 b.h.p. and 240Nm of torque (260Nm of temporary overboost) and a 2.0- litre power plant that develops 136 b.h.p.


and 320Nm of torque (340Nm on over­ boost). Petrol buyers are well catered for, with a


range that opens with a 16-valve 1.8-litro unit with 117 b.h.p. mated to a five-speed


Peugeot 206 HORN TEST: Conducted by Professor Theo Van Leeuwen, far right, an expert in the meaning of sound at Cardiff University - 'jJ iJ i;


tomers alike seemed pleased with the result. Now it is priced from £8,595.


W The design is everything a modern supermini


should be - as j'ou would expect, given that Ford had plenty of time to examine the competition during this car’s lengthy development. The first thing we should talk about is space. Rival offerings with Tardis-like interior dimensions had rendered the previous generation Fiesta a touch quaint, and nowhere was this more evident than in rear seat room. That is no longer the case of course. With this


latest Fiesta, Ford has consciously made it a sig­ nificantly larger car.


longer, 50mm wider and 100mm taller in five-door guise. Even the three-door ver­ sion makes the old model seem like one of those tiny city cars. You might assume


In fact, it is 87mm Fifli s «


E had to wait a long time for a complete­ ly new Ford Fiesta, but when it finally- arrived early in 2002 dealers and cus­


from the Fiesta, competing as it does in a class where margins are utterly cut-throat. Cleverly, however. Ford has appreciated that the


bits of the cars we physically touch most often lend the strongest impression of quality, and to this end has wisely fitted leather-trimmed steering wheels and tactile gear shifters. Another example of intel­ ligent design comes in the shape of rear head restraints that are deliberately uncomfortable when not slid up into their deployed position. This encourages rear seat occupants to utilise them properly, but gets around the issue of encumbered rear vision when rear head restraints are tradition­ ally fitted. Four petrol engines are offered, a 75 b.h.p. 1.25-


CiiSCISiSif i l l l i . . „


litre power plant, a 16-valve 79 b.h.p. 1.4, a 1.6- litre 16-valve that is good for 99 b.h.p. and the 150 b.h.p. 2.0-litre found in the ST model. For those looking


all this to mean that it is now no longer as easy to park or as simple to thread through city streets. You might think that, but you would be wrong, thanks largely to the glassy bodyshell which does an excellent job in disguising the extra bulk. Whether the current car is better looking than


a siiiifisailif Mmm car


its predecessor is a matter for debate. Whereas the front end cribs its styling cues from the larger Focus family hatchback, the rear end divides opin­ ion, looking like a bevelled and chamfered Vaux- hall Corsa. It is no great beauty, but it is undeni­ ably effective in achieving that goal of providing superior internal accommodation. Drop into the driver’s seat and y’ou will be greet­


ed with a dashboard that adopts many of the qual­ ity conventions of the Mondeo range, and that is good news. For those who enjoy tracing the lineage of the design, the Mondeo’s interior designer was poached from Volkswagen - and it shows. Mind you, itis easy to see where cost has been excised


to squeeze a few more miles from their gallon, a latest- generation 1.4-litre TDCi common-rail diesel unit is offered. With 67 b.h.p. on tap, its 1181b/ft of torque guarantees a relaxed drive. Above that comes the 90 b.h.p. 1.6-litre TDCi that powers the diesel Zetec S model. Although Ford has


concentrated on improving cabin space, it has not rested on its laurels when it comes to driving dynamics. Granted, the recipe does not at first appear promising, this high-sided car wearing a rel­ atively state-of-the-ark twist-beam rear axle pow­ ered by a series of engines with modest power fig­ ures. Where is the independent control blade sus­ pension that the Focus wears? Where are the trick driver aids? Scythed by the bean counters is the answer, although few will miss them after a drive in the Fiesta. Yes, the Fiesta is a far more competent handler


than its impressive predecessor and that should be praise enough for most. As a result, its handling is elevated to a position above and beyond any exist­ ing supermini.


T


h e Ford Focus changed everything about the way wo think about family hatchbacks. Before this car arrived, it was unimaginable that a basic hatchback could out-handle a Poreche,


seat five big adults in comfort, offer cutting-edge styling and still retail for less than many of its far more mundane competitors. Six years after its launch, the Focus still feels a


fantastic product, but in that intervening period the game has moved on in terms of quality, safety and refinement. It is those three key areas that the second-generation Focus looks to address. Ford of Europe gambled big with the original


car, ploughing in an enormous investment and hop­ ing for big returns. The gamble paid off and the car was so much better than anything in its class that it instantly became the number one seller across Europe, a position it would take years to relin­ quish. Even now, most independent road testers would rate a 1998 Focus as best in class for handling


against the best of today’s rivals. The second-generation car is, to a certain extent, still living off that initial invest­ ment. The suspen­ sion system is much the same and the lessons learned in packaging are still as relevant as ever. What was a work of genius in 1998 still seems rather other­ worldly today.


sunroof control and that rotary switches retain the same feel whether they marehal mechanical or elec­ trical applications. The riot of crazily intersecting hard plastics that was the first generation Focus interior has been replaced by something far more assured, more mature - a word Ford repeats fre­ quently in its literature. Ford was the first of the major manufacturers to


realise that people were growing in size - both out and up - and designed the original Focus to suit drivers of all sizes W'ith wider opening doors and more head room than the class norm. The latest Focus expands on this theme, offering


Firi was l e first iiaiilistirir Ilf,,


1 realise piipli were irewiii Because the Focus was so good, it forced rival


manufacturers to up their game. They diminished Ford’s edge in terms of ride and handling and had left the Focus way behind when it came to per­ ceived quality. The latest model changes all that. Taking its cue


from the C-MAX mini-MPV, the Focus interior looks reassuringly expensive. The branded Sony stereo, the metallic detailing on the centre console, instruments and chunky-rimmed steering wheel, the soft-touch fascia and the silicon-damped hinges all smack of executive class investment. Developers have worked to ensure that the feel


of the switches - a push button in the door, for example - should have the same sound, feel and travel as a push button in the centre console or the


an optional electrically adjustable pedal set. The multi-adjustable steering column helps in ensuring a comfortable driving position and Ford has inte­ grated a number of practical aspects from the C- MAX mini-MPV, including a glove box big enough to house a 1.5-litre bottle, a sunglasses holder, a dash-top cubby and class-leading luggage space. Although it seems hard to believe given that almost coupe-like sil


houette, the Focus actually improves the rear seat accom­ modation and lug­ gage space. This is partly due to Ford increasing the length of the rear overhang slightly to give a hefty 385-litre carry­ ing capacity. The compact control- blade rear suspen­ sion helps here, as the load bay is com­


pletely flat and unencumbered by suspension intru­ sion.


There is the usual wide choice of engines - four


petrol units plus two TDCi turbo diesels. The big news is Ford’s launch of a variable valve timing sys­ tem for its big selling 1.6-litre variant. As well as a conventional 1.6 that is good for 98 b.h.p., Ford’s 1.6-litre Ti-VCT unit produces a peak power of 113 b.h.p. and allows the company to go head to head with the best engines in the class. The other options are a budget 78 b.h.p. 1.4-litre and a 143 b.h.p. 2.0-litre petrol, plus the two Duratorq TDCi units seen in the C-MAX. The first of these is the 108 b.h.p. 1.6-litre TDCi power plant, while the pick of the Focus range looks set to be the 134 b.h.p. 2.0-litre TDCi - lor the time being at least.


ml$km III


hatchback range has been regularly tinkered with.


T From its early days as a compact hatch­


back, the 206 has metamorphosed into a compact estate called the SW and the huge­ ly popular Coupe Cabriolet. It is the three- door and five-door hatchback models we are considering here. In recent years, all hatchback models have


benefited from styling revisions, with more recently a shake-up of the trim levels avail­ able. The entry-level models now have a 1.1- lltre petrol engine and come with either Independence or S badges at either £7,595 or £8,420. Go for the S and you get the option of five doors as well as three, plus there is a choice of a much wider range of engines, including 1.4-litre petrol and diesel units.


Choose the petrol and you can have a Tip­


tronic automatic gearbox. Go for the diesel option and you can upgrade to a faster 2.0- litre HDi engine. All S variants bar the three-door 1.1 and 1.4 HDi models get air conditioning. For a more sophisticated air con system,


plus a package of other niceties, there is also an SE trim grade, offering a couple of faster petrol engines (a 16v version of the 1.4, plus a 1.6), as well as the ordinary 1.4 automatic and the same 1.4 and 2.0-litre diesel options. Given that SE prices start at over


£10,000, however, it might bo first worth your while considering the air conditioned Zesl2 models, priced from just £8,395. Here, there is the choice of three and five-door variants which come either with that petrol 1.1 or the option of 1.4-litre petrol or diesel power.


If you want something a bit more dynam­


ic, there is now a new Sport trim level. Here, three and five-door buyers get the fully body-coloured visual appeal of a GTi at a


Ig sIsf at tiis a d -b i t


H E car that wo choose more than any other is the Peugeot 206. In order to stay at the top of the tree, the 206


cost normally associated with non sporting models. Alloy wheels, digital air condition­ ing with climate control, fog lights and a stereo radio/mono CD player are all fitted as standard equipment. Prices start at £8,995. All models come with more than their fair


share of the usual small car niceties: expect a driver’s airbag, sports seats, height- adjustable steering column, rev counter, remote central locking, power steering, an RDS stereo with driver remote control, an engine immobiliser and tinted glass. There are nice touches too: a switch to dis­


able the front passenger airbag for baby seats. Then there is the front passenger seat


cushion, which flips forward to reveal a stor­ age space within the seat’s structure. Alter­ natively, the seat’s backrest can be folded flat for really long loads. On the road, it is much as you might


expect, given the impressive abilities of other cars from the company’s stable. Class-lead­ ing attributes include the slick gearchange and the absorbent suspension. And han­ dling? Well, unlike its 205 predecessor, the 206 advances the science no further in this respect - the class standard is already too good for that. Traction is excellent and it is possible to


get into a fast, fluid driving rhythm that few other cars could sustain. Neither of the eight-valve engines are par­


ticularly fast or refined (rest to 60 takes 13.2 seconds in the 1.4 on the way to 106 m.p.h.), but they are extremely frugal (expect to average around 43 m.p.g. in this model) and the 16-valve version of the 1.4-litre engine delivers more punch. The revised trim designations have


refreshed Peugeot’s proposition with the 206, putting it back onto the shortlist of those who may feel tempted elsewhere. This is a car whose quality is being borne


out by its sales figures. UK buyers, it seems, know a good thing when they see one.


Sport with I year’s Free Insurance^


• Digital air conditioning with climate control • Alloy wheels • Sports bumpers • ABS with Emergency Brake Assist • Remote control radio/CD


X-Line


with £ 1,000 customer saving from only £9,995* ■ :■


•Alloy wheels • Remote control radio/CD player • Air conditioning • ABS with Emergency BrakeAssist


____ ■ .. ■ ■ 'i


www.pcugcot.co.uk 1


your money flair for


On the Road Price Passport Price


Including £120 Roadside Assistance Deposit


Amount Financed Final Payment


Credit Facility Fee With First Payment


Option To Purchase Fee With Final Payment


36 Monthly Payments Total Amount Payable


£8.995’ £9.115


£599.00 £8.516 £3.344 £95


£45 £179.06 £10.529.16


TYPICAL APR 7.9%


Miles per Annum 6,000 You may incur excess mileage charges.


'Prestons MINI www.hillendale.co.uk


Hillendale Tel: 01282 723731


Peugeot 4Q7


manual gearbox. Step up to the 2.0-litre engine and you will have access to 136 b.h.p. and the choice of either a conventional five- speed manual gearbox or a four-speed auto­ matic autoadaptive gearbox with Porsche Tiptronic System control. Peugeot has set something of a precedent


with some very good previous Euro NCAP crash test results, but the 407 again takes a big step forward, with active safety in the form of brake discs with a diameter of up to 330mm and next-generation ESP stability control, which is standard on every model. As well as manshalling the anti-skid func­


tion, ESP also acts as a controller for the anti-lock braking system, the emergency brake assist and the electronic brakeforce distribution to each individual wheel. If the 407 replicates the success of the 406,


Peugeot should be well pleased. Although it is a hugely sujjerior proposition, the market has moved on and the 407 finds itself up against tough rivals.


iS8i le M m as it is U lasli at Siphistiiatii, iir flit is as Thursday, February 10th, 2005


Model shown is a 307 X-Line l.-l I6v 5 door at £ 10.565.00 (OTR MRRP £ 11.565 00)’


PEUGEOT itccoMhicNDs T 0 T A I _


J J- JJ J iJ Peugeot for your rnoney THE DRIVE OF TOUR LIFE i PEUGEOT Get 'tJ at: PERRYS Waterloo Road, Clitheroe Tel: 01200 422 255


The ofTIcial fuel consumption figures in mpg (i/IOOkm) and CO, entissions (g/l<m) for the 206 Sport are: urban 34.4-42.8 (8.2-6 6),extra urban 56.5-68.9 (5-4.1), combined 45.6-56.5 (6.2-5), CO, 136-148 (g/km) fo r the 307 X-Line are: urban 32.5-40.9 (8.7-6.9), extra urban 48 7-65 7 (5 8-4 3)


combined39.2-54.3 (5.2-7.2).CO, l38-l69(g/km). All now Pcugcoti come with thrccycarsof W2rrant>§ and two ye.trtcrviccimcrv.iH:. Offer sub|CCt to sutus.Ovcr I8jonly.Aj;iiarjntec m.iy be required. Retail customers oidy.Written Quotations av.iilabic on request from House. Princess W.iy.Rcdhill RHI lOA'Pfice quoted is on the ro.id based on MRRP and includes ddivcry to dealership.number pl.ttcs.l2 months' GovernmentVchicIc Excise Duty .md 3 Joo*’ at £0.995 and 3 0 7X .Lm e l.4 litrc l6 v 3 d o o r . it £9.995.00 (OTR MRRP £10.995.00). Model shown is a 307 X-Lmc 1.4 16vS door


I I ' 1^ " ^ ^ ^1 .5 6 5 00). Offers not available in Northern Ireland or CfunncI Islands where .sltcrnative offers nwy apply Offers apply to vehicles ordered and registered between 1st December 2004 .ind


J 1st March -005 inclusive. fiOffer subject to satisfyiiigthetcrms.conditions and approval of the Insurer. Free Insurance is available on all 206 Sport models to private puixKascrs .aged 21-60 An excess may apply §ln addition to the Peugeot two ye.ar unlimited mileage manufacturer s warr^nty.all vehicles first registered in the UK and purchased from a UK Peugeot Dealer on o r after I st September 2002 benefit from a free optional additional one |«3r of warranty provided bjr the Peugeot Dealer Network in the UK. This addiuonal warranty carries a mileage limit of 60.000 miles from first registration and is dependent on the manutacturcr's recommended servicing ■ A


ordisunce imcrvals. For full details and terms and conditions please consult your Peugeot Dealer in the UK. {Service intervals arc two years or 20.000 miles for petrol, two years o r 10.000 miles for diesel and tw o years or 12.000 miles for HDi diosci engines. Offers subject to availability .md.nrc available at participating dealerships only Prices, offers and inform.ition correct at time of goir>g to press.


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