Peugeot e-3008 review

Overview
What is it?
Go on then, hit me with the EV stats.
How new is it?
That’s a big battery for a multi-energy platform?
How does it work as a family car?
And for the driver?
Our choice from the range
What's the verdict?
Volvo C40 Recharge
Ford Mustang Mach-E
Hyundai Kona Electric
Driving
What is it like to drive?
What about the twin motor?
Are the driver aids a help or hindrance?
Interior
What is it like on the inside?
Tell me more about the touchscreen.
How’s the space?
Buying
What should I be paying?

Overview

What is it?

Here’s the replacement for the car that turned Peugeot around, the 3008. The outgoing one was good-looking, had a beautifully furnished cabin and was good to drive. Spoiler: so is the new one. But with one dramatic if not unexpected change. We’re driving the all-electric version here.

You can also have it with mild-hybrid petrol from launch, with a plug-in hybrid to come a year from now.

That choice of propulsion stacks it up against a whole bunch of rivals. For the electric, think Tesla Model Y, Volvo C40 Recharge, VW ID.4 or ID.5, Renault Scenic, Hyundai Kona Electric or Ioniq 5, Kia Niro EV or EV6, Nissan Ariya, Toyota bZ4X, Ford Mustang Mach-E and BMW iX1. It comes in two battery sizes, with either a single motor at the front, or twin at front and rear.

Go on then, hit me with the EV stats.

The headlines are impressive. We tested the one with a 73kWh battery, for a range (with FWD or AWD) of 326 miles WLTP. And that’s the smaller of the two options. The top one is a humongous 98kWh slab, for 435 miles WLTP. So the range comes not just from big batteries, but running efficiency too.

Frankly, the smaller pack is as much as any family needs – the kids will be busting for a wee stop long before it needs a charge. But road-warrior fleet buyers will be reassured by the bigger one. They’re in too much of a hurry to risk a stop on the way to present their .ppt to the regional directors’ conference at the national headquarters.

Peak charging is 160kW, and if you find a charger that’ll do it, this means 20-80 per cent in half an hour (which is an 87kW average).

Another stat. Even the 73kWh version is over £11,000 more than the 1.2 petrol auto, which is a 48V hybrid.

How new is it?

The EV version is end-to-end new. Body, platform, suspension, interior and screen system, battery. Les neuf metres entières. But Peugeot reckons a strong brand needs to be consistent, so its styling is recognisably a descendant of the old one. Most striking difference is the fastback tail, to cut drag and improve electric efficiency.

The platform is first car out of the traps for a hugely important posse of cars under the ginormous Stellantis umbrella: the next Vauxhall Grandland is very soon, and you don’t have to be Hercule Poirot to deduce a Peugeot seven-seat 5008 too and later a 508. But the range is extremely broad, from a sporty Alfa Giulia replacement via DS and Lancia to the chunky and hardish-core off-road Jeep Recon. Plus, for those in Americaland, the Chrysler Airflow.

That’s a big battery for a multi-energy platform?

Good spot. We usually say that purpose-designed EVs are less compromised than adapted combustion ones. So we asked the engineering chief on this car how they’d done it and he was blunt: “It’s three different platforms [EV, ICE and PHEV] with one car on top.”

They share suspension and front crash structure, but the whole central underfloor and rear structure is different.

How does it work as a family car?

Peugeot hasn’t allowed the dimensions to balloon, so it’s the same size outside as the old one. Unfortunately that means there isn’t extra legroom to compensate for the fact the underfloor battery steals foot space from the people behind. So the rear doesn’t feel as roomy as in the rivals. Lanky teenagers won’t thank their parents. But the boot’s a good size. For more details click the Interior tab.

The screen and switchgear system is a development of Peugeot’s i-Toggle system, and it’s easy to use. The teenagers will be useful in setting up its many customisable layouts and shortcuts.

And for the driver?

It’s fluent and accurate to drive, and generally very unflustered. But you’re always aware of its weight. On the upside, it feels reassuringly solid. But we want a car that feels more connected to the road. The steering lacks feedback because it has to be strongly assisted, and the e-3008 pitches into a tight corner slightly reluctantly, and floats a bit after a sudden lump in the road. Acceleration is on the leisurely end of the EV spectrum.

The engineer tells us that because the platform is designed for off-roaders and seven-seaters, this version has suspension and structure that’s stronger – read heavier – than it needs to be. And that they chose not to use much aluminium as that would add cost. So even this lightest version is more than 2,100kg. Gulp. The more spacious Renault Scenic electric is a quarter-tonne less. At least the e-3008 has the muscle to pull a 1,250kg trailer – 1,350kg for the AWD one.

In one sense he’s got a point. Aerodynamics at speed is what really affects EV range and efficiency, not weight. The 3008 has low overall drag for a car of its kind and it does turn out to be reasonably efficient.

For an all-new start, the e-3008 doesn’t feel like a revolution. For many, that’ll be a win. Design and cabin are evolved and improved. There’s none of the shock-value of VW’s MEB, which polarised people with its switch to RWD, its pared-back cabin and tricky interface.

The e-3008 isn’t a clean sweep, though. Some families will want more rear space. We regret its heavy-footedness.

Peugeot has made a play for range, by offering big batteries linked to high-efficiency motors and electronics. There’s bi-directional charging too.

Cabin quality and design are strikingly attractive. It’s refined and quiet and rides well, and is easygoing over on long distances. Your karma is further improved by the absence of range anxiety. It’s a feel-good place to be.

Driving

What is it like to drive?

The single-motor version is smooth and quiet, but not a car for drivers who like to crack on. Getting from 0-62mph, hampered by that kerbweight, occupies 8.7 seconds. Still, thanks to good aero, things don’t tail off too much at motorway speed.

Neither does it take too kindly to being hustled down a tricky road. The mass shows up again when you pitch it into a tight corner or ride over a crest. It takes a while to settle after either of those events. And the steering doesn’t confide any sense of what’s happening where the rubber meets the road.

But it is an accurate and fluent car that’s easy to thread along neatly: it doesn’t lurch when taking on its modest roll, understeer is well contained and traction strong. In the dry you’d hardly know which end the motor lives. Steering weight and progression are just fine. So are the brakes. And paddles give a choice of regeneration levels.

The ride is generally pretty supple unless you hit a really big thump, and anyway the tyres’ and suspension’s quietness make it feel better than it is.

What about the twin motor?

This isn’t on sale yet, but we did have a quick go on a short-lap track. It gets away more smartly, though still not what you’d call rapidly for an EV, taking 6.4 seconds to 62 instead of 8.7s. It has a 110bhp front motor to add to the 210 out back. It clings on more gamely out of tight corners, but the basic character is the same. The WLTP range is the same too.

Are the driver aids a help or hindrance?

There’s a pretty comprehensive suite of them but beyond the legally mandated ones they’re optional so if you don’t like them – many don’t – then don’t have them. They work smoothly without many false-positive bings and bongs or nudges of the steering. You can set up shortcuts to switch out any of them if you’re regularly on a road where they’re unhelpful.

Interior

What is it like on the inside?

This is a very smartly furnished cockpit, with neat cloth, metallic and stitched finishes, and a big curved double screen that’s mounted on a hidden arm so ambient light looms from behind it. The overall dash architecture manages to be unusual and striking, yet it’s still easy to use. In many ways easier than conventional designs.

As usual for a Peugeot the steering wheel is small and you get sight of the instrument screen over the top of its rim. In smaller cars such as the 208 this annoys some people who like the wheel high, or the backrest reclined, and can’t see the instruments. But this is a crossover so you’ll be sitting high anyway, and nearly everyone will be fine.

Tell me more about the touchscreen.

The driver screen has the usual options: speed, various sizes of map, energy info, music, driver assist view. The central screen does what central screens normally do: a tiled and configurable view of climate and infotainment plus controls for assisted driving and general setup.

Peugeot’s killer app is something called I-Toggles, a set of icons on a third, shallow and wide screen above the console. These icons are user-choosable, so you can set shortcuts to 10 things you use a lot: additional climate settings, the surround camera, radio stations, fave people to phone, frequent navigation destinations or phone mirroring or seat heating.

How’s the space?

Not brilliant out the back. To give adults in the back true comfort, the slightly bulky front seats need raising a little to give foot space beneath. That’s because this is a relatively short car by class standards. Er, if it’s so short why’s it so heavy? You may well ask. Moving on.

At least the boot is a good size, both in depth and height, and amounts to 520 litres. Although there’s no froot in the nose.

Buying

What should I be paying?

With all these prices, be aware the 48V 1.2 hybrid with 136bhp is £11k cheaper with much the same equipment. Just saying.

Anyway, to the electric car reviewed here. It starts at £45,850 for the 73kWh, 210bhp one. That’s Allure trim. It seems luxurious at first, with the full wow-factor interior and connectivity, ambient lighting, reverse camera and 19-inch wheels.

But delve deeper and some EV near-necessities are extra. Heated seats, which save you running the cabin heating, are part of an expensive pack, and a heat pump to make that cabin heating more efficient is £700. Still, with both big and vast packs on offer, squeezing every last electron out of them isn’t such a big issue.

GT trim is £49,650, and the wheels go up a size, plus you get pixel headlights, heated seats, adaptive trim and Alcantara seats. Full leather massage, heated and vented seats are £1,600 here.

On PCP, the launch offer is from £479 a month with a £6k deposit. Existing 3008 owners get a ‘loyalty’ deposit contribution of £1,000. Because Peugeot lowers the interest rates on the electric version, it’s only £100 a month more than the ICE.