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The 206 Resurrection Thread

20K views 56 replies 16 participants last post by  Starbuck88 
#1 · (Edited)
Hi Everyone,

We've owned this 206 for 10 years this year. I'm sure most have seen my other threads but to cut a long story short, this car got parked up for 10 and a half months.

I had left the battery hooked up and occasionally went over to start it up, however after a few months. Dead battery. I removed the battery, took it home, charged it up and left it in the shed. The 206 was now as good as a brick until it came to get her running again.

it's a 206, 2.0HDi Eco 90.

This car, over the past 10 years, hasn't really needed anything out of the ordinary. It's had A battery, 1 clutch, brakes, timing belt kit + water pump, radiator and semi-regular servicing. The most intrusive thing it's needed and it wasn't that bad, was a new rear axle as they are just prone to rotting and the torsion bar splines rot and twist in the arms (It didn't help I loaded 30 bags of soil in the back at the time and squished said poor suspension to the floor, that's actually what finished the axle off).

Did I say, this car has over 200k miles on her too. (photos you'll see of lower mileage as it had a cluster put in it before we got it).

Me and my better half, love this car, it's been through so much with us. Yes it has windy windows, yes there is no A/C, yes road noise is quite intrusive and although mechanically she has always been a trooper, visually, she has taken a mighty fine beating over the years (non our fault and I'll go over these with exterior shots at a later date) but we love it.

Let's begin! Friday night, I got the battery and the charger out to make sure it had held it's charge, whacked it on and within 5 minutes it was registering 100%. (Yes the mrs went nuts when she'd seen I put it on the carpet :lol: )



Saturday morning, battery in hand, went over to where she was parked up, mum doesn't drive and has a space at her apartment. When I got there, this is what I was greeted with.











It's my own fault but does make me feel for her, looking like this. She's given us so much.

Now the interior, I'd posted up a thread about removing mould and to be fair, in daylight, it wasn't as bad as it looked under torchlight in the dark.





This is the passenger door, funnily, nothing at all on the drivers.



I had left a coat on the back seat, this was by far the worst mould in the car..



Finally, a shot of the ecosystem developed on the steering wheel :lol:



Looks as if condensation dripping off the windscreen was the main cause of all this.

ValetPro Enzyme cleaner was the weapon of choice. So, I held my breath and went bat**** crazy and soaked everywhere with it.



Seats liberally sprayed..



Letting that work it's magic, I decided as it wasn't as bad as I thought, I didn't have the wet vac with me at this point and I needed to drive it to get it somewhere I can work more easily on it, I was going to use the DIY vacuum (a titan from screwfix) to just suck it all up and hope the dust and dirt it picks up, traps the moisture in the bag.

Out came the extension :lol:



Wanting to leave it soak, I thought now was the time to see if I could get her running.



Plopped in the battery and this is the very first start, apologise about the background noise, it's a new build estate with work going on.



Woohoo! It hunted for all of 2 seconds, then settled to a lovely idle. Now...later on you'll see why, it's not pretty.

After 1 pass with the Titan, things were already looking up. I've only got 2 shots of the interior this far because I want to go over it all again.

The brown staining on the seat was there before, I hope to remove this also.



Steering wheel looking less like an Environmental Health Hazard



After the first vac, I sprayed all the seats again and used a nail brush to give them a good scrub as there was a couple of spots of black mould that needed proper agitation. Another Vac and I was happy to drive it without fearing a chest infection or something.

Since 2013, this has had an engine management light on. Was driving home from the new forest and hit a massive area of standing water on the dual-carriageway, immediately car felt like it lost power and the light came on.

I've always had my thoughts it was the MAF, as I put a new air filter in it and unplugged the MAF, it then drove as it always had done. We bought a new car at the time so this got used less and less so I never bothered to get a new MAF.

Well now in 2019, that will cause it to fail an MOT, so I thought I'll take the MAF off and visually inspect it and see what brand it is. I know dodgy chinese ones off eBay are cheap but they read wrong and don't last, so wanted to be sure I know which one to get.

Well well well...what did I find.

Here..is the MAF.





You aren't supposed to get skin oils on the sensors in these, let alone all that corrosion, I suspect back in 2013, water got in there and the corrosion is a result of that.

After seeing that paper on the front side though, thought I best check the airfilter :doublesho:doublesho:doublesho



OMG the STENCH of it. My throat is tightening up thinking about it now, a very rancid, wet, mouldy smell. So strong. The inside of the car, had a very faint whiff, but this...jesus wept it was eye watering.

The air filter wasn't replaced that long before the car was left to stand. It's in this state because moisture has got to it, this is not how it's been since 2013.

So full of moisture, the engine tried to suck in air and instead ripped the filters innards clean out lololol. Now we know why it hunted.

Roll on to Sunday, day 2, I drove the car (I know silly boy) to euro car parts and I fitted the new Bosch filter in their car park and disposed of the old one in their bin.



A quick pitstop...(was on my own so SWMBO'd couldn't tell me off for eating junk!) :thumb:



Then back to the in laws.

As it it's Sunday, I wanted to do a service on the BMW, happy that I'd done the air filter, given it a good run now and there was no smell inside. I used this spray in all of the air vents.



I did give the outside a quick jetwash and 'brush' :rolleyes: :eek: at a local petrol station, trust me when I say nothing could make it look any worse. A proper detail will be incoming in this thread shortly.

Checking all the lights, the stop and tail bulb was out, popped to buy new and it wouldn't work!



I sanded and cleaned the metal contacts up but it still wouldn't work. I am now on the hunt for a new board, or maybe facelift rear lights.

Thanks for reading, its about time this car got some love.
 
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#2 ·
Nice little project.

Good to see the mould spores disappearing relatively easily, fingers crossed the enzyme killer has worked for you.

After a week on son's Fiesta project it's easy to see progress with even the smallest cleaning jobs - just brushing away the algae on the window rubbers and trim joints makes a big difference for the effort involved ;)
 
#8 ·
Nice little project.

Good to see the mould spores disappearing relatively easily, fingers crossed the enzyme killer has worked for you.

After a week on son's Fiesta project it's easy to see progress with even the smallest cleaning jobs - just brushing away the algae on the window rubbers and trim joints makes a big difference for the effort involved ;)
Nothing beats a totally clean car, no matter how dinged up it is and you're right, the little details make a massive difference.

Now that's a great wee project. Those 2.0hdi engines are fabulous. I had 2 406s, both 90bhp, and loved them. Neither would have been able to pull a cap off my head, but a really comfortable car that was just as reliable as the tax man is diligent.

Great work on the spores. That air filter us about the worst thing I've ever seen fitted to a running car lol.

Definitely Sub'd for updates.

Keep her lit!!!

N

Sent from my SM-G950F using Tapatalk
Cheers N, this is surprisingly fast, I'd say it's quicker than the focus, well it feels like it anyway. More wallowy in the corners though :lol:

Excellent project. Looking forward to more updates.
Thank You :thumb:

Great read on a great little project, looking forward to your updates :thumb:
Thank You :thumb:

These things will never die, my mate had a 306 HDi, that stood for around 18 months, new battery on and it started straight away.
Fingers crossed I can get it through it's MOT due soon with little expenditure, I'm never going to leave a car stood again. The BMW has had niggles ever since that was parked up for a few months, this 206 though so far seems perfectly OK.

They really made a great lump with these 2.0HDi's, If the rest of the car is sound and anything happens to it, I would be inclined to find another engine for this.

Not a proper 206 without a dent in the wing :lol:
I think I have said in a few threads now always great to see a car getting a second crack at life again. :thumb:
Tell me about it, don't see very many about, just a few years ago, they were everywhere, especially down here, Cornwall loves a Pug.
 
#3 ·
Now that's a great wee project. Those 2.0hdi engines are fabulous. I had 2 406s, both 90bhp, and loved them. Neither would have been able to pull a cap off my head, but a really comfortable car that was just as reliable as the tax man is diligent.

Great work on the spores. That air filter us about the worst thing I've ever seen fitted to a running car lol.

Definitely Sub'd for updates.

Keep her lit!!!

N

Sent from my SM-G950F using Tapatalk
 
#10 ·
Love new parts arriving, this has just turned up.

Genuine Siemens VDO MAF Sensor. Got it for an amazing price thanks to a friend, pointless spending £30 on a chinese fake when this one cost me £54.

(blanked out store barcode etc)



Nice protective cap




Ahh look, no corrosion in sight! :thumb:



Hopefully I can fit this tonight time pending before it goes pitch black outside.

With these 206s, I notice the engine management light stays off for a couple of seconds when you start the car then comes on, so I am hoping just by fitting this, it'll stay off and not need clearing.

My Torque APP won't talk to the 206 and BMW software certainly won't. So fingers crossed.
 
#18 ·
Thanks for sharing this, Starbucks.

I know what you mean about the emotional attachment to old beat up cars. We have a 2003 Fiesta Tdci - purchased new. Now 170,000 miles on the clock. A few scrapes here and there but it has been with us through thick and thin. It's the best car I have ever had - and that's saying something with a series 3 Focus RS on the drive!

Good luck with the project - looking forward to the updates.

I was reading the post of the smell of the air filter whilst eating a bowl of soup. Bad decision - I laughed so much at your description whilst swallowing a spoonful of soup some of it regurgitated through the nose!!!

Keep em coming, mate :)
 
#19 ·
Thanks for sharing this, Starbucks.

I know what you mean about the emotional attachment to old beat up cars. We have a 2003 Fiesta Tdci - purchased new. Now 170,000 miles on the clock. A few scrapes here and there but it has been with us through thick and thin. It's the best car I have ever had - and that's saying something with a series 3 Focus RS on the drive!

Good luck with the project - looking forward to the updates.

I was reading the post of the smell of the air filter whilst eating a bowl of soup. Bad decision - I laughed so much at your description whilst swallowing a spoonful of soup some of it regurgitated through the nose!!!

Keep em coming, mate :)
:lol: :lol: :lol: haha sorry about that.

It's a funny old thing isn't it, I've had new hot hatches, big powerful saloons, stuff completely specc'd to the hilt but I would honestly give each and everyone one of them up if made to choose and keep the 206.

Your Fiesta certainly sounds like a keeper too :thumb: I'll have a look see if you have any threads on your Focus :)
 
#21 ·
Fitted the MAF and it does drive much better.

I think I mentioned earlier in the thread, that the brakes don't feel right. The pedal goes down I would say half way before I can feel anything on the pedal and feel the car start to slow down.

I have a mechanic friend, so I've taken the car to him so that he can basically check it all over and do everything it needs to go through an MOT he's a Peugeot/Citroen tech so knows these things inside and out. I just don't have the time.

I'm hoping he doesn't find much but until MOT at some point this week, there won't be any updates on this :thumb:
 
#23 ·
Update on the 206, apparently all is surprisingly well with it, it's the rear brakes that need sorting, the adjusters have seized (Rear has drums only).

I bought facelift rear lights for it off eBay in order to replace the broken bulb holder board on the n/s and freshen up the rear end at the same time!...after a few messages with the seller, I'm now being ghosted. I wouldn't have ordered from him as he had negative feedback but i didn't check before I paid :wall: He told me his mrs posted them last week. Yet last 3 feedback from buyers is that they never got their items. :wall:

So I've ordered a brand new pre-facelift bulb holder so that I can get it through MOT.
 
#24 ·
Update on the 206, apparently all is surprisingly well with it, it's the rear brakes that need sorting, the adjusters have seized (Rear has drums only).

I bought facelift rear lights for it off eBay in order to replace the broken bulb holder board on the n/s and freshen up the rear end at the same time!...after a few messages with the seller, I'm now being ghosted. I wouldn't have ordered from him as he had negative feedback but i didn't check before I paid :wall: He told me his mrs posted them last week. Yet last 3 feedback from buyers is that they never got their items. :wall:

So I've ordered a brand new pre-facelift bulb holder so that I can get it through MOT.
If you paid through PayPal I would start the claim process asap.
 
#28 ·
Well Well Well....

The 206 has been providing it's trusty workhouse steed services to us impeccably. A lovely summer.

I was going to update this thread with the replacement of the rear wiper arm, instead I have bad news...



I have spoken to insurers. Short story is, going down a hill, in the wet and the car in front indicated but then immediately suddenly broke hard. We were only doing 20mph so impacted at probably between 10 and 15mph. Thankfully nobody hurt. I guess I'll be at fault even though should the driver have indicated properly and slowed down at a normal pace, there would never have been any accident.

Never had a road accident before. Gutted really.

Have told our insurers....we want to keep the 206 and not claim for it :)

I guess this will temporarily turn into a rebuild thread.
 
#32 ·
Thank you all for the well wishes and kind words. :)

So the tear down has begun.

I thought the hardest part was going to get the bonnet to release. The way the front edge of the bonnet is bent in and curled in on itself I could only assume the worse.

When in reality, I pulled on the bonnet release and heard the familiar clonk... :lol: woohooo!



With a gentle lift opening upwards, I squinted my eyes to somehow delay the tragic sight of what was lurking underneath.

To my surprise, it all looks straight forward.



I still can't work out, how impacting a rear bumper virtually straight on, did the damage it did, it almost looks like a pole went in at a very specific angle. Weird.



I think this headlight sustained terminal damage. Maybe some lens tape could sort it? :lol:



Removal of the headlight was reasonably simple, unplug whichever of the plugs were still attached to something and then heave it out as hard as possible, all the fixing areas had snapped.

The bar with the bonnet stop on, that would normally rest over the top of the rear housing of the headlamp. That is what is going to give me a headache I think, as it's been pushed back and over a little bit. I took a hammer to it to settle it back down a little. :D

More finessing will take place when parts start arriving.



The slam panel (not sure it really is one in the usual sense but it's what Peugeot call it) on these is sort of integrated into it being the radiator holder and radiator fan holder too.

Being FRP, it looked a mess..





I'm sure the most skilled people on here could repair this. I'm not.

But what I did do, is spray all the split fibreglass with Plastidip Paint. Just for cleanliness and safety.



Removal of what was left of the Grill and the Lion Badge reveals...well...not much really. Just that slam panel.



I removed the bonnet latch and thew it in the N/S well behind the good side.



I'm going to attend to rust whilst in there. Might as well.

I removed the other headlight, which is not damaged at all, as there is a fixing for the bumper tucked away underneath.



This is where I finished my tear down as the mentioned fixing is a royal pita. A stud on a square clip in a square hole, with a rusted on nut. So of course it all just spins right round baby right round like a puggy stud, right round round round.. sorry.



The bumper itself and the plastic trim for the bumper, are scruffy...but..OK. I need the bumper off though, as there is a bumper support/impact bar behind it, that has snapped and needs to be replaced.

On Saturday, went with the FIL to fetch a bonnet and impact bar from the scrappers, to our amazement we could no longer go in and remove the bits ourselves, so they are being delivered to a friend of mine who owns a car sales lot, for £12, as he has a trade account with them. As a regular Joe, they wanted £40+ for pallet delivery off me otherwise! :doublesho :rolleyes:

So I need and have bought, to be able to drive it again:

Bonnet (£48 - Scrappers)
Impact Bar (£18 - Scrappers)
Delivery (£12 - Scrappers)
Drivers Headlight (£14.95 Delivered eBay)
Radiator Support/Slam Panel (£33 New eBay Delivered)
Grill in correct colour (£15 Delivered eBay)

Total £140.95

The wing can come when I can source a good one in the right 'EYC' colour.

The bonnet from the scrappers, isn't the right colour. I may have to release my 'Wrap God' skills again :p The reason I haven't been able to sort one of those, is the ones on eBay are a million miles away, the sellers won't ship and although I could do a trip to fetch...they're not far off the condition my crashed one is in :lol:

Thanks for reading, parts should start turning up tomorrow!
 
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