Peugeot 2008 | Review

Handling...%
Performance...%
Usability...%
Pricing...%
Running Costs...%

Peugeot’s second generation 2008 is a small suv that offers an arguably more sophisticated take on the kind of little urban crossover style design which has been growing in popularity over recent years and is yet to see its peak.

Special mention : Comfortable wafty seats, lovely light steering for easy parking, lots of space, design.

Needs work : Rejig of the piano buttons to switch the on/off air con button to speed and heat selectors.

BHP 130Petrol / Manual
0-100 km/h in 8.9 secondsRoad Tax €200

Price: €25,490
As Specc’d
€31,440
Boot space 434 litres

It offers all the advantages of a compact runabout together with the kind of added space style and light off-road drivability you probably never expected to be able to enjoy on a small budget car. This mark II design gets a new platform, a fresh look and a completely redesigned interior, all of it targeting what the brand hopes will be a younger buyer. There’s an all-electric version too and the market’s fastest growing segment is for cars like this. 

The original 2008 was more of a super mini on stilts launched to test the market that had originated in modern form with the Nissan Juke three years earlier. The donor small super mini in question was then and still is Peugeot’s 208 and that first 2008 sold well for Peugeot. This second generation design is a significant 15 centimeters longer than its predecessor which now makes this super mini derived Peugeot longer than a Volkswagen Golf. There is also plenty in the muscular profile and high belt line to catch someone’s eye out, and there’s various repeating triangular lines and lots of intricate surfacing that must have made the panel pressing a real technical feat. Wheel sizes on the mainstream variants are either 16” or 17” but top versions which are recognisable by their diamond black roof coloring, feature bigger diamond cut 18” rims which better fill the arches on the premium versions.

The wheel rims are adorned with screw-in customizable inserts which are there to improve the aerodynamics and also reduce kerb weight by four kilos. The modularity of this platform is what allows the e-2008 model’s full electric powertrain to be built in without any exterior bodywork changes. Peugeot believes visual familiarity is what the majority of EV buyers want. Volkswagen, which has just launched its standalone ID electric sub brand, clearly thinks very differently.

Often with futuristic looking cars you find the designers have run out of ideas or budget. The two-tier fascia layout with its smart carbon trimmed concave inner section curls around the edges of the cabin and on into the doors which is pretty much identical to what you get in a 208 super mini although here you sit a fraction higher and that’s not always a given in the design of small suvs these days.

The key thing your attention will be drawn towards immediately is the 3D instrument binacle display and it’s standard from mid-range allure trim upwards. It’s taken from the futuristic setup that was first seen on the brand’s quartz concept car from 2014. It’s all very aircraft cockpit like and Peugeot says that the way that the data is displayed slightly closer to your eye line can improve reaction time by up to half a second at motorway speeds.

Peugeot’s brand stablemate Citroen used to favour  futuristic cabin features like this and then spoil it all with strange dash designs and questionable quality, a mistake that Vidal and his team have successfully avoided making here. In fact if you like a sophisticated feel you might well find this to be the most attractive interior offered by any current compact crossover.

There’s bluetooth and Apple Carplay and Android Auto mirroring for your smartphone as standard. A bigger 10” monitor includes navigation too. There’s Peugeot’s very complete connected 3D package which indicates traffic conditions and risk zones in real time plus with the larger screen there are specific EV displays on the e-2008 variant.

All of that’s welcome but the inclusion of climate functions on the screen is that climate functions can be shown at the edge of the display but it feels counter-intuitive to have to switch away from whatever you’re looking at every time you want to properly change the cabin climate or alter the fan speed.

The entry level active trim levels get twin cup holders near the gear stick behind which is a deep narrow lidded box between the seats with a lift out coin tray. There’s a strangely oversized gear knob and taller drivers might find the pedals placed a little too close for comfort although there’s plenty of seat height and steering column adjustability. The seats are very comfortable (if not supportive) and attractively stitched but you can’t add lumbar support into them unless pricey leather upholstery is specified. 

All round visibility is good, there are decently sized door mirrors but the thickness and angle of the windscreen pillars obscure more of what you can see each side at junctions than would be the case in some rivals. The rear c-pillar and the tapering roof line also reduce your rear three-quarter vision. Fortunately though rear parking sensors are standard across the range and you will have the electronic parking brake on most models. The manual parking brake lever is fitted only on the base active trim models. At 4.3 meters long this car is actually only 150 mil shorter than the mid-sized 3008 from the next segment up which makes this 2008 one of the largest contenders in the class for compact crossovers.

You’ll find it less pokey than a 208 not only due to this suv’s extra roof height but also because legroom is ample by class standards and that’s helped by a 65 millimeter wheelbase length increase over the equivalent super mini model. There’s a relative narrowness to the cabin which would mean that a trio of adults in the back would need to be on very friendly terms but then how often would you really cram five adults into a car of this size.

The curvature of the front seat backs is designed to improve knee room, you get nicely presented stitched door cards and seat back pockets, there’s a notably low central transmission tunnel and there’s lots of room to poke your feet beneath the front chairs. If you specify a pano roof the headspace will be slightly compromised by the oddly angled ceiling section. 

The boot which is 434 litres in size (which is 12 litres bigger than the previous generation model) and 123 litres larger than the boot in a 208. To give some segment perspective, rival Nissan Juke offers 422 litres and the Ford Puma 456 litres. With those models the designers didn’t have to allow for bev technology. Peugeot feels pretty proud that there’s no compromise in cargo area size if you do go for the battery-powered e-2008 variant which must have taken really quite a lot of development effort.

There is quite a high loading lip which you’ll especially notice if you have an entry level Active variant which lacks the GT model’s plush standard adjustable height boot floor, there’s no further space beneath the floor but that’s because combustion engine models provide a space-saver spare wheel as standard unless you opt for the hi-fi system in which case you lose that floor. Tie-down points have been forgotten but on the right there’s a boot light. It is quite a usable square sized space but as usual in this class there’s no seat folding cleverness stuff like adjustable seat backs for awkwardly shaped loads, a ski hatch or a 40 20 40 rear bench split.

If you are going to choose this 2008 suv rather than its 208 super mini stablemate, given that the 208 is one of the market’s slightly pricier branded models, that means that this 2008 isn’t inexpensive. There are six trim levels: Active, Premium, Allure, Premium and then the two sportier looking options of GT line. Peugeot wants you to pick a powertrain in the same way that you select one of those trim options whether that be petrol, diesel or electric. At the very top of the range with the plush GT trim Peugeot offers a 1.2 litre three-cylinder Puretec engine in uprated 155 hp form paired only with an auto box.

This Peugeot offers a higher quality interior than most of the obvious alternatives at this price point. As you’d expect it costs a fraction more than the two PSA group small crossover models which share this 2008 model’s engines but not its sophisticated CMP platform, these being the Opel Crossland and the Citroen C3 Aircross. Contenders like Ford’s Puma, the Volkswagen T-Roc, Mazda’s CX-30, Audi’s Q2 models are all quite comfortably priced against this 2008.