I bought my 505 in 1996 as an ex Taxi. It was one I had driven in the past. I paid £800 for it, this was before old car prices got really low. It came with a full MOT and some tax. The speedo showed 204000 miles.

Initial defects were as follows.
*Temp gauge didn't work, just needed a spade connector.
*Exhaust fell off the day after I bought it. I got it welded but had to replace it eventually, 2 small sections came to over £250 from a motor factor.
*Boot lock was broken. I replaced it with one pinched from a breakers, the key wasn't required as they all open with a penny.
*Driver's door mirror didn't work, I plugged it in and all was well.

DRIVING
The French know how to make a car hold the road. I recall one occasion when I lost an MR2 through some bends.
Performance was pretty good, not least because you didn't have to slow down for corners.
Although it was big (there is almost nothing on the road longer than the 505 Estate) the square shape made it very easy to see where it ended. When you look over your shoulder the distance to the rear window is rather disconcerting.

LIVING WITH IT
The boot is a respectable size even with all 7 seats up, though it doesn't hold 7 people's worth. Unfortunately you need the key (or a penny) to open it, quite annoying.
The boot floor is very lumpy, it doesn't look neat like a Volvo.
There is a panel with 6 switches on it for heated seats, rear wiper, fog light etc. The action of pushing these switches is enough to dislodge the whole panel, breaking a part that can't be easily replaced. The glove box also hangs from a brittle integral part of the dash. For such a solid car the interior is pretty flimsy.

COSTS
Mammoth. It went through loads of parts, mostly fairly small but lots of them. Peugeot rarely stock what you need, though my local dealer had some from when there were lots of them as Taxis. The prices are colossa
l. Even pattern spares are expensive and never in stock.
MPG is a fairly respectable 30, not bad for a tank.

I LIKED
The solid feel, the brutal looks, the space. The velour upholstery is much more durable than the tweed type stuff in non GTI models.

I DIDN'T LIKE
Working on it, a depressingly common occurrence. I took 2 days to fit a water pump (£60). The crank pulley smashed when I pulled it off (try finding another, the GTI is a totally different engine) and I had to smash the pump off every stud. In addition you had to dismantle quite a lot to get the timing cover off. Luckily a standard 505 pulley fitted.
The cooling system, the heater valve burst (£55, with discount). When I replaced that a hose burst under the bonnet, I still have the scars from that.
I never felt as if I was on top of the car.

THE END
After I had changed the head gasket and timing belt, at great expense and effort, a bolt fell out of the timing cover and jumped the belt. I just walked away at that point and bought a Ford Sierra. The Sierra water pump failed, time from discovery of fault to repair was 20 minutes, cost nil (there was a spare pump lying in the garage where I discovered the leak). The contrast between the pump episodes made me a confirmed Ford man.

BUYING
They have all had a hard life, look for evidence of maintenance. Walk away from any with cooling problems. Avoid ex Taxis. Any work needing done will cost, make sure you budget for that. GR models have nasty upholstery which wears badly. Check EVERY electrical device, half of them probably don't work. Do NOT buy one with engine bother. An engine can beat 300000 miles but one incident will kill it.

CONCLUSION
Great car but buy with care. Sell at first sign of trouble.