Cool as Pug: Peugeot 505 GTi
You've got precisely ten seconds to find a cooler car for sale on eBay right now. Back in 1989, that's the time it would have taken this Peugeot 505 GTi to reach 60mph, and although a few fractions of a second may have been lost during the subsequent 24 years, the Peugeot 505 GTi remains as cool as Pug.
Just look at the thing. It's the very essence of 80s cool – so delightfully understated and yet overwhelmingly loaded with intent. Seriously, what's not to like?
It's a rear-wheel drive (incidentally, Peugeot's last rear-wheel drive car), four-door saloon, in black with a gloriously discreet boot spoiler. If those front fogs and headlights were painted yellow, I'd be upsetting my bank manager and reaching for that ‘Buy It Now’ button on eBay.
If I'm totally honest, I'd much prefer a pre-facelift model with the original 505 GTi alloys, but when there's just six 505 GTis left on the road, beggars can't be choosers. And don't give me any nonsense about no 1980s Peugeot saloon being worth £2,750. If a Ferrari can change hands for £17.5m, a 505 GTi is worth £3k of anyone's money.
Respect is due
As far as PetrolBlog is concerned, the Peugeot 505 deserves far more respect than it gets. In the Peugeot 504, it had a tough act to follow. But a European production run spanning 13 years – even longer in China and Argentina – suggests that the 505 was quite a successful big saloon. It even spawned an estate version, with the 505 Family adding a third row of seats, enough to carry eight people. Who needs an MPV when you can have a 505 Family?
The 2.2-litre engine in the Peugeot 505 GTi was enough to help propel the French fancy to a top speed of 115mph, whilst the passengers relaxed in what Peugeot called ‘a cocoon of comfort’. It also boasted rear legroom ‘comparable to a Mercedes’ and offered electric windows, electric sunroof, central locking and... wait for it, a stereo radio/cassette with four speakers. Yep, that's four speakers. Monsieur, wiz zeez speakers, you're really spoiling uz.
This particular survivor is said to be in excellent condition and is offered with a fresh MOT certificate. There's also the obligatory pile of receipts, invoices and old MOTs. Apparently the car's original owner was a Japanese banker, proving that at least some bankers had good taste back in the 1980s. It wasn't all big hair, big phones and shouty cars.
Right now, you're either scrabbling around eBay searching for something cooler (give up now), or you're rummaging down the back of your sofa looking for a few French Francs. You want this Peugeot 505 GTi, of course, so check out the ad here.
In the meantime, I'll leave you with this classic ad from the 1980s. Times were clearly tough for the marketing department back then, because you never actually see the Peugeot 505 GTi move. But just check out those yellow headlights.
I did, and now I need a lie down.
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Images © eBay
