Car Model Guide/ Peugeot/ 508/ 508 SW/ 1.6 THP

1.6 THP EP6

The BMW-PSA turbo petrol, quick and characterful and the least dependable engine here. Timing chain stretch and heavy intake carbon are both on its record, so it needs a documented history more than anything else in this range.

Overview

The 1.6 THP is the EP6 petrol version of the Peugeot 508 wagon (508 SW), sold 2011–2018 with 156 PS and manual or automatic. High risk at level 4. Timing chain stretch and heavy intake carbon are both recorded against this engine, and the chain job is a big one. 3 failure modes are recorded against its engine, gearbox, chassis and shared components. Prices on this page are illustrative placeholders rather than a sourced market sample. See the methodology for how the bands are derived.

Peugeot 508 wagon (508 SW) · photo Peugeot 508 SW Professional Line HDi 140 by peugeot-laumer · CC BY-SA 4.0 · Wikimedia Commons

Power156 PS

Torque240 Nm

Years2011–2018

Fuelpetrol

DriveFWD

EnginesEP6

Biggest risks

Ranked by probability × repair cost. 3 recorded in total.

41Fragile

Timing chain stretch and intake carbon€900–€1,800checkable
Carbon buildup on intake valves€400–€700not checkable
Module and electrical faults€150–€800partly checkable

Risk level −33 · Likely spend vs price −26 · all issues →

System by system9 systems reviewed · 6 with no recurring fault reported

Engine⚠ attentionTiming chain stretch and intake carbon, €900–€1,800.

Fuel system✓ clearNo recurring fault reported for this system on this engine.

Intake & airwatchCarbon buildup on intake valves, €400–€700.

Cooling✓ clearNo recurring fault reported for this system on this engine.

Emissions✓ clearNo recurring fault reported for this system on this engine.

Transmission✓ clearNo recurring fault reported for this system on this engine.

ElectricswatchModule and electrical faults, €150–€800.

Suspension & brakes✓ clearNo recurring fault reported for this system on this engine.

Body & interior✓ clearNo recurring fault reported for this system on this engine.

Pre-facelift or facelift, this engine spans both

The same badge either side of the changeover. Bands are split at the facelift year from the generation record.

Phase	Years	Low	Average	High	Good buy	What differs
pre Pre-facelift	2011–2013	€1,300	€2,400	€3,950	€1,850	The specification the car launched with.
LCI Facelift (LCI)	2014–2018	€1,450	€2,600	€4,300	€2,050	New nose and lights; Revised BlueHDi diesels

Known issues, ranked by expected cost

Faults recorded against this engine, its components and its chassis, ranked by likelihood × repair cost. Costs are indicative ranges with a stated labour basis.

Timing chain stretch and intake carbonEP6 1.6 THP€900–€1,800

A rattle from the front of the engine at cold start, a rough idle, and over time a loss of response as the intake valves foul. The chain and its tensioner stretch, and the direct injection leaves heavy deposits on the intake valves because no fuel washes them. Both are well recorded on this engine and both cost real money against what these cars are worth.

Check: Start it from stone cold and listen through the first few seconds for a rattle, then ask for chain and decarbonising history. Treat a car with neither as needing both.

EnginecommonDetectable at viewingevidence: documented80–160k km

Carbon buildup on intake valvesdirect injection€400–€700

Rough cold idle, slow throttle response, misfires, gradual loss of low-end response. Direct injection puts no fuel over the intake valves, so crankcase vapour deposits bake on undisturbed.

Check: Not visible without a borescope. Treat it as a service item that's due unless there's a receipt. It's not a fault, it's an unbudgeted maintenance cost.

Turbo & intakeuniversalNot detectable at viewingevidence: documented80–120k km

Module and electrical faults508 platform€150–€800

Warning lights that appear and clear, an infotainment screen that reboots, and occasional central-locking or parking-sensor faults. These carry a lot of electronics and the connectors and modules age. As with most cars of this kind a tired battery is the most common root cause, though genuine module failures do happen.

Check: Scan every module rather than just the engine, work the infotainment and the parking sensors, and check the battery's age.

ElectricalcommonPartly detectableevidence: documented100–190k km

Ranked by probability × repair cost, not by how loudly a failure is discussed. Inherited from the engine, gearbox, chassis and shared components, each written once.

Pre-purchase inspection

The same issue records, reordered into the sequence you can actually check them in: cold start, static, drive, paperwork.

3 checks · saved in this browser ·

1Cold startYou get one. If the engine is warm when you arrive, come back another day.

Timing chain stretch and intake carbonStart it from stone cold and listen through the first few seconds for a rattle, then ask for chain and decarbonising history. Treat a car with neither as needing both.

2PaperworkOn these cars the folder is most of the value.

Carbon buildup on intake valvesNot visible without a borescope. Treat it as a service item that's due unless there's a receipt. It's not a fault, it's an unbudgeted maintenance cost.

3OBD scanMandatory. A seller who refuses a scan has answered the question.

Module and electrical faultsScan every module rather than just the engine, work the infotainment and the parking sensors, and check the battery's age.

Mileage and servicing

What the odometer does and doesn't tell you here, plus the service items whose neglect causes the expensive failures above.

Listen for chain rattle at cold start and ask for chain history. This engine needs paperwork more than any other here.

Service item	Interval	Cost
Timing chain Stretch is well recorded and the repair is major	listen at every cold start	€900–1,800
Walnut-blast intake This engine carbons heavily	roughly 80,000 km	€350–600
Engine oil Chain wear follows oil condition closely	on time, never stretched	€90–140

What to pay

What this engine sells for, against the median of every engine in the chassis. All figures are illustrative placeholders. See the basis chips.

median €2.5k

€1.3k€1.9k€4.3k

Cheapfind the reasonGood buyif it checks outFairnormal moneyOverpricedneeds justifying

Asking price (€)Mileage (km)

Enter an asking price to get a verdict against this variant's band: cheap, fair, good buy or overpriced.

United States vs Europe

1 EUR = 1.08 USD · 2026-07

🇪🇺 Europe · EUR€1,850band €1,300–€4,300

🇺🇸 United StatesNot sold1.6 THP EP6 was never a US-market car

What that meansNo US band exists to compare. Any car you find there's a private import, parts and specialist knowledge are thinner, and the price says more about import cost than about the market.

US figures are the EU band converted at a stated rate. No US market differential is modelled: we hold no sourced US asking prices, and inventing one would be worse than saying so. What the comparison does show for real is availability. Most of this range was never sold in the US.

ModelPeugeot 508 1.6 THP
Chassis508 SW
EngineEP6
Years2011–2018
MarketCentral EU
Windowrolling 12 months to 2026-07

Good buy at or under the marker · Median asking price · bar spans the 10th to 90th percentile · dashed line is the 508 sw median, all 3 engines

Good buy isn't the same as cheapest. The good-buy figure assumes the known failure items are either done with receipts or verifiably not yet due. Full breakdown by facelift phase →

Buyer notes

Our judgement, kept separate from the records it's built on.

Our read, not a record

The 1.6 THP is the BMW-PSA turbo petrol and it's the one to be careful with. Timing chain stretch is well recorded, the direct injection carbons the intake valves heavily, and both repairs cost real money against what a used 508 is worth. It's quick and it does have character. But the buying rule is simple: cold-start it, listen hard for chain rattle, and demand evidence of chain and decarbonising work. Without that history, the diesel is the better car.

Everything above this line comes from the issue and specification records. This paragraph is our judgement on top of them. See how we reach it.

Full specification

Manufacturer figures for this engine and body, as recorded in the variant and engine data.

Engine code	EP6 1.6 THP
Configuration	I4, turbocharged · 1598 cc
Fuel / injection	petrol · direct
Model years	2011–2018
Facelift phase	Sold either side of the 2014 facelift, 2011–2013 pre, 2014–2018 LCI
Power / torque	156 PS · 240 Nm
Transmissions	6-speed manual · 6-speed automatic
Gearbox families
Drivetrain	FWD
Economy (real-world)	7–8.8 l/100 km mixed
Markets	EU