Let me start this blog with a quote from a friend: “Peugeot, c’est merde mais pas cher”.

My French is directly linked to how fast I can copy and paste into Google Translator , so I asked for the translation, but I had a feeling, even with my limited Knowledge in the language, what it implied.

Now that begs the question, is it really?

I know in the past Peugeot releases have in general been a hit and miss with consumers, but they have not always been as bad as the press and people make them out to be. The market have started changing their opinions about the new fleet of cars rolling out of the factory and with release of 3008 and 5008 range, I believe Peugeot has made a come back.

Peugeot 3008

The people in Peugeot must be doing something right, the 3008 was awarded the best European car of the year, so unless the European tastes in cars has dramatically fallen over the past few years, this can be considered a major breakthrough for the Peugeot team.

This also means Peugeot means business as it is making loud noises about wanting to be recognised as a premium manufacturer. The 3008 is definitely a solid stepping stone towards achieving that inspiration.

Looking back, the first version of 3008 as a spacious five-seat people carrier found success rather quickly, but as market shifted its attention towards SUVs, so did Peugeot. The latest 3008 has taken the stylish look of SUV without sacrificing any of the space introduced in the older model.

There are other offerings apart from. Space, with combined fuel economy of around 49-71 mpg (39-67 city, 59-81 highway), this small Lion cub, will save you some money as well which will make it an ideal choice of car for families whom like myself keep a tight eye on the budget.

Power train

Let’s not loose sight what 3008 is about, if you are looking for ferocious lion power, then you will be rather disappointed, I won’t go into details, but I you want full spec, then follow this LINK to get your fix.

It should be sufficient to say, the 1.6-litre diesel is available in two outputs, but even the more powerful version feels a touch sluggish when overtaking, so we’d be tempted to upgrade to the 2.0-litre. Of the petrol options the 1.6 offers decent performance but is rather over priced in my opinion.

It’s high-tech too – you can mirror your smartphone on the standard-fit eight-inch infotainment system and a large 12.3-inch digital driver’s display replaces conventional dials on every model.

However that’s not the end of it, all 3008 come brimmed to the top with all the three letter acronyms you would usually associate with, when buying new cars, ABS, CDS, ASR and let us not forget the DAC. The list goes on and on, and if you really like to read the whole host of gizmos and acronyms, then the link I provided previously further up, should fill your appetite.

Conclusion

Peugeot is coming back, the above quote certainly does not apply to 3008, from RRP of around £21,999 is definitely cheap, but after all you are buying a Peugeot.

Looking at the performance level when keeping in mind, that you are driving a family SUV not a hatchback the responsiveness of the vehicle and sluggishness when cornering should not be your concern. What you should be concerned with, is the safety of passengers and how economic the car is, and in that regards, 3008 won’t let you down.