Peugeot 308 2016 Review

Peugeot 308 Active
Road Test

You might think that there are better vehicles for a family driving holiday with a 500kg camper behind than the $26,990 (plus on-road costs) Peugeot 308 Active, but the three-pot turbo was well up to the task and the cabin roomy enough for a family of four. The 308's supple ride and involving chassis was a welcome bonus.

Having a press car for the typical week's booking can tell you lots about where it shines and where it could do with a whole lot of polish. We've already know after a week's worth of T9-series Peugeot 308 that it has lifted the model up from shoulder-shrugging French indifference to something more like methodical German precision. Yet how would the three-pot turbo auto cope with six weeks and 3000km with us, for the better part fully loaded and towing a 500kg camper?

You have a cornucopia of small hatches from which to choose in Australia. While nailing down comparative spec is not easy with this bunch, the mid-spec 308 is probably most closely aligned with the entry level Volkswagen Golf 90 TSI DSG and Ford Focus Trend and the mid-grade Mazda3 Maxx.

The cabin is easy to slide into with wide-opening doors and the front seats are firm, supportive and you don't feel as though you're falling out of them when quickly looping together sharp corners.

The dash presentation is simple, to the point of being plain. There are few buttons or styling gargoyles to distract you, especially in the centre stack. It's all very German, and pleasingly, that includes the precise fit and finish.

This is because Peugeot has packed as much as it could into the infotainment screen. So to start with, the climate control features are all a touch-screen away, which is where the trouble starts. The infotainment screen is slow to boot up, and slow to select the screen you're chasing; eEspecially when you've jumped into a hot car and want cold, full-blast air-con — now.

The 308 has a dual-zone temperature adjustment on the main screen, but dialing-down the temp to the lowest setting still takes some fiddling around.

Scrolling around for audio adjustment isn't much easier, although phone Bluetooth works well.

Just when you think the 308 has become all Teutonic (the infotainment screen aside), you turn a corner. The indicator sound — my mother succinctly described it as sounding like a horse trotting on cobblestones — can be changed to a number of other sounds.

So from the trotting horses (Classic) you can spice up your indicator rhythm with Crystal Symphony, Urban Rythmik or Jungle Fantasy. Jungle Fantasy is an especially funky beat, but even that gets old pretty quickly. We change direction with only the assistance of horses for the rest of our time with the Peugeot.

If Peugeot's go-kart small steering wheel is an acquired taste, then may I sup at the French manufacturer's table? I don't know what all the fuss is about — for me, it works perfectly. I can see the instruments, the wheel diameter makes turn-in seem more decisive and quick U-turns are easier.

The Europeans just don't get interior storage. Sure, some, like Peugeot, will concede with a larger cup-holder here or there, but otherwise storage cubbies are few and those are small. Especially the glovebox, in the 308's case, which is big enough for a pair or two of gloves and not much else. At least your gloves will be air-conditioned, with a vent channeling in air from the climate control.

The centre console bin lid slides forward for a better elbow resting position, but in either position it's so low that it you'd have to leaning head-to-head with your passenger if you were to both use it. If you ever have the need to turn around and yell at the kids (hypothetically speaking), using the lid as resting position for your hand, it also slides forward; too bad if you have something in the drink holder just ahead of it, as it will spill.

The boot is a large, easy-to -get- at space, with one of the largest volumes in the class at 435 litres (seats up), and the rear 60:40 split-fold seat boosts volume to 1274 litres. A full-size alloy spare sits under the boot carpet.

The 308 as a 1.2-litre auto has a 1200kg (braked) towing capacity.

The 308 rides really well, an old signature Peugeot trait missing since about the time the company built its own dampers. The only criticism is that sharp bumps get the rear suspension to knock, which sounds like too-soft bushings.

Steering is direct, has good feel and the 308 handles really well; it doesn't have much body roll, it can be throttle-steered through corners and the tyres grip well.

A stand-out component in this package is the Peugeot's three-cylinder engine. It is smooth, quiet and responsive. The 308 had a load consisting of two adults and two children on board, luggage in the back and a trailer with a total weight of about 500kg behind. With this, you'd think that the three-pot turbo would struggle, but it didn't. The 308 could easily hold 110km/h up freeway hills, and would eagerly accelerate past slower traffic when an overtaking lane opened up on the two-lane roads. You had to look back to remind yourself that you were towing.

Finally, this is a French car where the engine and transmission talk the same language. Gone is the typical French auto of old, which seemed to shrug its shoulders and say, "Bouff, I don't understand what it is that you want", and in its place is a transmission that accurately interprets what the driver wants and needs and selects the right gear smoothly. It's Japanese, of course.

It's no surprise that fuel consumption suffered with a large white box lugged behind. Towing the trailer, the 308 achieved an average of 10.5L/100km. With just four on board – sans trailer – a more respectable 6.2L was achievable in mostly open road conditions with a small amount of urban driving thrown in.

The Peugeot's cruise control — when used with or without the trailer behind — was not very good pegging speed downhill. In fact, it was easy to fall into speed-ticket territory down long, steep hills unless you resorted to the brakes and/or a downshift.

The 308 was a surprisingly good tow vehicle and holiday tourer. It puts paid to the notion that a small displacement three-cylinder engine is not enough. It is more than enough, and despite its few annoying quirks, the 308 is the best Peugeot to come from Socheaux in a long time.

2016 Peugeot 308 Active pricing and specifications:
Price: $26,890 (as tested, plus on-road costs)
Engine: 1.2-litre three-cylinder turbo-petrol
Output: 96kW/230Nm
Transmission: Six-speed automatic
Fuel: 5.1L/100km (ADR combined)
CO2: 117g/km (ADR combined)
Safety rating: Five-star (ANCAP)

Also consider:
>> Ford Focus (from $23,490 plus ORCs)
>> Mazda Mazda3 (from $23,490 plus ORCs)
>> Volkswagen Golf (from $24,290 plus ORCs)