2022 Peugeot 508 GT Fastback Plug-in Hybrid review

Peugeot’s snazzy sedan offers great looks, sharp driving and a wonderful interior, now with a plug-in hybrid powertrain. But, there is a problem.

What we love

Interior treatment is as good as ever

Great balance of ride quality and driving dynamics

We got very close to the electric range claim

What we don’t

Very expensive compared to the non-hybrid 508

Hybrid power doesn’t bring a bump in power or performance

Bright, distracting repeater on driver’s side mirror

Can only charge at 3.7kW

Introduction

Going against the grain of the never-ending SUV avalanche – zigging when the world is zagging with plastic cladding and high seating positions – the 2022 Peugeot 508 is a delightful cut-through against the current overriding, high-riding status quo.

Peugeot’s sleek sedan looks good – inside and out – and is a salient reminder that a good old-fashioned sedan (or wagon, for that matter) can be an excellent execution of space, packaging, storage and comfort.

Now buyers have the option of a new plug-in hybrid powertrain for the Peugeot sedan. Wagon lovers will be disappointed, as the PHEV powertrain is only being offered in Australia as a ‘fastback’.

With a before on-road-costs price of $76,990, the 2022 Peugeot 508 GT Fastback Plug-in Hybrid costs $17,150 more than a comparable non-hybrid 508.

The 1.6-litre turbocharged four-cylinder engine – detuned from 165kW to 133kW but keeping the same 300Nm – is joined by an 81kW/320Nm electric motor and an eight-speed automatic gearbox that is made to suit the hybrid powertrain.

Using 11.8kWh of lithium-ion batteries, the 508 hybrid has a claimed electric-only range of 55km without using any fossil fuels.

But here comes the first limitation of the 508 hybrid against other electrified vehicles: it can only charge at 3.7kW – barely more than what a household plug can provide, and half the amount of your average wall charger.

The 43L fuel tank requires 95RON unleaded petrol, and Peugeot has a claim of 1.8 litres per hundred kilometres. But naturally, the actual figure drivers get will depend entirely on how much fuel or electricity they use.

For those who want to only charge up overnight in between driving sessions, it’s less of a drama. But any chance of a quick (50kW) charge-up for 20 or 30 minutes is scuttled.

Beyond the mechanicals, the 2022 Peugeot 508 plug-in hybrid has the same mix of equipment and trim levels as we have seen in previous models. And spoiler alert: it’s quite nice. There’s a nice interior with plenty of tech and nice touches, and the second row works well for loading up with kids and adults.

And thanks to the liftback-style boot, there is plenty of storage space in the back. If you think only SUVs have practical and useful packaging for a spacious and comfortable family car, think again.

Inside

Perhaps this is the most impressive part of the Peugeot 508, and was something that didn’t lose its shine during my short time with the car. The interior is well-presented, unique and practical enough to use day-to-day.

One of the more divisive design elements of the interior is the arrangement of the seats, steering wheel and instrument binnacle. Instead of looking at your dials through the steering wheel, you do things a little differently in the Peugeot. The steering wheel is smaller and oval-shaped, and designed to go below your line of sight to the cluster. It’s a little disconcerting to grapple with initially, but once I set myself up comfortably, I had no issues.

There are plenty of interesting designs, shapes and materials inside the 508 to catch one’s eye. Flocking in the door cards and a carbon-fibre weave look to the dash, which has a two-storey vibe going on. There’s plenty of glossy piano-black plastic as well, but functionality seems to be well-considered too.

The built-up centre console hides storage underneath, which also has twin USB power outlets. The centre console storage itself is well-sized (and has an auxiliary audio headphone jack), and the two cupholders are joined by some additional lidded storage.

The second row feels quite spacious – comparable to what you’d find in a well-proportioned medium-sized SUV. Although, the seating position and ride height are naturally quite a bit lower. There are USB points and air vents here, along with plenty of nice touches in terms of details and materials. And while I noticed that the seat squab isn’t particularly long, I found it to be quite comfortable in the back.

Moving further back again, you’ve got 487L of storage space in the boot. While I wasn’t able to do a direct comparison at the time, the liftback nature of the 508 yields a storage space that seems not as tall as an SUV, but longer and wider. It might not work as well for a bicycle and taller, awkward things, but having more floor space means you won’t be stacking as much when loaded up.

The second row folds mostly flat in a 60/40 fashion for 1537L of storage space, and has a ski port for additional functionality.

Infotainment and Connectivity

Infotainment in the Peugeot 508 is centred around a 10.0-inch touchscreen display that works well for everyday usage. The operating system is good and carries all of the mod-cons like Apple CarPlay, Android Auto, native navigation and digital radio. There are piano-style buttons below that work well as shortcuts to common requirements and capacitive-style buttons further down. It’s a nice mix of functionality and aesthetics – especially with the volume dial included – with neither feeling forsaken.

There is one small annoyance for those who constantly fiddle with climate temperature and fan speed – this isn’t a one-touch operation like you’d have in a more traditional design littered with buttons and dials. You’re required to click through once to this area, do your fiddling, and then get back wherever you were before.

The 10-speaker, 515-watt Focal sound system – standard by the way – packs a good punch, and is a clear improvement over most standard systems.

The 12.3-inch digital instrument cluster is also great quality; a nice addition to the standard equipment and sporting a crispy resolution with nice adjustability.

Safety and Technology

With a five-star ANCAP safety rating from 2018, the Peugeot 508 offers a high level of crash protection for occupants and pedestrians. There is autonomous emergency braking that operates through camera and radar systems. There’s also lane-departure warning, driver warning alert, automatic high beams, automatic wipers, speed sign recognition and active blind-spot monitoring.

All of the systems are well-tuned, non-intrusive for day-to-day use, and only intervening when it’s called for. Adaptive cruise control has stop-and-go functionality, and there’s a nice semi-autonomous cruise control that can trace its way through corners smoothly and confidently.

While there are front and rear cameras – handy additions for parking in tight spaces – their quality and performance aren’t so crash-hot. The resolution feels like it’s lacking, and there isn’t a true surround view without side cameras. Instead, the car builds an image as you drive forwards and backwards. It’s decent, and better than not having it, but others have better solutions at this price point.

Value for Money

Costing $17,150 more than the equivalent non-hybrid, there is a significant amount of justification to make for the case of this 508 hybrid.

This price disparity is made worse by the detuned engine and single electric motor, which doesn’t offer any veritable improvement in straight-line performance in comparison to the non-hybrid model. The hybrid is 0.1 seconds slower in the 0–100km/h dash at 8.1 seconds (claimed).

There are 50 more newton-metres of torque in this case, most of which are electrically instantaneous. However, there is more weight to contend with. In comparison to 1385kg for the non-hybrid 508 fastback, we are looking at 1695kg of tare weight for the 508 plug-in hybrid.

Where the value must be made, then, is with the electrification. There is a longer extrapolation below of the dollars-and-cents argument one must make in this case, but buyers will need to highly value the ability to drive without burning any fuel for around 50km between recharges. This is enough driving to cover the average commute for Australians, so there is a good possibility of days or weeks without a spark plug being called into service.

But, of course, those keen to reduce their impact on the environment with a car like this will need to source their electricity from something other than coal or gas.

Peugeot’s five-year and unlimited-kilometre warranty is bolstered in this case by an eight-year warranty on the electric traction motor. Servicing is covered for five years via a capped-price servicing program costing $1505 for the first three years and going to $2638 for the full half-decade.

Actual fuel economy will also be guided heavily by the frequency of being plugged in and the ratio of pure electric versus hybrid driving. We did 33 per cent of our driving on electricity according to the Peugeot 508’s information readouts and logged around 4.5L/100km.

At its worst – town driving with zero electric kilometres of range available – we saw 8.2L/100km. But on the other hand, you could also do better than the claimed figure if you drove for only 50km at a time, recharged in between, and never floored it.

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Driving

I know earlier I said that the interior was the most impressive thing about the 508, but now I’m second-guessing myself. Because while you’re sitting inside, you’re also able to enjoy the high levels of comfort afforded by the 508 while driving.

Peugeot has managed to instil an impressive combination of ride quality, bump absorption and handling into the entire package, which didn’t seem to put a foot wrong during our time with it. We drove tight and bumpy inner-city suburban roads, faster and flowing (but equally pockmarked in places) country roads, and spent time humming down motorways. During all of this, I found the 508 to be quite pleasant and enjoyable.

The combination of electric and petrol power is also blended nicely in the 508 hybrid. With a full battery, the car doesn’t need any petrol intervention for normal driving. The 81kW and 320Nm are sufficient for most driving, especially with that torque on tap straight away. Additionally, the electric driving is typically quiet and smooth.

Once the 508 starts dabbling in hybrid driving, there is only the faintest of indications where it switches between power sources. Outright performance isn’t scintillating, but there is enough straight-line performance available for things like motorway entry ramps, intersections and leaving side streets.

Regenerative braking through the brake pedal feels good, and allows drivers to harvest otherwise wasted energy for later use. It does add a sight feel of crunchiness at low speeds as the braking transfers from regen to friction. This is a common feature of most hybrid vehicles.

One small but annoying detail to report. When driving at night, the side mirror indicator repeaters seem to be unchanged from Peugeot’s native left-hand-drive configuration, and can be annoying for our right-hand-drive application. The driver’s side repeater is unnecessarily bright when the indicator is turned on, exactly the time you need to use the side mirror. The passenger-side mirror is significantly more faint.

For town duties, a relatively tight turning circle (10.8m) is helped by parking sensors and cameras to get the 508 into – and out of – tight spaces. There’s also an autonomous braking function if you’d prefer the car to take the wheel. Literally, just don’t forget to keep operating the pedals.

Conclusion

Let’s do some basic bar coaster maths on this 508 hybrid for a minute. Costing $17,150 more than a similar 508 GT with similar specification and performance is a significant amount, but hybrid buyers do have the opportunity to lower their running costs by reducing fuel usage.

A quick caveat as well: numbers aren’t my strong suit, which is a large part of why I drifted into writing for a living. But bear with me.

According to Canstar Blue, the average cost of electricity is 22.96c/kWh in my home state of New South Wales. It’s cheaper in some states (Victoria, Queensland), but markedly more expensive in South Australia. And each house is on its own plan, but let’s use the average for these calculations.

Plugging in at home means you’re spending $2.63 in electricity to fill the Peugeot’s 11.8kWh battery, which you can comfortably do overnight. And from our testing, you can get close to the claimed 55km depending on your driving style and conditions.

If you’re using all of that battery capacity each day, you’re saving $3.95 in comparison to the cheaper non-hybrid 508 GT.

For clarity that number was calculated using fuel at 189.9c – the average cost of premium fuel according to fuelcheck.nsw gov.au – at the claimed combined cycle of a non-hybrid 508 GT of 6.3L/100km.

Therefore, it will take you 4341 days, or 11.89 years of driving 55 electric-only kilometres every day, to claw back the extra money you spent on the hybrid model. It’s doable, but it’s also not reasonable.

This simple maths shows that while the Peugeot hybrid is well-executed, lovely to look at, wonderful to sit in and a pleasure to drive, it’s simply too expensive.

Keyword: 2022 Peugeot 508 GT Fastback Plug-in Hybrid review