Highlights
- Original, unmodified
- Excellent history
- New timing belt and service
- MOT to March 2023
The Appeal
As the sister car of the Peugeot 106, the Saxo was renowned for its excellent handling and lively performance. It proved immensely popular, especially with younger drivers due to some excellent free insurance offers from Citroën.
This example is a remarkable survivor, presenting in very original condition and not having been modified as so many have. With a fine history file and some major work recently done, it’s a superb opportunity to acquire what is an increasingly rare late 90s hot hatch.
The History and Paperwork
- First registered May 1998
- 6 owners from new
- Current owner since August 2020
- Averaged just 1,000 miles a year since 2012
- MOT to March 2023
- Dry stored by current and previous owners
- Numerous receipts for servicing and maintenance
- Many old MOT certificates
- Original owner’s handbook and service book
- Combination of main dealer / service history
- Locking wheel nut set
- Only selling due to ULEZ expansion
- Lots of recent mechanical work undertaken
The Interior
- Original fabric/vinyl interior
- Factory fitted manual sunroof
- Original radio/cassette
- Electric windows and door mirrors
As with all Citroëns of the era, the interior of this Saxo is a riot of 90s patterns and colours, with a heavily patterned original cloth interior liberally splashed in a combination of black, grey and green. It’s very of its time and looks excellent. The fabric is in very good condition, with no notable wear, tears of sagging that we could see.
The headlining is light grey and is secure and undamaged, although it does have a few marks and scuffs. Looking at the carpets, they also present well with no significant wear or staining.
Going to the back, the boot is quite generous for a small hatch, lined with a vinyl mat and trim. The boot lining is quite marked and scuffed, but there were no rips or damage we could identify.
All of the switchgear, instrument cluster and cabin trim elements are in excellent condition, with the controls and dials all perfectly legible and no issues we could see. The owner informs us there are a couple of minor issues: the speakers seem to be a bit quiet, the alarm has been disconnected and you have to lock the car with the key as the central locking remote isn’t working. Other than these minor issues, they assure us that everything else works perfectly well.
Overall, the cabin of this little hatch presents in very good condition and has been very well preserved.
The Exterior
- Amazon Green paintwork
- Refurbished original alloy wheels
- Unmodified bodywork
Unlike so many Saxos of this vintage, this car remains in original external condition - even the factory alloy wheels are present and correct.
Starting with the paintwork and bodywork, we see that it presents very well, being in good condition, with just a few minor blemishes and one or two minor dings and scuffs. We certainly couldn’t see any evidence of corrosion or damage.
In fact, the owner tells us that they think the car may have had a minor front end bump some years back, as there’s a receipt in the history file from a main dealer that carried out some front end repairs in 2007. This included: a new bonnet, front bumper, fog light, frame face and radiator grille.
The underneath looks nice and tidy too - very clean for a car of this vintage in fact. The underside mounted spare wheel is present and correct, and there was no notable corrosion or damage we could see, other than some surface corrosion to the rear driver’s side chassis rail.
The aforementioned 14” seven-spoke factory alloy wheels are present and correct, and have been refurbished so present very well indeed. They’re wrapped in matching Toyo Proxes CFZ tyres which look to be in good condition with good levels of tread.
The Mechanics
- 1,587cc 4-cylinder 16-valve
- 5-speed manual transmission
- Rear axle refurb this year
- Recent timing belt and service
With a buzzy little 120bhp 1.6-litre engine and fantastic handling characteristics, it’s no wonder the Saxo proved to be so popular - and is rapidly becoming a collectible modern classic. Mated to a manual 5-speed gearbox, it offers an engaging and fun driving experience that perfectly suits Britain’s twisting B-roads.
This one has been superbly maintained, coming with a stack of history, and comprehensive recent maintenance work. Under the bonnet, the engine bay appears to be in excellent condition, clean and straight with no evidence of leaks or any other issues.
Work undertaken in the last year or so includes: a complete rear axle refurbishment by ‘Axles by Stef’ (a renowned Saxo/106 axle specialist) and a new battery. A new rocker gasket, timing belt and water pump were all fitted in March 2022 and a full service carried out.
We’re told by the vendor that there is the occasional slight oil drip, but it’s very minor and otherwise the car is mechanically perfect and drives very well indeed. In fact, they tell us that the only reason they’re selling is because of the ULEZ change - otherwise this lovely little Saxo wouldn’t be going anywhere.
Summary
In wonderfully original and unmodified condition, with a great history file and excellent recent maintenance work carried out by specialists, this Saxo makes a fine case for itself. 90s era hot hatches are rapidly gaining in popularity again, but are rare to find in the kind of condition this presents in. We’d go so far as to say you’ll struggle to find another Saxo in the country that’s as original as this is.
We love the 90s interior, the Amazon Green paintwork and those delicious 7-spoke alloys. If you fancy re-living your driving youth, we can’t think of many better ways of doing it.
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