I'm about to purchase a 2007 citroen berlingo 1.6 van. It has 80k on the clock and seems to be in really good condition with full service history. I'm a surfer so I plan on kitting it out with a bed in the back and driving it across Europe this summer. 

After reading up on them, I have suddenly become rather wary about the 1.6 engines. I keep reading horror stories about these engines having a nasty habit of blowing themselves up. In fact, there is a lot of talk about them being a ticking time bomb. I know its a gamble buying any used vehicle, but what's the common consensus here? Any 1.6 owners out there who can help put my mind at rest?

!.6 Petrols are good, 1.6 HDI prone to turbo failures

I had a secondhand 1.6hdi for a couple of years and it was no problem what so ever. As long as its been looked after and serviced correctly especially using the correct oil the engines are fine.

If it hasn't been changed the timing belt will be due on a 2007 vehicle (10 years or 100k)

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Service history is very important.Before I retired,I used to service courier vans.The well serviced ones did hundreds of thousands of miles without problem.The HDi doesn't like extended oil changes or the wrong oil.

(12-02-2017, 05:06 PM)jj9 Wrote:  If it hasn't been changed the timing belt will be due on a 2007 vehicle (10 years or 100k)

Thanks, timing belts aren't expensive jobs right (I hope!)

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(12-02-2017, 04:56 PM)Tomcat3 Wrote:  I had a secondhand 1.6hdi for a couple of years and it was no problem what so ever. As long as its been looked after and serviced correctly especially using the correct oil the engines are fine.

good to hear something positive! I've heard a lot of people service it more than is needed as a preventative measure.

Not sure what the going price for a timing belt change on a 1.6 HDI is, but someone might have a figure ?
As the timing belt turns the water pump it's recommended to change that also while the belt is being changed.

Change the oil every 6k or twice per year whatever comes first, you don't need to buy super expensive long service life oil if you're changing it often!

I think the 2.0 HDI is a more robust engine, but the 1.6 isn't as bad as made out, (I wouldn't have one if it was) it does it's job well if looked after with clean oil, it's also great on fuel, average of 50+ with mixed driving.


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The 1.6hdi is in millions of cars across 4 (+) marques.

The 1.6 hdi is ok if serviced regularly, oil & filter can never be changed too often. The engine is much better without a dpf filter, so most of the Berlingo mk2's don't have this.
My son had a Peugeot 206 hdi 1.6 for about 40k miles, he drove it very hard and didn't have a single issue (lots of oil changes & no dpf)