A Peugeot for the future?
The Peugeot 308 has always been a good-looking car. In general, Peugeot has built some stunning cars in the past and the present is no different. We loved the look of the 508 Peugeot Sport Engineered and now they're rolling out the new 308 and it's a looker! Let's dive into the details.
Although French cars do have a unique reputation, they have changed in recent times. Sophisticated, stylish, and modern: something more associated with the Germans, has infected the crazy Frenchies. It's no different with the new 308 from Peugeot. The 308 is the first car to get Peugeot's new treatment since its logo change in 2021. Some unique things on the exterior include Peugeot shields on the front fenders, daytime running lights that resemble the fangs of a lion, and 3D rear tail lights. We also loved the vertigo blue paint job. So, on the outside, it is very stylish and something different. Compared to the new Golf, it's in another league.
What about the interior? The French are notorious for making beautiful-looking interiors that sadly lack quality. We are happy to report that the quality is on par with anything from Germany. In fact, the 308 has a fantastic interior with unique touches that no other car gets. You are greeted by two infotainment screens that can be customized to your liking and a 3D digital gauge cluster for the driver. One thing that is especially unique with every Peugeot is the small steering wheel, definitely something to get used to. For your favorite tunes, you can tune into the optional Focal Premium HiFi Sound System. The graphics are insane and you feel like you're inside a PlayStation.
Onto the powertrain: the strongest variant gets a 1.6l turbocharged four-cylinder coupled with an electric motor to produce 225 horsepower. The battery capacity is 12.4 kWh, so pretty big, enough for a comfortable 50km of all-electric range. Electric-only driving is what you'll mainly be doing for short commutes and the electric motor produces 134 horsepower alone. We're telling you this because the two powertrains are not very well synchronized and it doesn't feel like 225 horsepower. So it's best to use the electric motor as much as possible and run the combustion engine for longer trips. For some reason, you have to pay for 7.4kW charging, the standard is 3.7kW.
This whole debate about plug-in hybrids is getting pretty old though, why not just get an EV? And this argument is valid for small city cars like the 308. Luckily, there is a fully electric variant on the way. We just don't see the point in having two powertrains in a car that is so small. But overall, the 308 is a car we'd consider for a daily driver and we love the looks!