At last Peugeot has come up with a decent 16-valve engine. Past efforts from the PSA group have been less than marvellous. But it’s not the engine that really makes this car, it’s the gearbox. The gearchange is so precise and smooth, that you find yourself changing gear for the hell of it. The 306 GTi-6 hits 60mph from rest in 7.8 sec, which, ironically, is the same time recorded by the 205 GTi. The 205 launched hard, whereas the 306’s acceleration is more linear. The GTi-6 hits its 129.9mph top speed in sixth gear, though it will also get there in fifth with the revs just stopping short of the 7250rpm cut-off.Chassis-wise, Peugeot has got the balance spot-on. The old 205 GTi provided an entertaining drive, but things could easily get fraught. The 306 GTi-6 will, if you are extreme with it, still launch into oversteer. We provoked it on the test track, but on the road you are unlikely to get the car to the point at which sudden lifting from the throttle will unsettle it into a slide. You can feel the passive rear-steer at work, helping the car turn in sharply. The GTi uses the S16’s 3.2 turns lock-to-lock power-assisted steering. Again, we had no gripes with that system, so all’s well here.
