A "SPECIALTY" Shop KILLED This Peugeot 505 S! Can I Save It?

[@nervousbreakdown4506]

People in (northern) Europe would kill for an 80's car in this condition. The wiring harness would be available second hand over here. I'd say 100 bucks in parts and a day or two of work to get the dash out, wiring fitted and dash back in.

[@tech4pros1]

with the condition it's in, it'd almost be worth shipping it back to europe and selling to a euro enthusiast to take it on in an environment where spares are much more readily available and a rust free example like this is as rare as rocking horse s**t.

[@villejussila1599]

Not to mention replace those awful looking headlights with the proper units 🥰

[@petemommo9622]

This. I´ve a neighbour with a 102 in the garage and he´d give a kidney and a lung for a 505 in this nick.

[@obelic71]

US spec cars have often a different wireharnes (f.e side marker lights) this car would be a good donor car for the rustfree bodyshell. It needs an entire wire harness transplant of a donor or beter use that good donor one as a template to make a brandnew one (wire insulation goes bad with time) The problem is that the wireharness is often the first thing that is installed in the bare bodyshell at the factory. The best way to solve this isue is to gut out the entire interiour and inspect/repair/renew every cm of the exposed wireharness.

[@gilmour6754]

Yeah, wiring mess aside it looks to be in really good condition. It does feel like it should be saved!

[@Thomas63r2]

I worked at a Chevy dealer in the 1990's that had a mechanic who loved to take on impossible to repair cars or butcher jobs dragged over from other shops. He would take on these jobs as an extracurricular to his regular repair work. He would look it over and quote a flat rate to complete the job, usually with the expectation that it would take a month or two. He would work on these projects in his down time between jobs, or sometimes stay late here and there as he got inspired. The dealer liked his regular work and gave him his own double bay in an unused out building where he could disassemble these project cars if needed. Out of curiosity I would sometimes stroll through and he often had cars with the whole interior removed and the wiring harnesses also removed to find weird problems. Other shops in the area would send in cars when their own techs had gotten in over their heads and made a mess like was done to this 505.

[@HazewinDog]

Legend.

[@tedecker3792]

I was a Toyota tech in the 70s, and the boss would occasionally loan me out to other dealers (ford/chevy/dodge) when one of their guys got in over their head. Fortunate nobody let their tech get that carried away without a darn good explanation.

[@Thomas63r2]

My guess is that this car was disassembled early on by a tech who left that shop - and that no one else at that shop wanted to spend countless hours fixing it for little to no pay. If the shop owner was not going to personally step in, then he should have made it financially worthwhile for another of his techs to take the time. It sucks for the shop to have a money losing repair but good shops know that is the right thing to do.

[@jefferyG499]

@@laurat1129 It's crazy how poor some people's reading comprehension is. Thomas didn't say anything other than "I knew of a guy" and said he'd occasionally look at the cars the guy was working on. Looky-loos aren't rare or special.

[@gregoryhebert9401]

All the hard work is done for someone that can actually repair a vehicle....if you scared say you scared !!!! Lol

[@bmused55]

That is so sad and infuriating. This 505 has survived this long without much of an issue it seems. It looks mechanically solid. Well worth rescuing by the right person

[@davidhollenshead4892]

Mr. Wizard, the shop should be named and shamed if they don't: refund what they charged, and cover the full cost of the car, etc. They should have insurance in case an employee does something like this... I had a VW dealer, Howard Cooper of Ann Arbor, Michigan, under the previous ownership, return my almost new 1991 Vanagon after a Federally Mandated Emissions Recall with: a half a gallon of gasoline in the oil, CV Joint Grease Smeared all over the interior, and most of the Electrical Connectors for the Fuel Injection & Ignition Damaged. A mechanic who quit over witnessing the Service Manager vandalize my VW, told a mutual friend that he witnessed their Service Manager vandalize my van as none of the mechanics would do such a thing. And they charged me over $800 for this "free recall work"... Their Service Manager had tried to pressure me to sell my camper van which was a little over a year old with about a thousand miles on it for $1,100 when it cost $23,000 new. He claimed that "you ruined it by not taking care of it", "your kind* doesn't know how to take care of a car", etc. *He meant an American of mixed European & Native American Ancestry like me. I still have the VW camper and the last unsolicited offer was $45,000 due to being like new condition with 64,000 miles...

[@mauriciomarianocarneiro]

And talking about a Peugeot without much of an issue is already a miracle!

[@TheDragonSeb]

​@@mauriciomarianocarneiro those 70's and 80's Peugeot are beyond reliable, they run forever.

[@mauriciomarianocarneiro]

@TheDragonSeb I know, but the joke remains! :)

[@the_kombinator]

You missed the part where the head gasket needs to be changed.

[@lgude]

Can't help but wonder why the other shop actually cut harnesses and disconnected so much in an apparent attempt to trace wiring problems. Recently I isolated a relay problem - no triggering current - in my 97 Corolla but when I realised the fault was 'somewhere' the harness - I had the sense to stop rather than start taking the harness apart. An experienced auto electrician traced the problem to a faulty aftermarket immobiliser. He had the problem solved in less than an hour and charged me $110. This reminds me of when I took apart my grandfather's Big Ben alarm clock in 1946 and was surprised that I had no idea how to put it back together. I was 4 at the time.

[@tdvandy2]

haha. great story!

[@jcollins1305]

Always aftermarket parts. 😡

[@rossjohnson2478]

Regarding the clock story…. I’ll bet every single mechanic has a similar story from when they were younger.

[@fredmertz8538]

@@jcollins1305 They are my first suspects with any troubleshooting I do.

[@TedStoffers]

@@lgude Don’t you mean “Baby Ben”. I took one apart. My dad threw it out before i could reassemble it. I remember one screw held it all together. You just had to hold all the parts together and put the screw in. The metal outside was the bell. Quite clever.

[@robbflynn4325]

Tow it to Pine Hollow Auto Diagnostics in PA. Ivan will sort it. Guaranteed. The guy is an absolute genius. He can diagnose and even reverse engineer. He prides himself on using no parts wherever possible.

[@josephhertzberg2734]

Do this!!

[@stephenhammond9793]

My thoughts too..he'd be so excited by this one he'd probably do it for free as long as he's not been banned from the Peugeot dealer if he needs parts. He loves his eurocrap.

[@wurly1]

@@stephenhammond9793 I don't think Ivan would do it for free - he's not a charity, he does have to earn a living and youtube revenue isn't going to cover the time this would take!

[@lukeblacksmith7422]

Wouldn't just the towing cost as much as the car is worth?

[@robbflynn4325]

@@lukeblacksmith7422 maybe. But people are attached to their cars. People travel hundreds of miles because they know how good he is.

[@charlesmlane32]

So in order to save this Peugeot 505 S is to do a total rebuild of the total wiring harness being brand new. That other shop needs to be held accountable for what they did to this car.

[@adotintheshark4848]

I think they deliberately destroyed it. They probably got tired of hearing the customer call again and again. No one could be that incompetent.

[@dylanlindsay1993]

@@adotintheshark4848 thats what i was thinking... even i aint that dumb! because this situation doesnt make any sense otherwise...

[@LeSarthois]

What's infuruating is that aside from being not familiar with the model, there's no excuses to botch a WIRING job. Electricity in cars of the 80's is bog down standard, 12V DC, ground to chassis, etc... It's basically the one part of a foreign car there's no conceivable excuse to botch down. Of course a shop breaking a car because they used imperial tools and used parts from other brands "because it's a foreign 4 banger" would still be bad, but slightly more understandable.

[@adotintheshark4848]

@@LeSarthois to cause that much damage, that's not botched. That's vandalism.

[@LeSarthois]

@@adotintheshark4848 oh yes, I was more talking in general. There's no excuse here. I'm not gonna say that it's easy, but electricity is electricity, relays are relays, alternators are alternators. Sure the brands may change, but especially on a not-computerized car, the wiring logic is the same around the world. Also the cables are even coloured differently. I have two Citroën cars (Visa and C15) and EVERY cable is green. Now that is a nightmare to know which wire do what, even the ground is green. But still, you can check out with a volmeter.

[@guillaumeromain6694]

505s go forever. They can still be found in Africa 40 + years on - toiling away Every. Single. Day. Please save it. 🙏

[@michaelfraser5723]

Africa can have bit back, if they can find anyone still living there; most are in UK and Ireland

[@guillaumeromain6694]

​@@michaelfraser5723Dunno what's "bit" got to do with this but thanks anyway for your uplifting input.

[@scrambler69-xk3kv]

They rust terribly in snowy climates.

[@guillaumeromain6694]

​@@scrambler69-xk3kvName one 70s or 80s car that doesn't. Best of luck

[@fortheloveofnoise]

​@@guillaumeromain6694Lada

[@NeedsmoreCowbell72]

Never had a 505 but have 5 French cars currently. They have butchered that wiring harness. With having such a straight body it would be a good base for a resto. The wiring harnesses are available in Europe.

[@brian5o]

I’m so happy that the wiring harnesses are still available in Europe. I figured it’d be impossible to find parts for this car if you needed them because of their age and, at least here in the US, they didn’t really sell in big numbers. I always loved the 305 and 505, they were some of the coolest, sportiest cars on the road back in the 80s.

[@danielulz1640]

Former Peugeot parts man here. The US US spec and Euro spec wiring harnesses are very different.

[@bandwagon240]

​@@danielulz1640at least it would be a good start.

[@scrambler69-xk3kv]

Why would you ever wish to own a French auto?

[@wurly1]

@@scrambler69-xk3kv because they're unique and interesting, unlike anything else.

[@ShinGoukiSan]

I would sue that shop

[@donnaclayton8644]

I second that

[@HyperHorse]

I third that motion.

[@TedStoffers]

@@donnaclayton8644Take em to court. Wizard is witness!

[@brian5o]

Sadly, it would probably cost more to sue the shop than the damages are worth. It pains me to see what those idiots did to that poor Peugeot and slamming the hood on the fuse box lid and that fuse just goes to show how little self-respect they have and how little they care about their customers’ cars. Peugeots are such neat and quirky cars. My dad had an old 70s 504 back in the early 80s and that car and its unusual French design made me a big fan of the brand. Everything in that car was executed just a little different from the norm- similar to Citröen, but not quite to that extreme. The 305 and the 505 were the two last Peugeots sold in the US before they pulled out of the market which to me makes them special. It’s terrible what that shop did to this great survivor. There can’t be too many of them left.

[@nakoma5]

What good would suing do though?

[@RobsNeighbor]

I'm a specialty shop because I specialize in fixing cars and motorcycles I have a high success rate with and stay in my Lane. It keeps the customers happy. The smartest mechanics will just say no before they start. Sad to see this

[@theundergroundlairofthesqu9261]

A man has got to know his limitations. -Harry Callahan

[@Haffschlappe]

Most people wont be able to afford your valued work now

[@vwecco1]

These Peugeots are actually rather easy to work on. Fairly simple and lots of space under the hood.

Not with US emission controls added!

[@fortheloveofnoise]

this

[@NJRoadfan]

Depending on what Jetronic system it has, the additions are minimal. The original K-Jetronic had an O2 sensor control system added on. The later KE-Jet system had all that integrated into the main controller plus added a proper idle air control system. Most anyone can properly repair these systems with nothing more than a multimeter. The biggest enemy of mechanical fuel injection systems is air leaks in the intake after the metering plate. The system can't compensate for it like EFI systems with mass air flow meters. Finding and replacing all the old torn vacuum hoses goes a long way to making sure these cars run properly. That and hopefully someone didn't mess with the static mixture screw!

[@johanslabbert2869]

My Dad’s aunt had one of these in the 80’s. In very similar spec, 2L injected motor, 5 speed manual and a glorious metallic brown paint job. Here in SA 🇿🇦 it was a pretty expensive car at the time, about equal to an entry level Mercedes Benz (W123). Three things that stood out about that car: 1. The seats were incredibly comfortable, soft yet supportive. 2. The ride quality was exceptional on even the worst roads. Supple, controlled, enormously absorbent. 3. The car felt overall immensely solid. Most cars of the era had relatively flimsy body shells that would vibrate and judder as the various sections resonated in tune with the drivetrain and the road surface, but this Peugeot had it contained to the kind of imperceptible levels that was the preserve of Merc and BMW cars at the time.

[@marianarcas]

I bought a sevel 1993 diesel one las week pretty solid and cheap car to ride

[@bwofficial1776]

Peugeot was called the French Mercedes-Benz.

[@mcapps1]

I had a 505 turbo back in 1990. Special. The problem with the headlights is there missing two metal rods, one on each side, that connects to the adjustment module.

[@jumpinjojo]

*They’re, not there.

[@bwofficial1776]

@@jumpinjojo Their what?

[@jumpinjojo]

@@bwofficial1776 I didn’t write “their”.

[@bwofficial1776]

@@jumpinjojo I know. I was trolling you with homonyms.

[@mayormc]

This is unreal. To refer to this as "wiring issues" is a mammoth understatement. It looks as if it has been vandalized by incompetents. On a fairly rare vehicle, as well. I cannot even imagine what the costs would be to actually repair this disaster.

[@the_kombinator]

Nothing - DIY it. I've done similar work to my own project cars.

[@harriettanthony7352]

@@the_kombinator Sure DIY-ONLY IF-- you have the tools, skills and patience

[@the_kombinator]

@@harriettanthony7352 A multimeter, basic electronic skills and.... yeah that other thing, I have, but it's limited to things I'm passionate about.

[@sirhcmi3]

My dad had a manual transmission 505 STI while I was in HighSchool. Super cool car and fun to drive!

[@ANDREWSAMY562]

And not to mention, will run forever

[@jcollins1305]

Forget suing the garage, it’ll get you nowhere. Just leave a google review with a link to this video. That’ll be worth 3 lawyers. The comments are fascinating though. I had no idea these were such robust cars. Well done.

[@flothchtronk2068]

They are robust and easy to work on, with good mechanical accessibility. It's beyond me how someone could ruin a car in that way, it's almost like they did this on purpose to harm the owner in some weird way.

[@NotNowCato1254]

That's a good idea actually.

[@elliri3012]

A friend told me that in northern Africa ,half a century ago, the vehicle of choice to cross the desert was 1) a Land Rover or 2) a Peugeot 504 with a 50 gallon tank.

[@davidhollenshead4892]

Agreed, that shop should be named and shamed if they don't: refund what they charged, and cover the full cost of the car, etc. They should have insurance in case an employee does something like this... I had a VW dealer, Howard Cooper of Ann Arbor, Michigan, under the previous ownership, return my almost new 1991 Vanagon after a Federally Mandated Emissions Recall with: a half a gallon of gasoline in the oil, CV Joint Grease Smeared all over the interior, and most of the Electrical Connectors for the Fuel Injection & Ignition Damaged. A mechanic who quit over witnessing the Service Manager vandalize my VW, told a mutual friend that he witnessed their Service Manager vandalize my van as none of the mechanics would do such a thing. And they charged me over $800 for this "free recall work"... Their Service Manager had tried to pressure me to sell my camper van which was a little over a year old with about a thousand miles on it for $1,100 when it cost $23,000 new. He claimed that "you ruined it by not taking care of it", "your kind* doesn't know how to take care of a car", etc. *He meant an American of mixed European & Native American Ancestry like me. I still have the VW camper and the last unsolicited offer was $45,000 due to being like new condition with 64,000 miles...

[@harriettanthony7352]

@@flothchtronk2068 Perhaps the recent election might be a cause? The media has been blabbing on how Trump-Trump Followers are the Devil , EVIL, and rah rah. It would not be too great a 'stretch' to see some Liberal/Communist/Democrat/ shop worker think he was doing a favor to "Democracy" {which term he has no knowledge of] to destroy the car. And then expect some well placed Democrat legal mind to save him IF he gets in trouble.

[@deadmanwalking6342]

Peugeout 505/4 are known as the "desert camel" in Africa for its engine reliability.

[@stig1280]

I grew up in West Africa. I have seen the 505/4 do things that would make a Land Cruiser soil itself.

[@claudiokauffmann]

Also in Argentina; 404, 504 & 505 are well know here. Really good cars, need some extra care and also are very condy

[@kenon6968]

They were big here in Colombia, don't see too many on the roads anymore, though plenty for sale, probably more a parts issue.

[@LeSarthois]

@@claudiokauffmann I'm kinda impressed you guys had the 504 sedan still made up to 1996 I think? It may amuse you to know that Peugeot stopped selling the 504 sedan in France in 1983, but since they never made a Peugeot 505 pick-up, they kept making and selling the 504 pick up up to 1996 here. And what may be of interest to you is that Peugeot stopped making the pick-up in France in 1993, meaning that the last two years of French pick-up sales were done with Argentinean-made 504 pick-ups (not sure why Argentinean ones since Peugeot also kept making the 504 in Kenya up to 2004... maybe a tax or shipping issue)

[@stephenschofield2836]

I had one of these in the early 90's and can say that I miss that car far more than anything I've owned since. Mine was a Diesel and I clocked up so many miles, leisure and work and it never missed a beat

[@gnomiefirst9201]

Years ago I met someone driving the diesel model, it had like 300k mi and they loved it.

[@NotNowCato1254]

Back in the late 70s the owner of the farm my grandfather worked on used to tool around in a Peugeot 504 estate. It had the noisiest diesel engine ever but was built like a tank and had a magic carpet ride (the French have always been good at 'ride comfort').

[@lanctermann7261]

That engine has removable wet sleeves. It can be rebuilt almost entirely in situ.

[@TDCflyer]

That wiring butcher-job is a death sentence to this car. Which is really a sad thing, 'cause these are generally pretty reliable, pretty efficient, pretty comfortable to drive and even pretty cheap and easy to maintain.

No French car is cheap and easy to maintain! Try finding parts.

[@NJRoadfan]

Most of the mechanical and service parts are generally from European OEs (Bosch, ATE, ZF, etc.) and easy to find. At this point, any other parts (body trim etc.) are going to be impossible to find for all 80s European makes.

[@lorenzodavolio5341]

When I was living in France 🇫🇷 this car was an icon. I remember that the mechanic part is straightforward and the electric/electronic pretty simple. But speaking French definitely could help a lot.

[@kmrtnsn]

They built these well into the ‘90s in Argentina. Parts can be found.

[@flothchtronk2068]

The wiring and some other parts are specific to the US market, might be difficult to find the right parts.

[@Barbarapape]

This is what happens when you ask the wrong shop to attempt repairs that are beyond they skill levels. What a shame in the right hands it could have been salvageable.

[@AlvinBrinson]

Problem is it's very hard to know it's the "wrong shop" until too late. Even online reviews are pretty worthless for this.

[@LeSarthois]

Especially since the issues would have been (for Peugeot of that era or cars of that era in general) nothing but corroded ground connector or wire supports. I had the same issues on my Citroën Visa. The solution? pull the wires from the bulb support, clean the support, cut the very end of the cables to get clean copper, and bam. I didn't even had to remove any body panel. Heck I didn't even needed to remove any light part, only the holders! I have a similar issue on my C15, I need to twist and tap the wires on the blinker lamps on the front wings... no surprise, there's little protection and are caked in mud so moisture get in. So yeah, what was probably a one-hour, no-tool job turned into a massacre.

[@jeandupond7986]

This 505 is probably the most reliable French car of the three in your shop. It deserves to be fixed, nice ones with low miles are getting difficult to find, even here in France.

[@swkohnle08]

In the late 1980's, I had an opportunity to buy a used 505 at a dealership. I had a 1984 Renault Fuego that I bought new in 84 and wanted to trade it in for the 505. The dealer wanted nothing to do with my Fuego as by the end of the 1980's AMC was gone and Renault was pulling out of the US market. Nobody wanted the used Fuego's or Alliance models. After a year, I finally found a private buyer for the Fuego in NH and by that time the 505 was gone and my desire to own any more French cars went with it. I like seeing Bob's Fuego in your shop for the nostalgia of having owned one like back in the 1980's. I have fond memories of constantly fixing electrical issues with my Fuego that I began referring to as a "monument-to-French-engineering..." Taillights would mysteriously lose ground connections, the metal clips Renault used for their lighting contacts fatigued and would lose electrical contact. I was even pulled over a couple times by state troopers as headlights and taillights would decide to switch off on their own. Other than the electrical gremlins, the Fuego was a fun car, and I always liked the look of the 505 also.

[@wurly1]

It's a pretty simple car, so it won't be too complicated to get to the bottom of and fix and give you a decent, reliable car at the end - but it will take time to chase through and hence its better for an enthusiast to take on themselves rather than pay a mechanic to do so.

Did you look under the bonnet? It's anything but simple.

[@roycenewman6196]

I test drove a 505s in the late 80's and these things were incredible. An absolute joy to drive and the seats were the most comfortable things I ever sat on.

[@PrinceAlhorian]

Lawsuits galore! Wizard must audit all the damage and the owner must sue that shop. That place needs to be named and shamed as well.

[@mouaxiong8618]

Wizard does not have the time for that.

[@PrinceAlhorian]

@mouaxiong8618 agreed. Just grinds my gears that the shop will come off this farce Scott free.

[@Kilroy72]

Seems to me the shop can get out of a lawsuit by simply saying they weren't finished with the repairs and would have returned the car in good condition if they were allowed to finish working on the car.

[@PrinceAlhorian]

@@plasticpaddy5278 True, but it's still the principle of the matter. Like ol Mad Mike Tyson use to say: People got way to used to not getting punched in the face.

[@b1gDerek]

@@PrinceAlhorian Suing for libel is much easier than suing for bad repairs and the wizard isn't a lawyer, nor does he want to get them involved. Mike could take a physical hit while the wizard may not be able to take the legal/financial hit.

[@houseofno]

That's a specialty shop alright. They specialize in killing those funny little French cars. Hide, little Citroen (referring to the other French car in the Wizard's shop).!

[@raven4k998]

you know things are bad when you have custom duct tape on your head lights💀💀

[@davidhollenshead4892]

@@raven4k998 Because they broke the plastic trying to remove them for no good reason...

[@raven4k998]

@@davidhollenshead4892 like I say you know things are bad when you have custom Duct tape plus the wiring is a nightmare this is why never let noobs play with your old toys

[@helmuthhaass3631]

In Australia, when they're found wanting, we re-name so called specialista shops as 'EDDY THE EXPERT'

[@andyroid5028]

'Specialty' shop?! Sounds like the only thing they specialize in is not knowing ANYTHING about how to repair cars that they claim that they can repair! What a lousy shop. : ( I feel bad for the Peugeot's owner. It's too bad he has chosen to give up on pursuing those garbage mechanics (in court). Whatever he decides to do, good luck to him. _"LIVE & LEARN"._ Thanks Wizard/Mrs. Wizard for posting this video. Happy (early) Thanksgiving to you & Mrs. Wizard (& the entire family & your employees)! 👍🏻🦃

[@C.Fecteau-AU-MJ13]

Imagine how cool the individual from Memphis who ordered a new Peugeot 505s in the 80s must've been... A character one would have to assume.

[@rodrigobelinchon2982]

As an European , I can't imagine any reason to buy a Peugeot instead of a Trans Am

[@flothchtronk2068]

​@@rodrigobelinchon2982I can imagine many reasons. Ride comfort, safety and reliability being two of them.

[@11sfr]

Probably a professional, like a doctor, lawyer, or architect. My Mom was an emergency room nurse in the '80s, a couple doctors at her hospital had 505s, she doesn't know much about cars and isn't really interested in them, but to this day still thinks of Peugeot as being a fancy, upscale brand because of that. They had an office in New Jersey for a long time after they stopped selling cars here, and you could ran into a new model on manufacturer's plates once in a while in the NYC metro area, parking garages for big malls etc, since PSA kept bringing in company cars for their managers to drive on 6 month terms.

[@gordonstarship]

In my experience the people that buy them here, have nationality ties to the country of manufacture. In some instances I know of people who drove the same cars in Europe before moving to the States.

[@daves3402]

Quite a few were sold in Idaho to farmers in very desolate owyhee county because they were diesel and could handle the dirt roads.

[@fboomerang]

This is such a bummer! The Peugeot 505 is known for its durability and can last for hundreds of thousands of miles if properly maintained. The 505 was designed to be rugged enough to withstand the rough roads of former French colonies in Africa. Please help me find a five speed Pininfarina designed 604, they are one of the most stylish sedans of all time!

[@Rammstein56]

Holland on a site called Marktplaats, 604 metallic green, 5 speed from France on full Dutch license plates, € 4250, in great condition with the Euro headlights.

[@Mortonbmx]

They're renowned in the uk for unreliability and rust. They're rare for a reason 😅

[@magomat6756]

We have a 505 gti

[@Rammstein56]

@@Mortonbmx Visit Africa and I'll see you, most were exported after a tough life in Europe, people got scrap cars from salvage yards, fixed them and drove them through the Sahara to sell them in Mali. I know, I worked in Ghardaia in Alegeria's Sahara back then. We had 504's 😀😃

[@Mortonbmx]

@@Rammstein56 there are currently 34 Peugeot 505s still registered on the uk roads. Says it all really...

[@neilprice513]

I would donate to a college or university for automotive repair. Working out WTF the other shop did to this car and trying to fix it would be a good teaching tool. I doubt you would ever be able to get insurance on it to have it road legal again.

[@Nordic_Mechanic]

That's my cup of tea. If that came in my shop I would fix it and it would be just as dependable as it was before. Wires are pretty simple to keep happy.

[@Marklions]

This car was one of Peugeot real work horses. It was very reliable, comfortable, easy to service etc. With proper maintenance it would easily do 250 - 300 thousand miles.

[@raptor4799]

505s really aren't that scary. Sure they hacked up some wiring but there's not a spectacular amount of wiring in that car to hack. You just have to know your way around the 505 as a model, very few do.

[@kennetpedersen256]

Poor guy, sad situation. My advice if you want to fix it is to get a complete wiring harness here in northern Europe. We have alot of places that have parts for cars like these. Best places to find the harness would be: Denmark, Sweden, Norway, Germany, France and UK. Good luck.

[@jasoncampbell5518]

Thats the biggest issue with auto mechanic shops. Once you ok them to work on your car your screwed when they destroy it ! You have to pay no matter if they fix it or not ! Their are no protections for customers who get screwed or scamed with extremely poor diagnostics or them just stealing parts off of it !

[@arnodyck]

I worked on an old Ford food truck that I regretted. Once I got to the dash, I found out that it had been on fire. Almost every wire was a foot long or less. It was butt connector after butt connector. After many many hours it was fixed. It was frustrating but it helped my skills.

[@holdendeaner5283]

5:41 "What the hell were they doing in this thing for four months, and no progress was being made" Meth, Mr. Wizard. They were doing meth.

[@danielulz1640]

Well, that would explain it! 🤔 😮

[@JamesAllmond]

or worse...

[@philtucker1224]

I think it was just parked-up for four months - until the customer paid his $3500 dollar bill!

[@Star_of_the_new_moon]

Wow i still remember ad a kid my dad negotiating the dealer in West Viginia buying a Peugout 505. I ended up totaling it as a teenager rear ending a bull dozer.

[@Vicstruction]

Looks like they used his car as a parts car for another customer. Hope they sue them for everything they can

[@michaelfraser5723]

yes, they started to 'part it out', thinking/assuming the customer had lost interest

[@davidbeckenbaugh9598]

I had not thought about that but, now that you said it..... I did a head gasket on one of these as a car repair class project in the early 90's. We exactly followed the book instructions and I do not remember it taking very long. Because it was a class project, the owner let us do some extra work on it and we pulled the engine, cleaned it, resealed it and, after everything was back on the engine, we repainted it. And a new clutch, since it was out. That car was sound, mechanically, when it left our classroom/shop. AND I SAW IT THREE WEEKS AGO, same owner. She told me that, other than replacing some regular maintenance items, she has had no trouble with the engine... She now has over 500k miles on. Those are really tough cars....

[@EazyDoor]

​@@michaelfraser5723Who in their right mind would assume something like that? Assumptions really are the mother of all f*ck-ups.

[@helmuthhaass3631]

Yes, such practices are not un commob

[@simonupton-millard]

Nothing a rewire from scratch couldn't fix 😭 that's going to to be so so expensive but if the owner advertised on Peugeot forums they may find someone with the experience willing to take it on as that car could definitely be turned into a verry nice example

[@adotintheshark4848]

That looks more like deliberate vandalism than an attempted repair. I'd be dialing a lawyer to have them contact the "shop". What this owner should do if he likes this car, is find another 505S and use this as a parts car. Or else sell it to someone who would fix it themselves. It can be repaired with time, knowledge and patience.

[@kimnielsen9332]

I had one of those, a 1982 505 Turbodiesel. Ran on Jet A, good running car. Stepmom had one too, 1985 505 Turbodiesel, very smooth riding car. Sat so long in the Atlanta airport parking lot the paint got really beat up, even with a car cover.

[@OddCars]

I've owned, and fixed, and rewired a many of peugeot. A few years the brakes lights were wired through the cluster. .. That's the Xn6 engine. The whole dash is simple to pop out. I'm not seeing the big issue of checking the wires out, and fixing what's needed. I'm in Virginia, so your nowhere near me. If that car was closer, I'd straighten it out easily.. I do understand the time it takes to go over it. Not much of a challenge though. I'm not one to just say screw it, and your on your own. 😊

[@slablevcek]

Go man. Tell carw some truth. In this project his no car wizard.

[@teije3101]

Awesome cars, 505s. The wiring is also pretty straightforward. Usual culprit for a no start condition is the tachometric relay which makes sure the fuel pump only gets power when the engine spins. Hopefully someone can rescue this one!

[@helmuthhaass3631]

Yes, it's known as a motronic function and can be tricky if you're not aware of it

[@chrisminifie219]

Spare parts only. Years ago I had a 405. A “specialty” shop worked on it and did damage.

[@ignaciomarquezcontilde]

Just look at that Renault Fuego back there!!!!

[@chrismerle6163]

Peugeot, the oldest car manufacturer in the world - who knew? The 504 & 505 was reliable diesels, beloved cabs in West Africa.

[@russellbooth37]

I had one of these in the UK in the 1990's, an '84 estate model (had a 504 too), so comfortable and only sold for business reasons. Live in Kenya now and see these on a daily basis still working hard.

[@7mgte490]

Car Wizard at 1:00 am ET No this is not a nightmare

[@joemama38]

A dream

[@MatthewBrannigan]

A bit earlier for me as I'm on Pacific time, but it was a nice surprise nonetheless to see a new vid at 10pm, especially as it involved a French car!

[@PDLM1221]

I had a 84 505 sti gas ( they also sold a diesel ) 4:28 and it was one of the best cars I ever had absolutely no issues for five years , when they sold only the smaller Peugeot then pulled out of the USA I bought a Volvo XC 90 for 275000 miles and again no issues ran good until someone hit my wife Head on and totaled it but it saved her life and we miss it ! I wish they would sell again in the US

[@honestguy7764]

whats wrong wiith american mechanics? a diesel car here in europe, can be fixed by anyone. Thats a simple wiring harness, sometimes its not really necessary to dissasemble anything to pinpoint the issue with a polymeter

[@northof-62]

Lawsuit threats probably. It's a thing over there.

[@wernerdanler2742]

I bought an 83 505 turbodiesel in 1990 and had it for 11 years. The longest I've ever owned a car. These things are tanks! I drove it across the country several times. I blew the head gasket and cracked the head. I drove it to hard through the mountains. I had a Peugeot specialist replace the head and gasket in his off time for around a thousand dollars. I went to Kansas for a few months in winter and had to put a plug-in heater in the lower radiator hose because it did not want to start in cold weather. Other than that, it was pretty much trouble-free. It came with 390 mm wheels, which I traded for 15-inch wheels from a later model. Those 4 bolt wheels always kinda worried me. I loved driving that car, and they were very popular in California back then.

[@__max__]

RIP to everyone’s funky grandads car

[@mikelumbreras4903]

Great car! Back in 1990 in full winter time I convey one of these. Left Montreal at 4 pm on Friday and delivered the 505 at 5 pm on Monday. Amazing car to drive on snow. Well done peugeot.

[@patk8417]

Like Kenny Rogers sang 🎶 You got to know when to hold em, know when to fold em, know when to walk away, know when to run. 🎶

[@John_O_Maoilearca]

Eurasian Bob may know of a Peugeot specialist

[@stevemartegani]

4x140 wheels! Only classic Peugeot and Subarus had that pattern.

[@brian5o]

Wow, you’re right! I do remember Subaru Brats having that crazy-wide bolt pattern now that you mention it!

[@stevemartegani]

@brian5o I had Pug wheels on a '79 Subaru wagon once. Crazy lugnuts for those wheels too.

[@markbowden7238]

4x140 is Peugeot 4x98 is Fiat That is my total knowledge of pcd's.

[@mujopasuljic6471]

4x140 French cars (mostly) 4x114.3 asian 4x100 germans 4x98 italians

[@leediffenderfer9326]

I have a couple XT Turbos here in Michigan id really like to get a set of wheels like these for

[@cubiczirconiabeard5366]

Resto-mod the electricals. Just fuse protect everything. Head light, turnsignals, turnsignal combi switch, brake lights, just run home depot wiring and use toggle switches and buzz fuses.

[@duancoviero9759]

It's certainly doable but that's not something just anyone can tackle

[@99gagtx]

A new Car Wizard video at 1:00am? A true nightmare for this car. Being butchered like that. The other shop didn't know what they were doing, they were out of ideas, and got themselves deep into a situation with no way out. I feel bad for the owner of this car.

[@angeldb2502]

Así era y siempre ha sido Peugeot, una marca que no asume riesgos, cajas de zapatos con ruedas, luego llego Citroën, loa internacionalizo como no habían soñado con su infraestructura, fabricas y centros de desarrollo y distribución, para Citroën terminar en nada.

[@MatthewBrannigan]

I moved from the UK to the US 21 years ago. The last two cars I had when I lived in the UK were both Peugeots - I just love the brand. If I had the money, I would absolutely buy this and bring it back. A KZbinr like Robert from Aging Wheels or Alex from LegitStreetCars would do some terrific content if they bought this. Please don’t let it die!

[@brian5o]

I was thinking the same thing about a KZbinr taking this on. I was kind-of hoping John Ross from WatchJRgo would take it on. He has the skills to fix this and also lives in the Wichita area.

[@tech4pros1]

this is definitely more of an 'Aging Wheels' kind of car.. he voluntarily owns a 2 stroke Skoda and a Trabant, and has previously owned a Lada.. i can't think of a better person this 505 could go to!

[@ordinosaurs]

I'm French and I had a hand-me-down 505 of that vintage as my 1st car (a GL, probably the same motor, carburetted, 4 gears manual shift). Loved this car, this video makes me really sad as well as nostalgic. Being a propulsion, and me being a very inexperienced driver, I ended up once or twice in some rather tricky situations, with the nose of the car not exactly facing my intended destination, but it was also, luckily, quite forgiving, and a great car on which to learn driving in spite of me fooling around.

[@arriagada1957]

Take to South America Argentina..Uruguay.. Chile..and they will fix it with the eyes closed...

[@Haffschlappe]

Repair These is easy in Egypt most Taxi Shops can Do it

[@brian5o]

It’s absolutely heartbreaking what that other shop did to this car. The last Peugeots, the 305s and 505s were not terribly common even when new and I haven’t seen one in the wild in decades. That car was a great survivor before this happened. It looked to be in excellent condition. That other shop basically wrote this car’s death warrant. That is so sad. I do hope someone with the time, interest and know-how can save this. I wonder if John Ross would be willing to take this one on?

[@billthomas8994]

The 505 has beautiful classic lines that still looks good to this day. Hopefully someone bring her back to life, maybe with minor performance upgrades.

[@HannuLaine-h5x]

OMG! I had similar 505 GR 2.0 (1980 model) back in 90-97. Even similar color. OHV engine and nice, smooth ride.

[@frankfurter726]

I had a 505 2.5 turbo diesel back in the day ( I live in the UK). Bought at 50,000 miles and sold at about 150,000. It needed a gearbox rebuild probably brought about by doing a lot of heavy towing while we had our house built. It wasn't fast but had a strong torquey engine which made for relaxed cruising and a lovely ride/ handling combination. Great car for the time, I replaced it with a Peugeot 605 2.1 diesel also bought at about 50,000 miules and kept in the family till 175,000 miles. Peugeots made great cars in those days, even now my wife runs a 17 year old Peugeot 307 diesel which we bought at a year old and 9,000 miles

[@702Wolfi]

My grandfather has 1970 Peugeot 504. It was a interesting car.

[@brian5o]

My dad had a red 504 of about the same year when I was young, too. He bought it from my aunt. I used to play in that thing all the time. It was such a quirky little car. Every once in a while, I look around to see if any are for sale. That car made me love the Peugeot brand.

[@TiagoJoaoSilva]

Effin battleship (especially the "Renforcé" made in Portugal up to 1981 with extra structural bracing for heavy loads and bad roads, and a live axle, meant to be exported to Portugal's African colonies)

[@CORVAIRWILD]

I sold a very rusty Peugeot 505 stickshift to Brooklyn NY. It went directly to Africa. It hadn't run in 15 years, we got it running on my ramptruck, they drove it off and paid me an extra $100! They were SO HAPPY!

[@martian9999]

send it to Africa. You'll find a mechanic who can somehow get a used wire harness into that thing. They're geniuses of improvisation there.

[@Triumph-dg4bv]

A lot of african countries dont allow the import of old cars like this anymore. Because they want to get rid of the garbage themselves.

[@gti505]

Don't let them full you, still being imported but as scrap nowadays. Cut in 3 parts and welded solid in 1 piece after import.

[@bradhampton6457]

I’ve never owned a French made car but have heard from other people that they can be difficult to diagnose and repair. That car is indeed pretty sad. The shop that ruined it should be sued.

[@brian5o]

Click and Clack from Car Talk used to always rag on Peugeots. I’ve always liked them since my dad had his 70s 504 back in the early 80s. I used to play in that car all the time as a kid. I learned in that car just how quirky Peugeot was- their ways of doing things and designing cars was just a little different- sort-of like Citröen but not quite as extreme. To me, that made them quite charming, interesting cars.

[@lando0861]

As I live in the Wichita area and have seen this car at the shop that Wizard received it from and they use to be a former Peugeot dealer but are also a defunct dealer name that I shall not name so their reputation isn’t destroyed.

[@UrosWolferr]

Old Peugoets are known for electric gremlins, but here in Europe good car electrician can fix them on ease. Who tried to fix that had no idea what he is doing. On costumers place, I would go to shop that creatred that mess and give conditions: - completely new electrical system from wires to relays (you can order it from France) - lawsuit

[@darax2022]

That 505 is a great classic car from the eighties. You just need the wiring diagram and a little patience to fix it. If you need any spare parts you can buy them in Europe or South America. Please don't scrap it.

[@mnotgninnep]

I went to Egypt a couple of years back and the taxi drivers were still using them as their daily drivers only with colour changing LEDs in the headlights. It was a little trippy to say the least. I dare say you could import a replacement wiring harness from Europe fairly cheaply.

[@blitzroehre1807]

Done many jobs a lot worse than this having had a car electrician shop for 30 years. This Pug is easy-peasy, 2 days the wiring loom would be like it left the factory. Head gasket on this one is a no brainer. Pity i am in Europe, I would have bought it off the bat otherwise

[@rudolphvanthoff1391]

They were an awesome car in their day. I hope someone over there reaches out for this.

[@billhyde2303]

Nice 59 Fury!

[@JohnAbrahamsen]

Really cool car. I borrowed a Peugeot 505 Turbo Injection back in the day. Think it was 220 HP original, easily tuneable also, so my friend had one with 300HP. It was really fast and controllable too. Great ride overall. Sad to see one of these gems in such a state.

[@Yugophoto]

in 2019 I bought an MR2 dirt cheap because it was on its way to the scrap yard. It was still running and driving but had a whole host of problems. The wiring was a mess, took me a couple months to sort it out. The engine had a "cold air intake" sucking in hot air from the engine bay, a halfassed EGR delete, a motorcycle muffler held on by hose clamps, and an oil catch can that was venting to atmosphere causing all sorts of vacuum leaks as well as coating everything in the engine bay in a fine oil mist. Oh, and a good chunk of the wiring harness had been cut and just twist and taped back together. I spent the better part of a year working on it every day, got it running really nicely. A guy at a car meet recognized the car and told me he 'saved that car' and revealed he had done all that work. Last year I found his last gift to me - I spun a bearing and when i put the car on jack stands, one of the pinch welds just fully collapsed. The rocker panels were completely rotted out, but at some point he had filled it with spray foam and bondo then painted over it. The car was done, it was never safe to drive and i was on borrowed time the entire time I owned it. I could have strangled the guy if he was there in front of me. So theres a cautionary tale about trying to sort out someone elses mess and getting burned for it.

[@ProtoType99468]

in the 80's i bought a 65 mustang (for 100.00) with mangled wiring, one guy put a stereo in it and screwed everything from the ignition to the brake lights, Another owner installed aftermarket fog-lights and butchered that so badly the turn signals didnt work. another wiring harness cost 125.00 but it was worth it.

[@qcbtbx]

A late night treat while I work! 👍🏾

[@NoPegs]

Night shift Best shift! *fistbump.*

[@Indy_at_the_beach]

I was a fan of older Peugeots. I had a '79 504 diesel that was as reliable as a hammer, comfortable as a cloud and slow as a slug. I loved that car. I had hoped to buy a 505 turbodiesel but never had the money.

[@will89687]

I had a 1984 Peugeot 505 GL station wagon. Loved it but the tin worm relegated it to the scrap yard. What the previous shop did to this car is an abomination. It's especially a shame considering how solid the body is. Even in its current condition it's a great base for a resto.

[@kir0nz]

But tin does not rust. It is not ferrous.

[@will89687]

@@kir0nz It's a figure of speech well known in automotive circles.

[@sonicsynth1975]

Wow. A rare car even in Europe. This car looks worth saving. My family had 2 back in the 80's and 90's. I hope someone purchases this and gives it a new lease of life.

[@peterdevreter]

The 505 was super reliable. Every single one is exported to afrika because they can handle rough terrain.

[@gti505]

Apart from mine.

[@janfswedane]

I worked on these @ a Peugeot work shop in DK in the early eighties. Peugeots are very sweet to work on, they are well engineered cars...

[@kevinrowley2579]

My parents bought this car's twin in the Spring of 1985 from a dealership in Atlanta that wanted to launch the Peugeot franchise. It was a beautiful car that, while pretty slow, drove and rode excellent, was very quiet and extremely comfortable. Failures I can recall off the top of my head: sunroof, 2 window motors, the automatic transmission safety switch (you could start it in "D"), air conditioning, alternator, battery, fuel pump and engine electric fan. There's a lot more that my mind has mercifully chosen to forget. The selling dealer had not bothered to hire/train Peugeot techs, so we were on our own for getting it fixed. We found a local mechanic (a German transplant to the US) who was willing to take it on. When faced with the outrageously expensive Peugeot parts prices (even in the late 1980s), he would substitute Mercedes-Benz parts. As he put it, the parts are less expensive, more readily available and better quality. After 4 years/45K miles, my parents threw in the towel on that French experiment and bought a 1989 Honda Accord LXi sedan. I don't think anyone in our family was sad to see it go.

[@TheDutchTexan]

Such a pretty car on the outside. Guess it needs to be gutted and LS swapped now. The last time I saw a 505 was back in 2007 as a passenger in a Porsche 911 at the local McDonalds. The owner at first thought I was laughing at him till I told him "That's a Peugeot 505, you rock!"

[@JohnJackson-e9z]

My grandfather had one of those back in the 1980's.

[@geezerdiamond]

Loving seeing this and the Fuego on the 'wrong' side of the world. What an utter shame for this car though; I do love the 505.

[@gsbeak]

The US spec headlights and huge bumpers do give a strange look to this classic 505.

[@danielguzman9061]

Yeah. I found one of this in Argentina . Very weird headlamps for us because Peugeot manufacture here this car and we have the european bumpers and all the others elements. Much more stilish. Remember is a Pininfarina design.

[@VB-bk1lh]

My first job was at a Fiat/VW dealer back in the early 80's, they had replaced what was a former Peugeot dealer, thus gained much of that former dealer's customer base. They openly advertised that they welcomed former Peugeot customers as well and had hired several of the former Peugeot techs to deal with the influx of 2 to 6 year old Peugeot vehicles. I was there for VW, being a huge air cooled fan at the time. The Peugeot cars in my opinion were complete nightmares. For one, I didn't fit in them, second, it seemed that every model had some major flaw. The 604's had head gasket issues with the PRV V6, the 505's had odd electrical issues, water pump, and head gasket issues, and it seemed every other one that rolled in the door needed a clutch or a transmission. We saw as many diesels though as we did gas, it seemed the area was flooded with diesel versions of both the 604 and 505. I was pretty good friends with on of the Peugeot techs and he drove an '81 505 and his wife had a 604 V6 model. Him, his wife, and my girl at the time and I went to many concerts together back then and since they had the only four door cars, he usually drove, or at least we took his car and I drove. I can say it was probably one of the worst vehicles I ever drove, in the category of a Yugo or any number of Renault/AMC abortions we saw in those days. It made my then 8 year old Dodge pickup feel like a limo in comparison. The ride was smooth but handling was vague, neither model had any head room for a 6ft 3in man, and four full size adults made the car feel overloaded. with me and him in the front seat, there was 550 or so lbs, and the women in the rear another 225 or so. Plus 100lbs of beer and ice in the trunk. Something about the car reminded me of riding an old moped, it moved but just barely. Worse yet, neither of his cars had many miles. Both were well under 25,000 miles at the time. As a mechanic myself, I did mostly electrical and transmission work on trucks. The level of incompetence in some shops is criminal. The worst I remember was a Porsche 924 that some custom audio shop had installed an aftermarket sound system and destroyed the guys wiring harness, dash, and both doors. If chopping up the wiring to install the radio and amps wasn't bad enough, the saw job they did on the doors was worse. Using what I pictured to be about a 12" long blade they cut sort or round holes in the door panels, without regard for the fact that the tip of the blade was bouncing off the outer sheet metal. The alarm system was cut into the ignition wiring under the dash, and we really thought that the guy had use the same blade to cut the main wiring harness. We got the vehicle after a nearby dealer asked if I could take a look at it and see why the instrument cluster, tail lights, and fuel pump wouldn't work. I spent a week splicing and repairing the butchered wiring and after that the car spent another month getting the doors fixed, after which it returned, likely with two completely new doors to have the speakers properly installed. It was 100% when all done, but still a 924, more an Audi than a real Porsche. It was one of the more miserable jobs I had dealt with there. No mechanic wants to deal with someone else's mess.

[@sebastiendebuisson5380]

Last rear-whealed drive Peugeot. Some say last quality Peugeot ever also. Sad to see where they are now

[@bmused55]

I've driven Peugeots most of my adult life. Must have covered a million miles with them. Two 406s, a 407 and currently a 508. All solid and reliable cars. Don't believe in the negativity from badge snobs.

[@flatheadV8]

My father had 3 Peugeot 504's, 1971.1973, 1976, each year the build quality was poorer than the previous years, Having said that , they were VERY good cars. I had a 1983 Ford Sierra diesel with the Peugeot 2.3L diesel which blew its head gasket at 57,000 miles.

[@sebastiendebuisson5380]

@@bmused55 personnal expérience with newer models. Bad luck with them, never again although

[@williamegler8771]

It's sad to see them sold in 160 countries worldwide? It's sad to see their sales volume increase by 6% in 2023 over 2022 which was a record sales year for the marque? It's sad to see several of their models among the top 10 best selling vehicles in several countries they are sold in?

[@sebastiendebuisson5380]

@@williamegler8771 yep, fine...and they're going bankrupt thanks to puretech and prince engine. And crap EV's. And no one will be sad there, all those people, needing a cheap reliable car because they can't afford something else, those people now are stranded with unreliable, miserably built and engineered POS that they can't even get rid of...

[@eduardoavila646]

Judging by how bad they were, and how little (even the godamn headlights) they could put it back in, i don't think they have gone too much deeper than what you see. Otherwise the car would be a box of parts, not a car. I think this is actually fixable, but probably would need a new wiring harness taken from a much more mecanically broken 505.

[@littlejefe494]

Bro went to a chopshop😮😮😮