Peugeot 308 PureTech 130: short pass

The Peugeot homepage shows the way. If you click on the 308, the slogan “The new look of Peugeot” follows. The French Golf can definitely be seen. In keeping with this, the French have also treated themselves to a new brand logo on which the king of the animals is majestically enthroned. The formal language of the youngest offspring of the lion brand supports this self-confidence. But what about the rest? Can the compact car also translate its neat appearance into action?

We took a closer look at the hatchback sedan, even if this body shape will not be the most popular in Kombiland Germany. But with a length of 4.37 meters, the Peugeot 308 is 27 centimeters shorter than the SW and should certainly be of interest to one or the other who does not constantly go to the furniture market. So far so good. But in terms of space, there is by no means Égalité in the Löwen, but rather a two-class society. While sitting properly at the front, things are much more economical at the back. Especially when you are six feet tall, it gets tight around your head and knees.

In the interior, the hatchback version of the 308 hardly differs from the SW station wagon. So here, too, the driver looks at a small, virtual cockpit with a low-lying steering wheel, which at first is more reminiscent of the steering wheel of a game console than of an ordinary automobile valance. But once you get used to the peculiarities of French ergonomics, you get along very well and the position of the steering wheel doesn’t bother you in the least. But that doesn’t change the fact that we want more directness and clearer feedback on the level of traction. The steering column could also be an idea longer.

However, this is not so important because the PureTech 130 variant of the Peugeot 308 is not a clear sprinter. Nevertheless, the three-cylinder engine with 96 kW / 130 PS and the maximum torque of 230 Newton meters, which is available at 1,750 rpm, has enough power, which is known from other models of the PSA-Stellantis Group. After 9.6 seconds the Peugeot 308 reaches country road speed from standstill and is up to 210 km / h. The chassis is trimmed for comfort and so the lion can handle rough bumps with a certain serenity. However, when changing direction you have to be prepared for the fact that the body bounces and also leans to the side when cornering. It would be desirable if the otherwise comfortable seats offered a little more lateral support.

If you want to get more out of the compact French, you can activate the sport mode on the driving experience switch (which, by the way, is identical to the one on the Opel models) and things are already more ambitious. However, the engine makes no secret of its exertion and growls. The six-speed manual gearbox proves to be quite advantageous, because it elicits more temperament from the 1.2 liter unit at the driver’s request on the accelerator pedal. The gearbox is not a Porsche gearshift, but it can be guided with sufficient precision that you don’t have to move the shift gate. Peugeot specifies an average consumption of 5.6 l / 100 km (WLTP), we needed 2.3 l / 100 km more, but we were sometimes faster on the way and have overcome a few meters in altitude.

When it comes to infotainment, the French have shortened the gap to their German competitors, but they still can’t get out of their skin. A certain playfulness is part of it. The instruments in front of the driver can be displayed in 3-D optics, which may seem playful and confusing for some. We got along well with the visual presentation. If that’s too much action cinema for you, you can also deactivate the effects. The ten inch touchscreen is the infotainment command center. The progress is also clearly noticeable and visible in operation. The app tile look is currently in vogue and spreads smartphone ambience. In this way, the desired functions can be set quickly.

The French have also gone a step further with the assistance systems. The innovations include a blind spot assistant that now extends 75 meters to the rear, a significantly better resolution of the image from the all-round camera and a warning of traffic behind you. With the Drive Assist 2.0 package available at the end of the year, a semi-automatic lane change between 70 and 180 km / h and an automatic adjustment of the cornering speed up to 180 km / h can be added.

Details such as the cable pass-through from the USB-C connection under the center console to the outside are helpful and would have deserved the title “Simply Clever” at Skoda. With a capacity of 412 to 1,323 liters, the trunk does not quite reach the warehouse dimensions of Czech automobiles, but it also enables Saturday furniture shopping. Especially since the loading floor is level when the backrests of the rear seat bench are folded down. From the beginning of December, the Peugeot 308 will be available at dealerships and as a PureTech 130 costs at least 25,600 euros, if you want an eight-speed automatic, you have to add another 2,000 euros.