ellie wrote in
news:[email protected]:

    > Peter Hartikka wrote:
    >>>The late French grandfather of a friend thought that the Peugeot was
the
    >>>only car a "serious" Frenchman would drive.
    >>
    >>
    >> My impression is that Peugeot is the best (or, if you prefer, the
    >> "least bad") of the French marques. In fact, the 307 was voted
    >> European Car of the Year in (I think) 2001, and the 206 has replaced
    >> the VW Golf as the best-selling car in Europe.
    >>
    >> However, some of the new Renaults look pretty cool, now that the
    >> cutting-edge design of the Avantime/Vel Satis is percolating down to
    >> the Mégane level. That said, I haven't been too impressed with any of
    >> the Renaults I've driven.
    >
    > So what's the cost of a Peugeot 307?
    >
    > Also, how about buying used cars? Here in the US, lots of people - for
    > reasons unknown - buy a new car every two years or so, and thus there
    > are a lot of late model cars available for sale. If it were up to
folks
    > like my husband and me, the only thing available would be cars that
were
    > hardly drivable. We typically buy either a new or an almost new car
and
    > then drive it until it is no longer able to pass road inspection tests.
    > Where between these two extremes would France be? I expect it might
    > very by region, of course.


No, no! Not the 307! The 206 Convertible... Then come over & take me for
a ride...

A used car is a good idea as it can take months to get your car from the
factory. In my case I'm waiting 5 months.

I remember when I contemplated the 206 (before it came in convertible)
there was a long wait as it was very well regarded and very well priced.

"R J Carpenter" wrote in news:b3nlkc$4fi$1
@bob.news.rcn.net:

    >
    > "ellie" wrote in message
    > news:[email protected]...
    >
    >> Also, how about buying used cars? Here in the US, lots of people - for
    >> reasons unknown - buy a new car every two years or so, and thus there
    >> are a lot of late model cars available for sale. If it were up to folks
    >> like my husband and me, the only thing available would be cars that were
    >> hardly drivable. We typically buy either a new or an almost new car and
    >> then drive it until it is no longer able to pass road inspection tests.
    >> Where between these two extremes would France be? I expect it might
    >> very by region, of course.
    >
    > What happens to those cars that Renault short-term leases (3 weeks to 6
    > months) to foreign tourists?

They lease them again until they can be written off then then sell them.
But I always thought it a bad idea to buy a lease car as they are not
treated very well by those who "borrow" it.

"Emilia" wrote in message
news:[email protected]...
    > "R J Carpenter" wrote in news:b3nlkc$4fi$1
    > @bob.news.rcn.net:
    > >
    > > "ellie" wrote in message
    > > news:[email protected]...
    > >
    > >> Also, how about buying used cars? Here in the US, lots of people - for
    > >> reasons unknown - buy a new car every two years or so, and thus there
    > >> are a lot of late model cars available for sale. If it were up to
folks
    > >> like my husband and me, the only thing available would be cars that
were
    > >> hardly drivable. We typically buy either a new or an almost new car
and
    > >> then drive it until it is no longer able to pass road inspection tests.
    > >> Where between these two extremes would France be? I expect it might
    > >> very by region, of course.
    > >
    > > What happens to those cars that Renault short-term leases (3 weeks to 6
    > > months) to foreign tourists?
    > They lease them again until they can be written off then then sell them.
    > But I always thought it a bad idea to buy a lease car as they are not
    > treated very well by those who "borrow" it.

The "leased" cars I'm referring to are not actually on lease. It is a
guaranteed repurchase plan. The cars are purported to be brand new, never
used. A number of people in the NG (not I) have used this scheme. I'm sure
they would have complained if the cars weren't as claimed.

Maybe the re-lease is to domestic customers.

Somewhere on the coach ride in from Orly, maybe near the Peripherique, I
once saw a Renault used-car agency. I thought it might have dealt in the
ex-lease cars I mentioned above.

    > So what's the cost of a Peugeot 307?

Here in Belgium they cost around 17 to 20 thousand euros, depending on
the exact model. Not exactly an entry-level car.

    > Also, how about buying used cars? Here in the US, lots of people - for
    > reasons unknown - buy a new car every two years or so, and thus there
    > are a lot of late model cars available for sale.

I don't know about France, but in Belgium it's fairly easy to find
relatively recent used cars, many of which are former company cars and
typically 2-3 years old at most.

    > If it were up to folks
    > like my husband and me, the only thing available would be cars that were
    > hardly drivable.

Not an option here because of the "controle technique" that every car
must undergo every 2 years (or is it every year? not sure). This means
that there are relatively few old clunkers on the roads. I believe
other European countries have similar regulations.