THERE ARE FEW things worse than having to nip into town in the car and finding yourself struggling with not only the inevitable congestion, but battling to squeeze your average-sized family car into the titchiest parking space. So let’s hear it for the city car.
Most manufacturers now have something in their stable which is ideally suited to the hustle and bustle of the city centre. Cleverly, Peugeot, Citroen and Toyota decided to work together and build their respective city dwellers — the 107, C1 and Aygo — at the same Czech factory. The result is a trio of well-built, cost-efficient models. But of the three, the newest and the best-suited to the everyday demands of life in the city is the 107.
The successor to the popular 106, the 107 has recently been reworked to provide better combined fuel economy of 62.7mpg — when mated to the standard five-speed manual gearbox — and emit CO2 at the reduced rate of 106g/km. Not only does that means you’ll pay road tax at just £35 a year, but its insurance grouping is a miserly Gp3. Its also a safe place to be; the 107 has a four-star rating EuroNCAP crash tests rating.
Size, of course, matters
This facelifted headturner has received some new bodystyling tweaks including a new ‘smiley’ front-end, which also sees the numberplate repositioned, plus a darkened-glass tailgate. There’s also a revised interior. Available with either three- or five-doors, there are two specs — the Urban Lite and Urban — plus a special edition Verve which comes standard with air-conditioning, a revcounter, 14in alloys and Mandalin Orange paintwork.
Just as attractive is the fact the nippy little 1.0-litre, 68bhp engine is good for a top speed of around 100mph and will scamper to 62mph from standstill in 14.2secs. That’s plenty quick enough for the weekly trip to Asda.
Size, of course, matters and in this respect small is beautiful. A full 20 centimetres shorter than the Mini, the Peugeot 107 manages to feel more spacious inside the cabin. There’s plenty of head, leg and elbowroom for front passengers and even if the comfy front seats are fully pushed back there's more space for rear passengers than in the Mini.
A leisurely look round the cabin as you sit twiddling your thumbs in the idling traffic confirms it’s a pleasant place to be. Peugeot has been brave and left the metalwork on the doors exposed and while some people might immediately judge that as looking cheap, instead it lifts the whole ambience by bringing some colour into the interior.
Clever at coping
Nippy in town, the 107 seems to thrive on the cut and thrust of its city centre existence. Sure it can cope with the demands of motorway driving, but it’s at its best in its town environment. Peugeot improved the car’s visibility lines over the 106 with oversized windows and that, allied to the short bonnet and stumpy rear-end make the 107 a dawdle to place when parking in tight city spots.
Throw in the fact the standard-fit power-steering is one of the best in the business, and that the light clutch works beautifully with the featherweight throttle pedal, and you’ll realise how adroit the 107 is at dealing with anything the city can throw at it.
With prices starting at £8495 — and standard equipment including four airbags (curtain airbags which stretch back to cover the rear passengers are an option), ABS anti-lock brakes, electric front windows, CD player, central-locking, body-coloured bumpers and mirrors, and ISOFIX mounting points — the 107 proves that a car built to a budget-type price doesn't need to compromise good handling and decent practicality.
Jim McGill