Peugeot 208 for under $20K

Peugeot will launch its new 208 light hatch to coincide with the Australian International Motor Show in Sydney this October.

To go on sale from "less than $20,000", the 208 will arrive with the choice of petrol or diesel engines and a mix of manual, ECG (robotised manual) and automatic transmissions. The 208 is available in three- or five-door body styles, and will be offered in three model grades.

208 will compete with the likes of Ford Fiesta, Nissan Micra and Volkswagen Polo in terms of size, but will be offered with a higher specification level which could see the entry-level 208 Active begin from as high as $19,990.

Locally, the engine line-up will include four of the 10 powerplants offered in Europe, the smallest of which is a 1.2-litre three-cylinder VTi petrol outputting 60kW/118Nm. On the NEDC combined cycle this sees Peugeot’s light hatch starter offer a figure of 4.5L/100km while emitting 104g/km of CO2. This engine is offered exclusively in entry-level Active five-door variants.

Active five-door models will also be available with a 1.6-litre four-cylinder VTi petrol delivering 88kW/160Nm. This engine is available in three- and five-door mid-spec Allure models and in the high-grade Feline five-door. The combined consumption figure is quoted at 5.8L/100km and CO2 emissions 134g/km.

The last of the petrol offerings, a turbocharged 1.6-litre four-cylinder THP will be offered exclusively in three-door Feline variants. It outputs 115kW/260Nm while consuming 5.8L/100km and emitting 135g/km of CO2. The sportiest 208 version currently available, Feline 1.6 Turbo can accelerate from 0-100km/h in 7.3 seconds on its way to a maximum top speed of 215km/h.

Peugeot Australia spokesperson Jaedene Hudson told motoring.com.au that the company expects the model split to favour five-door variants by a ratio of 4:1 with the mid-spec Allure likely to be the strongest seller.

208 Allure will also be the only model available locally with the option of a diesel engine; Australian models offered with a 1.6-litre e-HDi four-cylinder turbodiesel outputting 92kW/230Nm. The frugal oil burner consumes just 3.8L/100km on the NEDC combined average while emitting 98g/km of CO2.

Unfortunately Australia will not see the high-output 1.6 e-HDi 115 which, as the name suggests, outputs 115kW/285Nm.

Peugeot is hoping to tally sales of 600 units before the end of 2012 with full year sales (2013) expected to exceed 2000 units. If correct, the anticipated figures better those of the outgoing 207 by almost 25 per cent. In its final year of sale (2011) the model totalled sales of 1533 units.

Visit motoring.com.au again for our upcoming launch review of the all-new Peugeot 208.

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