Rock ’n’ roll design… and dynamics
Even four years after its first reveal, the 3008 still looks bonkers inside and out. If you want pizzazz, Peugeot’s second largest crossover is the place to be, but only since April this year has the SUV that made the French Lion cool again plugged in. Not that you’d know: your only marker is a ‘HYbrid4’ badge on the rear end and an extra filler cap for the charging port.
Get into the Peugeot after the dowdy Ford and you’ll want what some of Peugeot’s interior designers have been smoking – there’s real imagination and flair here. It helps that the driving position is far superior to the Ford’s and on par with the Volvo’s, and while the Volvo too offers supportive seats, the Peugeot’s are supremely soft and benefit from some intricate stitching to differentiate this GT model.
Just like the exterior, there’s very little to say you’re driving the hybrid variant: a lightning bolt button for managing the hybrid powertrain, and an extra graphic in the stylish instrument display that shows power flow, are your only internal visual cues. This one even has an optional threepin 230-volt socket included in the rear.
Behind that striking and stylish façade, though, there are some niggles. Our test car’s dashboard materials are let down by some slightly rough-edged fittings, the cupholders in the centre are small and too close together, and the infotainment screen feels its age. Other gripes are less Peugeot-specific and just inherent PSA annoyances; the screen is a little low-res and the system that powers it is well below par: slow at the best of times, downright uncommunicative at the worst of times, and with air-con controls hidden behind a digital menu rather than physical controls that you can feel for without taking your eyes from the road. The start button is also annoyingly laggy – you really have to press hard and hold to get a response, no simple tap to get going quickly here.
But when you do get going, you really can go – this thing is fast when you flick the drive mode rocker switch from Hybrid to Sport. It sends 297bhp to all four wheels, and there’s so much oomph that it can keep up with the likes of a Fiesta ST in its most aggressive drive mode, upping the top speed to 149mph (in electric, the top speed is limited to 84mph).
But reach a corner at speed and the Peugeot starts to unravel dynamically; the hexagonal steering wheel feels supremely light at low speeds and uncommunicative at higher ones, and the auto ’box can be indecisive in its actions depending on your throttle inputs – Ford’s CVT-enabled powertrain feels far smoother and more responsive by comparison. The petrol engine itself sounds unrefined from the outside
when it kicks in at idle, to the extent that you might mistake it for a diesel.
It’s all so soft and remote on the move, with all the comfort pros and dynamic cons that suggests. Bodyroll, for example, is excessive, so much so that hard cornering can make the 3008 lurch even after the corner is in your rear-view mirror. The squidgy-ness continues with the brakes, which are defined by one of the softest pedals I’ve ever experienced. It feels like there’s a good couple of inches of travel where little braking occurs, and the brakes don’t feel all that strong if you press harder. It’s far from comforting, especially in those heart-stopping moments when you need it.
Thankfully, the engine is much quieter on the inside, and the ride is super plush with its spongy tyres, making the 3008 a delight for low-effort cruising and soaking up meaty urban potholes. Add in a very satisfying massage seat for the driver and you’ve got a plug-in hybrid SUV that suits a laid-back driving style very well indeed.
Shame, then, that the Peugeot provides less room to sprawl out and relax than today’s rivals. The cockpit surrounds you as a driver, with a high centre console and bulky door inlays, and there’s only just enough legroom in the back for adults. GT models get a panoramic sunroof as standard that cuts into headroom, and the boot volume takes a cut for the hybrid, dropping substantially from 520 litres to 395. A Nissan Juke has a bigger boot than that.
Style over substance? Well, you’d definitely be proud to have it on your driveway for a start. Park the Peugeot 3008 next to the Ford and the two are like chalk and cheese. The infotainment is a pain, and the chassis is downright belligerent if you want a bit of fun after the school run. But treat it like an over-padded sofa that you sink into after a hard day at the oce and just cruise home in and the Peugeot starts to make sense. ⊲
£
AFFORDABILITY £33,585
(£34,185 as tested)
The hybrid-powered family SUV is one of the most vanilla car choices you can make, but buyers still demand some visual flair and satisfying driving dynamics to go with the eco-cred and versatility. None of our contenders strikes the perfect balance, so our result carefully weighs the strengths and weaknesses of three imperfect crossovers. Given all are plug-in hybrids, we also paid particular attention to fuel economy figures. All were fully charged, all did the same amount of test miles and, on our sunny fuel-test day, we had the air-con working hard – just like an owner would.
The Peugeot was most likely to trigger its engine in hybrid mode, hence the less than stellar 34.1mpg economy during that real-world testing, with the Volvo burping to life about half as often at a standstill – the Swede returned 62.7mpg. The Kuga, however, maintained e-mode longest, looking on silently at its Giant Test rivals and achieving the highest test mpg, a cracking 97.5mpg.
The Peugeot takes last place, even though there’s still much to enjoy about it. The 3008 continues to be a truly striking piece of design inside and out (and the incoming facelift for 3008 and 5008 will sharpen it further), it’s hot-hatch fast and, if speed’s not so crucial, there’s a slower and cheaper version. But whichever one you choose, it’s a fun-sponge dynamically. Bad for keener drivers, sure, but if you want to cruise about gently, there’s little to dislike here.
For premium posing power, the Peugeot may shout about it and put on a great show, but the quiet and cool Volvo actually does it better. Versus these rivals, its interior is on another level for poshness, and as low-stress eco transport, it’s hard to do better for around £40k, though we’d prefer a smoother ride.
A polar opposite of the Volvo’s Scandinavian cool, the Kuga leaves you just plain cold when you climb inside. It’s much the same as most recent Fords inside: entirely forgettable. And yet we can’t ignore how well the Kuga does everything else. It has the best of both worlds when it comes to dynamics, being more comfortable than the Volvo, hushed on the move at any speed, with a powertrain that’s responsive, quick and as smooth as it needs to be. It’s best to drive too. That basic interior is also the most practical for rear space and cubbies for your family’s bits and bobs.
The Ford isn’t particularly exciting but, as functional and thrifty family transport that still delivers a dose of dynamic entertainment, the Kuga would be our pick. Vanilla ice cream might not have much novelty value, but sometimes it hits the spot just fine.
Greg Fountain
Photography Alex Tapley