I must be getting old-fashioned, but wasn't it nice when there was loads of space to get to things like the oil filter? Or when the oil filters on proper diesels were still mounted vertical, so you could remove without spillage.
In the end the easiest way to replace the filter seemed to be to go through the top.
BTW, does anyone know why Haynes quotes 5000 miles when Peugeot says 10,000 miles between changes for the 1.9D?
Gerd.