VROOM FOR THE KIDS
PEUGEOT’S new 508 SW family estate is a sophisticated attention grabber with long, languid low-slung lines and a handsomely prominent face and grille.
And that smart French chic continues when you get behind the wheel of this smart, practical, versatile and smooth operator, as I did driving on roads around Buckinghamshire.
The design boss of one of the world’s leading luxury car firms told me that he thought Peugeot’s styling was exemplary. High praise indeed.
order books have opened for the Peugeot 508 SW estate range starting at £26,845 for the 1.5-litre BlueHDi diesel 130 6-speed manual, with showroom deliveries starting from July 1.
There are four main trim levels: Active, Allure, GT line, GT — plus a special limited First edition of just 75 cars.
These are complemented by two new petrol and four diesel options based on the 1.6-litre PureTech petrol and the 1.5-litre BlueHDi and 2-litre BlueHDi engines.
Following on in october 2019 is a ‘green’, but mean 225hp PHev plug-in hybrid version giving power to the front wheels using the combination 1.6-litre PureTech 180 engine and a 110hp electric motor.
About 70 per cent of sales are expected to be diesels.
I drove the capable rangetopping GT with a 2-litre Blue HDi 180 turbo-charged diesel linked to a slinky 8-speed automatic gearbox that propels it from rest to 62mph in 8.2 seconds up to a top speed of 144mph.
The base price is £38,245, but the car I drove was £41,590 thanks to extras including metallic paint (£575), ‘night vision that can spot pedestrians and dogs up to 200m ahead (£1,300), and a panoramic opening glass roof (£870).
There’s more load lugging space than on the outgoing model, starting with 530 litres when the seats are up and stretching to a lengthy 1,780 litres with the seats down —– and looking inviting enough to lie down and camp out in — with loading aided by one of the lowest boot sills in its class.
It also has a five-star euronCAP crash safety rating. Good fuel economy, too, averaging around 45mpg to 50.6mpg from the 55 litre tank.
All in all, a lot of French flair. to share on UK roads.