Peugeot 508 Touring GT 2012 Review

Price Guide (recommended price before statutory and delivery charges): $55,990
Options fitted (not included in above price): Powered tailgate $1000; JBL audio system $2300; Pearlescent paint $1300
Crash rating: Five-star (Euro NCAP)
Fuel: Diesel
Claimed fuel economy (L/100km): 5.7
CO2 emissions (g/km): 150
Also consider: Audi A4 Avant; BMW 3 Series Touring; Skoda Superb Combi Elegance; Volkswagen Passat Wagon

Peugeot's 508 Touring is a car much admired here at motoring.com.au. It takes the manufacturer back to its roots and also points the way forward for the French brand.

A new addition to the range, the 508 Touring GT, delivers enhanced performance, more sophisticated suspension,  larger wheels and adaptive xenon headlights with intelligent high-beam. Oh, and there's a head-up display as well. All good gear to have in any car, but insert 'free lunch' metaphor here...

The 508 Touring GT costs exactly $10,000 more than the 508 Touring Allure tested by motoring.com.au around this time last year. Since the Allure variant seemed like a hard act to follow for the money, how does the new flagship measure up?

On paper the extra dosh looks like a reasonable ask. The 2.2-litre engine in the GT produces 150kW and substantial torque, rated at 450Nm. That compares very favourably with the 508 Allure HDi's 120kW/340Nm output. Those xenon headlights, which are adaptive and drop to low beam automatically, don't come cheap. Then there's the more sophisticated front suspension to consider; amortising the development cost for that in a lower-volume variant adds considerably to the car's purchase price. And don't forget the 18-inch alloys (up from 17-inch) or the head-up display.

In the real world the question of value is harder to answer. The GT certainly rides significantly softer than the Mac-strut-suspended Allure. Despite the cushier ride (but still well controlled), the GT also provides neutral handling at speed and sensational grip for such a large, front-driven wagon. The front tyres will audibly let you know when they're reaching the limits of adhesion, but that's a long time coming in wider-radius bends. It's been worth the extra money, that double-wishbone setup.

But then there's the GT's engine. In some ways the smaller engine in the 508 Allure is sweeter. It didn't suffer turbo lag to the same degree and it performed well enough, all while delivering significantly better fuel consumption. When the 2.2-litre engine's added torque would have been useful, it just wasn't available.

So our feelings towards the 508 Touring GT are mixed, but first impressions were as good as expected.

From a styling perspective the 508 is a more attractive design as a wagon than as a sedan. It's hard to conceive anyone finding the 508's style offensive. In side profile it's a very swoopy looking car, although the 508 has a more homogenous look about it than earlier Peugeots. The rear styling resembles Mercedes-Benz E-Class with tail lights from the previous model Camry, but the end result is attractive, nonetheless.

Pleasing to note, there is not a skerrick of retro style in this car; no woodgrain or oddly designed switchgear to recall the ergonomic anomalies of yesteryear. Peugeot designers have striven for a modern, conservative look that promises a serene ambience. The full length glass roof (with a motorised roller blind) made the cabin feel light and airy. Ask again about the glass roof come summer though, although that motorised blind should keep the sun out during those months.

There's just a smattering of carbon fibre across the dash, liberal piano gloss black elsewhere — without going to excess — and satin-finish aluminium, plus the leather trim and quality plastics. The overall result is refreshing and welcoming at the same time. If only one's lounge room were as stylish and comfortable...

Seats were not as firm as we typically encounter in German cars, but still lent decent support under the thighs and held the occupant in place nicely. They weren't as snug as the seats in our long-term Honda Accord Euro, but the Puggy's pews walked that line between overly aggressive shape on the one hand, and soggy cushioning on the other.

Ahead and to the left of the driver there was a bewildering array of instruments, but most were intuitive enough to use. It's rare to see a steering wheel with quite so much switchgear. And just when you think there couldn't be any more controls, open the fold-out bin to the lower right of the steering wheel to reveal more. This receptacle, which would normally house the fuses in any other car, contained such items as the adjustment and readout data selection for the head-up display and a switch to disable stability control (although it only stays disabled at lower speeds).

If the layout of the controls for the HVAC, audio and other comfort or convenience features (sat nav, Bluetooth, to name two) required some familiarisation, at least the major instruments — and anything else that needed to be observed or monitored — were easy on the eye and readily legible at a glance, thanks to the high-resolution graphics that really placed other displays in a 'time capsule' context. Our one concern with the speedo was that the increments were right for European markets, but weren't in keeping with typical Australian speed limits. Drivers won't find the 60km/h calibration quickly, nor 100km/h for that matter.

As mentioned already, the different front suspension was a marked improvement over the MacPherson strut setup. It's a wonder that Peugeot hasn't adopted this system for all 508 models, even if it were to cost the consumer more. Clearly too, Peugeot has got its act together with its spring and damper settings. But the rear suspension was occasionally noisy over Melbourne's patched-up suburban bitumen, and some of the fixtures and fittings in the luggage compartment could be heard clashing and bashing over the same bumps.

The power steering system has a distinct input threshold for torque before it springs into action. This can be felt while the vehicle is in motion or at standstill. Most other similar systems we've sampled will deliver assistance with lower levels of torque applied to the steering wheel, particularly at bumper-to-bumper or parking speeds. The Peugeot can be coasting at speeds up to 20km/h and the steering weight is heavy (unassisted) one moment and then it's suddenly light. Most people won't find it a major concern, but it is a point of difference between the Peugeot and rivals selling in the same price bracket.

At higher speeds and while cornering the steering system provides good feedback and the car turns in promptly enough given the car's design purpose. It's a tourer rather than a sports car and to that extent the steering response is fine; not too direct and unsettling for the typical owner, but nor is it snoozy.

Emitting a subdued purr at idle, the engine is quieter than some diesels and there's little hint of labouring at 1500rpm, but it suffers from significant turbo lag. Once it's on boost, however, it feels quite muscular hauling around over 1500kg (kerb weight) — as it should, with 450Nm on tap. Peugeot claims the 508 Touring GT will reach 100km/h from a standing start in 8.4 seconds. 

But at lower speeds and in tighter corners, the GT is let down by turbo lag. While the car is no hot hatch or sports car, it still takes its own good time exiting corners because the engine just isn't delivering power when the driver may want it, and the transmission ratios are too high for this sort of tight and twisty work. On the rare occasion the driver can get on the gas early enough, the 508 will track neatly where the driver intends for it to head and there's next to nothing in the way of power-induced understeer.

The engine drives through a six-speed epicyclic automatic, which is a very adept transmission that changes smoothly and features the right ratios to exploit the engine's power delivery characteristics well — provided the turbocharger is wound up.

Over the course of the week, the trip computer posted an average fuel consumption figure of 9.3L/100km, which is not far shy of the Allure's figure of 8.5, but the GT also covered 70km of freeway driving.

If the engine is a bit of a letdown in comparison with the smaller diesel in the Allure variant, the adaptive cornering xenon headlights with intelligent high-beam make up for that in part. As with similar systems in other cars the lights don't always adjust to low beam quickly enough if an on-coming car is approaching obliquely (through a corner, for instance). But it's definitely preferable to have the facility and drivers will quickly work out to disable the system on twisty roads.

We previously criticised the 508 Touring Allure for its very wide B pillars, which obscure vehicles when merging. That's equally true of the GT. In other respects also, the GT's packaging is identical to the Allure's. Like the earlier car tested, the GT came with an (optional) powered tailgate. And the GT shares the deep but narrow load section of the Allure — and offers users remote rear seat folding switches on either side, just like some Japanese wagons — but there's a spacesaver spare sitting below the boot floor, in contrast with the Allure's full-size wheel.

There are a number of such spec differences that will guide a prospective buyer to choose between a car like the 508 Touring GT and the lower-priced Allure. Having the full-size spare in the cheaper car will certainly sway some country buyers.

The front suspension on its lonesome is almost worth the difference in price between the two cars — it's that good. But the engine doesn't live up to its promise. Ideally, Peugeot could and should be offering the double-wishbone front end across the entire 508 range — with the GT's 18-inch wheel and tyre combination available as an option.

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