Peugeot 308 SW review

• What is it?
• What’s new?
• What’s under the long bonnet?
• Our choice from the range
• What's the verdict?
• What is it like to drive?
• And the hybrids?
• What’s that on the centre console?
• What is it like on the inside?
• What’s the infotainment like?
• Can the boot fit the kitchen sink?
• What should I be paying?
• What are the kit choices like?
• Which would you go for?

Overview

What is it?

The 308 SW, or station wagon, to give it its full name. And we’ll start with the looks, because, well, it’s a handsome thing, isn’t it? Arguably even more so than the five-door hatch, we reckon, with its swooping roofline – another tick for Peugeot’s re-energised design department.

It’s not short of rivals, facing off against established competitors including the Ford Focus, Seat Leon and Volkswagen Golf estates, as well as the likes of the Skoda Octavia and Toyota Corolla Touring Sports. But the Peugeot is by far the most imaginatively surfaced and doesn’t look like anything else out there. And it’s French. Vive la difference and all that.

We’re glad it’s here, too – in an ocean of compact crossovers, an estate feels like a retro concept. But is it one you should bother with?

What’s new?

The front badge for starters, a roaring lion’s head inside a shield-shaped logo, which also houses the radar sensors used by the autonomous driving aids. The front grille it sits in is equally dramatic, too, tapering round to the headlights.

It’s 6cm longer than the previous-gen 308 estate, and compared to the hatch, comes with a longer wheelbase and rear overhang for more boot space and legroom. Boot volume is an impressive 608 litres, or up to 1,634 litres with the rear seats folded (make that 548/1,574 litres in the hybrid) That’s almost like-for-like with the Ford Focus and just pipped by the Skoda Octavia. There’s also enough room for objects up to 1.85m long, which should come in handy for the tip run.

That is, of course, if you’re not too precious about the interior and Peugeot’s i-Cockpit set-up, complete with compact steering wheel and 10-inch digital instrument cluster, which can take some getting used to. Stick with it, because once you’re used to it you won’t want to go back. The infotainment has been upgraded, too, with the 10-inch touchscreen now featuring a row of ‘i-Toggle’ touch-sensitive buttons (from Allure trim upwards), which can be customised to shortcuts of your choosing. Full details over on the interior tab.

What’s under the long bonnet?

Mirroring the engine line-up in the hatchback, the range is refreshingly simple: one petrol (1.2-litre PureTech 130), one diesel (1.5-litre Blue HDi 130), and, most notable of all, two plug-in hybrid powertrains, in 180 (177bhp) or 225 (221bhp) forms. Both get a 1.6-litre petrol engine paired with a 81kW (109bhp) electric motor and a 12.4kWh lithium-ion battery, good for up to 37 miles in electric-only mode.

The hybrids, in particular, are a calm, relaxed affair, notably so around town when running in electric mode. Hit the motorway and the arrival of the combustion engine is amazingly well suppressed, making it an impressively comfortable cruiser. More on that on the driving tab.

Prices start from £26,470 for the entry-level petrol engine, with the hybrids starting from £34,870 – that’s about a £2k bump in price over the hatch. Head over to the buying tab for the full lowdown.

Our choice from the range

Peugeot

1.6 Hybrid Allure 5dr e-EAT8

Ј34,145

Hats off to Peugeot for trying something different. The 308 SW is truly a good-looking estate – arguably even better than the hatch – and a far more appealing option than the many, many crossovers that dominate the sales charts these days.

The interior feels more premium than any of its nearest rivals, and is certainly more visually appealing, too. It’s rammed full of tech, offers highly competent if not class-leading dynamics, and the hybrid engines have plenty of appeal.

Spec it carefully and you have a fast, practical and efficient compact estate that’s handsome yet so stealthy no one will see you coming.

Driving

What is it like to drive?

Right, let’s get the traditional internal combustion engines out the way first, beginning with the 1.2-litre petrol. It gets 130bhp and 170lb ft of torque, good for 0-62mph in a somewhat leisurely 9.9secs, but still plenty quick enough. The three-cylinder engine is surprisingly vocal, but the eight-speed auto is impressively smooth and responsive. Peugeot claims fuel consumption of 43.5mpg, real world fuel economy should be around 40mpg.

The 1.5-litre diesel offers 130bhp and 221lb ft of torque, 0-62mph in 10.9 seconds, and 56.9mpg, but is ultimately best suited to high mileage motorway drivers.

And the hybrids?

We’ve spent most time in the 180, powered by a 148bhp 1.6-litre petrol engine paired with a (109bhp) electric motor and 12kWh battery. It’s noticeably quicker off the line – Peugeot claims a 0-62mph time of 7.7 seconds – and is a quiet cruiser around town in EV mode. That said, the engagement of the combustion engine is barely noticeable either, the biggest clue being the gear indicator on the dash.

Through the touchscreen you can handily ‘save’ a certain amount of electric range – your options being six miles, 12 miles or ‘maximum’ – for driving through, for example, emission free zones. On a near 40-mile loop, we stayed in electric mode for about half of it, resulting in fuel consumption equivalent to about 80mpg. Peugeot obviously claims a ridiculous 213.7mpg on the official test cycle, but that has zero relevance to your driving.

The 225, which pairs a slightly more powerful 178bhp petrol engine with the same electric motor, is slightly punchier, knocking 0.1 seconds off the 0-62mph time. But both mask their extra mass well (the 180 weighing 314kg more than the petrol 130, the 225 an extra 342kg) – the steering is nicely weighted, the ride is slightly on the firm side but comfortable enough, and it handles nicely around corners.

We’d wager that the 180 is more than good enough in most circumstances, as well as being notably more affordable. Win win.

What’s that on the centre console?

Peugeot calls it the ‘e-Toggle’ switch – in layman’s terms it’s the gearbox control, allowing you to switch between drive, park and reverse. The eagle eyed will have also spotted the drive mode selector, which allows you to switch between electric, hybrid, eco, normal and sport modes (depending on the powertrain). All fairly self-explanatory, that is, except sport mode, which firms up the power steering, improves torque response, and shortens the gearshift time.

Needless to say, the 308 SW is fitted with the full suite of driver aids, though we found the obstacle detection particularly over-zealous, warning you every time someone pulled into your lane on the motorway. Peugeot also offers a £200 Drive Assist Plus pack which includes all manner of semi-autonomous tech, including semi-automatic lane change, anticipated speed recommendation and curve speed adaptation, the latter ‘optimising the car’s speed according to the severity of the bend’. Watch out, Elon.

Interior

What is it like on the inside?

A breath of fresh air. You’ll surely be familiar with Peugeot’s ‘i-Cockpit’ interior by now, with its small steering wheel and high-mounted instrument cluster viewed over the top of the wheel. It takes some getting used to, but there’s no doubt that the cabin environment is as striking as anything else out there.

On GT and GT Premium Lines you get a 3D ‘floating’ instrument cluster as standard, which projects speed just that bit more prominently than, say, revs or fuel. It looks and work superbly, and the whole lot can be endlessly configured to suit.

What’s the infotainment like?

Refreshingly free of frustration. You get a crystal clear 10-inch screen as standard, and from Allure trim upwards, a handy row of customisable ‘i-Toggle’ shortcut buttons underneath to help you navigate around. It needs to be seen to be believed, but think of it like Apple’s Touch Bar, allowing you to easily navigate to your media, climate controls, navigation and more, with a handy home button to return to the main screen. Just a shame it’s so prone to fingerprints.

Peugeot’s trademark ‘piano key’ controls remain, though now feature a cleaner design that’s slightly less polarising than old. There’s also voice activation, wireless screen mirroring, and two phones can be connected to the Bluetooth simultaneously. Top-of-the-range models get a 10-speaker set-up, courtesy of French specialists Focal, if that’s your jam.

Can the boot fit the kitchen sink?

The SW can swallow 608 litres and 1,634 with the seats folded (the hybrid sacrifices 60 litres for the internal gubbins), and a two-position boot floor for additional versatility. That compares to 608/1,653 in the Ford Focus, 611/1,642 in the Volkswagen Golf and 640/1,700 in the Skoda Octavia.

Rear seat space is a little disappointing, but the seats themselves split 40/20/40, with space for loads up to 1.85m long. Go for the GT Premium spec and you get an auto tailgate, which activates if you do one of those weird foot sweeping jigs under the rear bumper. Or push the key fob if you have a hand free.

Buying

What should I be paying?

The range kicks off at £26,470 for the petrol, and £34,870 for the hybrid, with monthly payments starting at around £360 and £455 respectively, on a four-year agreement with a six-month initial payment. That’s around £20p/m more than the hatch, FYI.

That puts it at the pricier end up against its rivals, with entry-level versions of the Seat Leon, Skoda Octavia and Ford Focus estates all costing less. The Toyota Corolla Touring Sports is slightly more expensive, as is the £27k+ Volkswagen Golf estate.

The hybrid is admittedly a little on the expensive side, making it most attractive to fleet and business users thanks to an eight per cent Benefit-in-Kind (BIK) rate. Fitted with the optional 7.4kW on-board charger, it takes 1hr 55mins to fully replenish the 12.4kW battery using a wallbox; otherwise it’s 3hr 50mins on a three pin plug. It can’t be fast charged via DC.

What are the kit choices like?

Standard equipment includes the 10in touchscreen, DAB radio and smartphone mirroring for Apple and Android, 16in alloys, rear parking sensors, black door mirror facings, and LED head- and tail-lights.

Then you’re on a journey through Allure (17-inch alloy wheels, 3D Navigation, 180-degree reversing camera) Allure Premium (wireless smartphone charging, keyless entry, adaptive cruise control), GT (18-inch alloys, heated steering wheel, Matrix LED headlights, ‘claw effect’ rear lights) and GT Premium (Focal hi-fi system, heated & massaging front seats, 360-degree camera).

Which would you go for?

Peugeot expects the 1.2-litre petrol to be the best seller and it’s certainly a strong all-rounder, but if your budget can stretch that far (or you’re buying as a company car and can take advantage of the low BiK rate), we really liked the Hybrid 180. Need we remind you, the average (pre-pandemic) commute is just 28-miles, meaning its electric range of up to 37 miles is likely more than sufficient for most.

Trim? As your entry point we’d suggest skipping the Active Premium trim and heading straight for Allure with its ‘i-Toggle’ shortcut buttons. Otherwise GT spec offers plenty of appeal, including those flashy 3D dials. That’ll set you back £37,670, or around £475 on lease.

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