Background
Car makers know that MPVs are big business just now and the van-based MPV models are one of the fastest growing niches in the market. This segment became popular with cars like the Renault Kangoo and Citroen's Berlingo multispace and since then they have been joined by a raft of other manufacturers with some making a better fist of it than others. Peugeot decided to keep its powder dry for a bit before entering the fray and the Peugeot Partner Origin Combi shows that they might have learned from others during that time. It is based on the Partner van and shares many of its components with the Citroen Berlingo, making it inexpensive for Peugeot to bring to market and also benefitting from a proven formula. The Peugeot Partner Origin Combi duly arrived in 2001 with a solid 5 door offering and a choice of two capable engines; a 1.4 petrol or 1.9 diesel. The Quiksilver model was introduced later the same year and boasted five panoramic glass panels in the roof. The Escapade soon followed, powered by a 2 litre diesel and was the only model available by 2005.
Bang for your buck
The big square design of the Peugeot Partner Origin Combi means that you get an awful lot of space inside and the flat floor and sliding rear doors make it seem all the more spacious. The seats fold to give a van-like load space and the under floor storage areas allow valuables to be kept safely out of sight when unoccupied. Those sliding doors are especially useful when the little ones are diving out of the car in tight car parks. The power steering on the Peugeot Partner Origin Combi makes it easy to guide at slow speeds and there are two Isofix berths to keep the little ones safe. A third child will require you to fix a child seat to the seat belt in the normal way. Safety and security are adequate and the Peugeot Partner Origin Combi comes with engine immobiliser and remote central locking.
What you'll pay
A Y plated 1.4-litre model starts at £4,175 for a 2001 version, increasing to £4,850 for a 02 plate. The same car in Quiksilver livery will cost £350 more. Diesels command a £500 premium.
What to check
Mechanicals on the used Peugeot Partner Origin Combi are solid and shouldn't give you much trouble. Check instead for wear and tear in the cabin caused by the little darlings and the usual parking dinks.
Parts
Being based on a van helps here and parts are cheap. A new exhaust is around £150, front brake pads £50 and rears cost around £58. A new radiator is around £165, whilst a new starter motor will be around £250. A headlight comes in at £65.
How it drives
The Peugeot Partner Origin Combi for sale comes with two engines, namely a 75 bhp 1.4 litre petrol unit or a 1.9 litre 71 bhp diesel power plant. They are almost identical in terms of power output and similarly offer almost matching fuel economy, with the petrol managing 40 mpg and the diesel achieving 41 mpg. Clearly there is not much to choose between the two and you would need to cover over 50,000 miles to pay for that £500 uplift in the purchase price of the diesel. Most surprisingly for a car based on a van, both models are actually a lot of fun to drive. Body roll manages somehow to be acceptable in the corners and both engines seem quite keen when provoked with a dip of your right foot. The 1.9 diesel will reach 60 mph in a fairly sedate 15.2 seconds but watching the world trundle by through all that glass makes it feel a lot quicker. Peugeot have long held a reputation for making exciting small cars and somehow they have managed to transfer that expertise into the unpromising van DNA of the Peugeot Partner Origin Combi. It has a good mixture of performance and handling and the overall build quality is very good indeed. In short, if you are looking for no nonsense family motoring you could do a lot worse than a used Peugeot Partner Origin Combi. It has a Tardis like quality which allows it to swallow loads that larger cars would struggle with and at the same time manages to be more manoeuvrable than many small hatches.
