Third episode of our saga on the Peugeot 300 series. After parenthesis 309, the numbering of the core range of the lion brand resumes its normal course. The proof in two with the Peugeot 306 and 307.
Not quite entered the universe of the collection, the Peugeot 306 already belongs to that of youngtimers. Among its wide range, some silhouettes and versions are already very popular, such as the convertible or the sporty S16. For his heiress, the Peugeot 307, the image is still that of a used vehicle. But will a slightly unusual tall sedan ever become a collector’s item? The future will tell…
TO READ.
- Saga of the Peugeot 300 series: from the 301 to the 303 [épisode 1/4]
- Saga of the Peugeot 300 series: from the 304 to the 309 [épisode 2/4]
Peugeot 306: the vitality of the Lion rediscovered
Return to normal for the numbering of the Peugeot 306, which fits naturally, at the time, between the 106 and the 406. In fact, the Peugeot 206 did not arrive until much later, in 1998. After a 309 in the restricted range, the compact model of the range again casts a wide net with a family of silhouettes comprising three and five-door hatchbacks, an elegant trunk and four-door sedan very popular with caravanners, a station wagon and a superb convertible, the brand’s ultimate flexible canvas variant, without forgetting the chic Roland-Garros variations.
TO READ. Peugeot. The crazy 306 of “L’Ecume des Jours” sold for € 4,200
It is besides the Italian coachbuilder Pininfarina who sketched the lines of the 306 discoverable, just like those of its dashboard. Named GTI in some countries, but not in France, the Peugeot 306 S16 with its 167 hp six-speed gearbox was brilliant. While in rallying the 306 Maxi has been the dream of a large number of fans. A flagship model for the lion builder.
- Peugeot 306: from 1992 to 2004
- Production: 2,848,131 units
TO READ. Peugeot 306 S16. The first to pass the sixth
Peugeot 307: go higher!
Compact sedan of the 21st century, the Peugeot 307 made a career in Europe from 2001 to 2008. In China, it plays extra time until 2014. Voted Car of the Year in 2002 on the Old Continent, it embodies a model of rupture with its predecessors. The fashion was then for so-called tall architectures and windshields encroaching on the hood right up to the front wheels.
The 307 has the spirit of a minivan. Moreover, as with the latter, livability and accessibility are optimal. For the Peugeot 307, the formula is available in three doors, five doors, a SW station wagon with seven seats (photo opposite) on certain versions, as well as a coupé-cabriolet with a retractable hardtop. The latter is in a way the big sister of the 206 CC and 207 CC and, even further in the history of the lion brand, of the Eclipse models.
It is also on this silhouette, which is the sportiest of the gang, that Peugeot has developed the WRC variant. At the same time, a Peugeot 307 with trunk, called 307 Sedan, not really harmonious, made a career in Argentina and China, but not in Europe.
- Peugeot 307: from 2000 to 2014
- Production: 3,723,365 units
