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B USINESS

19th December 1996
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Page 43, 19th December 1996 — B USINESS
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PARTNER

The Peugeot Partner van has a knack for turning heads as it is not derived from a familiar car. Is it worth the massive joint investment by Peugeot and Citroen? If you're looking for a high payload at a low price, the answer is yes...

We seemed to attract a lot of attention driving Peugeot's new Partner van. People overtaking us would always have a quick glance to the left presumably thinking: "What's this? it looks like something out of Toy Town. Surely the designers picked up their kid's drawing by mistake?"

But no, the Partner is meant to look this way, the reason being that it's a purposedesigned high-cube van that isn't derived from any car. So, instead of having an existing car's front half with an enormous box stuck on the back, the cab height is the same as the load area's. This gives a more integral appearance.

It was developed at a cost of £300 million in partnership with Citroen which has its own version called the Berlingo (CM 24-30 October 1996), and is competing in a market currently dominated by Ford's Courier, Vauxhall's Combo and the Seat Inca/VW Caddy. Along with the larger Expert van it's spearheading Peugeot's drive into greater light commercial vehicle sales.

The fact that the Partner is purpose designed means it has a number of qualities which it hopes will set it apart from the competition although it could have a problem with being an unknown entity. It will have to do well to overcome the combined marketing forces of Ford and Vauxhall particularly as it has already missed out on publicity at the Motor Show— Citroen was showing a number of concept vehicles based on its Berlingo. This is a shame particularly when Peugeot has said "many more derivatives are planned for the future."

• PRODUCT PROFILE

The distinctive looks of the Partner may not be to everybody's liking—some have called it old fashioned but the fact that it stands out should be good news for the small business man who relies on his van for extra publicity. Link this to the fair-sized side panels and you've got a pretty good advert on wheels.

Peugeot is importing four variants of the Partner as against Citroen's three for the Berlingo. Our test model is the 1.9D 800—The 800 referring to nominal payload. It's powered by the XUD9A indirect-injection diesel engine and costs £8,850 (ex-VAT).

There is also a 600kg variant with a choice of either a 1.9 or 1.8-litre diesel (L8,650 and £7,990, both ex-VAT). A petrol engine is the one option missing from Citroen's range. Peugeot's is the 1.4-litre TU311-) at a cost of £7,835 (ex-VAT). Apart from ABS and airbags, a healthy level of passive safety includes "ring of steel" roll-over protection, side-impact beams and a fuel cut-off system. However, we do think Peugeot's claim that "occupants are protected from side impacts by a relatively high seat position" is pushing it a little bit.

• PRODUCTIVITY The fact that the Partner is purpose-built doesn't necessarily mean it has a head start in the load area. However, this is certainly one of its strongest features. A useable payload of 725kg is rare in the high-cube market When you consider the Fiat Scudo has a payload of 740kg, we are getting close to small panel van territory which is basically what this new class of high-cubes amounts to.

A further comparison with the Scudo can be made in terms of fuel economy as they both use the same engine. In its Partner installation this returned 37.7mpg (7.51it/100km) fully laden on our Kent test route, which seems a reliable figure as the Scudo returned 35.5mpg (8.01it/100km) under the same conditions.

The class leader in the fuel stakes is the Ford Courier which achieved a colossal 50.9mpg (5.61it/100km) but then that's with a payload of just 515kg.

The load area itself is superb quality A removable rubber mat does an excellent job of keeping things in place as do the six tough tiedown points. The van is fairly slab sided and with a 567rnin loading height the class-leading 3.0m:1 load volume is very useable. Access at the back is via twin doors that open to either 90° or 180°.

We're a bit sceptical of the ladder bulkhead's ability to prevent the odd parcel from lodging in the driver's head but at least there is a full bulkhead as an option (180 ex-VAT). If you go for this, however, you will have to forfeit the extra load length gained by tipping the passenger seat through 90°. In this position an object of up to 2.1m can be stored but of course it can only use half the van's width.

• CAB COMFORT The designers at Bertone seem to have shipped in a Harlem Globetrotter to help with their cab. Agoraphobics beware! There's a real feeling of space in the Partner especially above the driver's head and at his elbows. And it's in the cab that the benefits of starting with a "clean sheet" become apparent.

The extra space above the driver allows for the seat to be set relatively high. A bonus for the multi-drop delivery man who regularly has to get in and out of the vehicle. What isn't a bonus for the same driver is the keypad immobiliser. Although it should be effective in safeguarding the van, having to enter the code each time you start the engine soon becomes boring The real oddity is that you're never quite sure if you have to enter it. Sometimes you do, sometimes you don't. We ended up by turning the key each time and then cursing it when we had to enter the code. Originally an option, Peugeot has now decided to make this standard. Shame.

The features that have to be praised in the Partner are the seats which are quickly getting a reputation for being the best in the business. Our test driver thought they were a perfect combination of support and comfort.

There's more to the passenger seat than meets the eye. We've already mentioned the extra loading capacity with it tipped forward but this also reveals a substantial stowage capacity underneath. The back of the passenger seat can then be hinged forward to convert it into a desk top. There's space here for a lap top computer or clipboard and compartments for two drinks and a mobile phone/calculator/whatever.

Even with this seat upright, there's plenty of storage space in the Partner. There's another two can-holders in the glove box which has a further compartment beneath it The door pockets are a good size and yet more cubby holes are found above the stereo and behind the handbrake. Oh yes, there's also a clip for receipts.

The interior is solid, well laid out and gives the impression it will wear well. The whole appearance is a bit doom and gloom but at •

least the dials are easily read and most people will find a comfortable driving position.

We were expecting great things from the Partner in terms of sound proofing with its high build quality and deadened panels and, although not fantastic, it did quite well. The figures are comparable with those of the Courier and Inca but then these are both smaller vehicles.

Another point to bear in mind is that raw numbers often don't account for the quality of noise and in this case it worth mentioning that the amount of boom from the load area was minimal.

I • ON THE ROAD As you would expect from the French, the ride quality is superb. There is almost no difference between its laden and unladen abilities. The Partner has certainly proved to be a comfortable drive. Push it hard around a bend and the predictable understeer becomes

apparent. This is coupled with slight body roll although you get plenty of warning as the back end decides to slide away. Nothing untoward happens if you lift off at the apex of the bend and even hard braking will only make the front end squirm a little.

The power steering is nicely weighted for town use although it loses precision at motorway speeds.

With the 1.9-litre engine pulling such a hefty payload we were never expecting superb acceleration although it didn't do too badly. It doesn't come too far behind its highcube rivals. Hopefully though Peugeot will eventually bring in a turbocharged version as is available in the Expert (Peugeot's equivalent to the Scudo).

On the road test notes produced by our photographer there can be found the comment "clutch smell". If this refers to the unbelievable stench produced when we tried a standing start on the one-in-four test hill his reputation for understatement is sealed. Maybe our clutch had suffered at the feet of a previous tester but no matter what we tried we weren't going anywhere. At least the hand brake would hold it there if need be.

We weren't able to test the brakes properly but when we tried a number of stops from about 40inph they were very easy to lock up.

To get decent performance the brake pedal has to be pumped as if the driver was a manual ABS system. We certainly recommend ABS as an option. In day-to-day performance on the road they lack feel and have to be pressed quite hard to get any noticeable retardation.

• SUMMARY

Buyers looking for a small van with a huge payload should look no further. The Partner is a high quality product that has clearly benefited from being designed from scratch. It has a number of advantages over its high-cube peers particularly in the cab but in the load area too.

It's also competitive on price. If someone offered you a 725kg payload for about the same price as a Ford Courier you'd probably think they must have scrimped on the rest of the van. But this hasn't happened.

If you're not too worried about performance you will find the Partner a comfortable drive whether on short or long hops. And it reasonably fuel efficient too, provided you make full use of the payload. It will be interesting to see what effect this new form of high-cube will have on the market. Judged on its own merits it deserves to do well. The big names could soon find things a little tougher.

17 by Charles Young

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People: Charles Young
Locations: Toy Town

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