► All-new Peugeot 3008 unveiled
► Now looks less like an MPV on stilts
► UK sales start in November 2016
Peugeot’s all-new 3008 crossover has been officially revealed, ahead of its debut at the 2016 Paris motor show. It’s due to go on sale in the UK in November 2016.
This time around the 3008 has adopted a more conventional, 4×4-like styling direction than the gawky people-carrier-on-stilts family car it replaces.
Small SUV-style crossovers are big business these days, after all – Peugeot says SUV sales have increased two and a half times since the original 3008’s launch in 2009.
Our spyshots from January 2016 previewed the 3008’s new look.
It’s, erm, distinctive.
‘Beautiful’ is an adjective unlikely to be thrust in the new 3008’s direction but it’s certainly an interesting choice in the ever-expanding sea of SUVs.
Save for the rampant lion in the centre of upright grille, there’s precious little about the styling that says Peugeot, although the brand’s clear that the 3008 heralds the dawn of a new design era for the company.
Its face looks angry, while the flanks have a whiff of recent Lexus SUV about them. Naturally, to reinforce the SUV’s ruggedness, there are unpainted wheelarch trims and deep plastic cladding for the lower quarters of the doors.
Around the upper arc of the side windows is a metallic trim, complemented by a vent strip leading rearwards from the headlamps, just under the clamshell bonnet’s shutline.
Gone from the second-generation 3008 is the split tailgate, replaced by a conventional one, which can be operated electrically via a foot wiggle as per current trends. The keen-eyed will also spot the gloss black applique between the tail lamps, a visual trick employed on many of Peugeot’s recent concepts.
Tall car, tiny steering wheel
If you’re not a fan of the ‘small steering wheel/instruments viewed over the top’ interface, don’t look away immediately – for while that particularly layout from the 208 and 308 is featured here, its application in the 3008 is significantly better.
Inside, you’ll find Peugeot’s latest third-generation ‘i-Cockpit’ arrangement. As before, a small steering wheel (now flat at the top and bottom, so it’s more of a steering egg) is topped by a raised instrument binnacle and complemented by a mid-dash touchscreen, but quite a few details have changed.
For a start, buttons have returned. In a mild U-turn from the previous i-Cockpit layout which all but banned physical switches, a band of essential buttons sits below the screen, with shortcuts to radio, climate and nav controls, among others. A good thing, in our book.
The instrument binnacle itself is entirely digital with adaptive instruments – the rolling drum icons look more ’70s Citroen than Peugeot, mind – while the touchscreen graphics are significantly more sophisticated than PSA’s recent offerings. They also felt more responsive on the static models we tried.
The 8in touchscreen has new, more responsive software, so it should actually do what it’s told, and the head-up instrument binnacle is now a high-res 12.3in digital screen with smart-looking 3D map graphics, including images of buildings and monuments.
The central touchscreen includes a ‘Mirror Screen’ function, enabling it to reproduce many of an Android or Apple smartphone’s displays, apps and functions on the screen.
Complemented by an uplift in the material quality, there’s a bank of new switchgear and that occasional French fascination of employing fabric on the dashboard makes a return in the Peugeot.
Talk me through the tech spec
Strip away the new 3008’s angular bodywork and you’ll find PSA’s EMP2 platform, which already underpins the 308 and Citroen’s C4 Picasso twins. It’ll soon find its way underneath Vauxhall’s forthcoming SUV, too. It’s 8cm longer than its predecessor but an impressive 100kg lighter.
Test drives won’t happen until after September’s Paris motor show but Peugeot’s top brass seem bullish that the 3008 will be a decent car to drive, citing customer feedback that the rival crop of crossovers are insipid to drive.
From launch there will be no hybrid versions – a petrol-electric system with four driven wheels is a couple of years away. So, initially, you’ll have the option of petrol and diesel powertrains that send power to the front wheels, with traction amplified by Grip Control.
The engine options are as follows:
Petrol engines
- 1.2L PureTech 130 S&S 6-speed manual (6SMT)
- 1.2L PureTech 130 S&S 6-speed Automatic (EAT6)
- 1.6L THP 165 S&S 6-speed Automatic (EAT6)
Diesel engines
- 1.6L BlueHDi 100 S&S 5-speed Manual (BVM5)
- 1.6L BlueHDi 120 S&S 6-speed Manual (BVM6 – for normal and low consumption versions)
- 1.6L BlueHDi 120 S&S 6-speed Automatic (EAT6)
- 2.0L BlueHDi 150 S&S 6-speed Manual (BVM6)
- 2.0L BlueHDi 180 S&S 6-speed Automatic (EAT6)
Emissions ratings for the diesels range from 100g/km to 121g/km CO2.
A five-mode traction control system (Normal, Snow, Mud, Sand, ESP OFF) includes a hill descent control function to control the 3008’s speed down steep slopes.
In line with the majority of new-generation cars, there’s also a suite of active safety systems, including automatic emergency braking, lane departure warning, blind spot monitoring and adaptive cruise control (active between 18mph and 112mph – handy for the autobahn).
The old 3008 wasn’t pretty, but it was practical. Is the new one still a decent family car?
The rear seat bench can fold in a 2:3 split for a completely flat floor, and there are two positions for the 520-litre boot’s floor, with removable side-panels for hidden stowage space.
Up front, the passenger seat can fold to enable objects up to 3m long to be loaded, and there’s the option of a hands-free tailgate opening. Peugeot claims the new 3008 has the lowest loading height in its class, too.
The new Peugeot 3008 will make its public debut at the Paris motor show in September, and goes on sale in the UK from November. Deliveries start in January 2017.
Read more Peugeot reviews here
