What's all this about?

This is the new Peugeot 408, a new fastback crossover sitting in the C-segment meaning, Peugeot says, that it’s positioned to provide an alternative to other models in the company’s line-up such as the 308, 3008 and 5008.

It isn't very tall for a crossover...

It’s really the 20-inch alloy wheels and very slight rise in ride-height compared to say, a Peugeot 308, that gives it its semi-crossover looks as opposed to it being significantly taller. To put it into perspective, at 1.48m in height, the 408 is only 23mm less tall than the 308, so calling it a crossover or SUV is stretching the definition a bit.

Looks good though

Not bad at all. It gets LED Matrix headlights up front, the revised lion badge in the centre of the grille (hiding the radar systems for the driver assistance tech) and the downward-pointing “fang” lights at each side. The rear-end slopes away gracefully giving it a coupé-like silhouette in profile.

What’s it like inside?

The steering wheel is small so as not to interfere too much with the view of the 10-inch configurable digital instrument cluster. The dashboard sees the air vents placed relatively high, which, Peugeot says, improves comfort for the occupants. The seats should be particularly comfortable with the option of 10-way power adjustment with two memory settings for the driver, six-way power adjustment for the passenger as well as an eight-pocket air massage system with five different programs and seat heating.

A 10-inch multimedia touchscreen sits in the centre of the dash at a slightly lower level than the instrument cluster, allowing it to fall more easily to hand. Boot space is strong with 536 litres when the seats are in place and a whopping 1,611 litres when they’re folded down. The rear tailgate is, incidentally, automated, and can be operated by a sweep of the foot underneath or pressing buttons on the key fob, exterior or dash.

What's powering the 408?

Because the 408 is built on the Stellantis EMP2 platform, there are a range of power options from petrol-only to hybrid to an all-electric version that will be arriving further down the line. Diesel, however, won’t be included in the line-up.

First off, there’s a 1.2-litre turbocharged petrol engine developing 130hp, followed by a pair of plug-in hybrids - the 180 e-EAT8 and the 225 e-EAT8. Both engines are still undergoing homologation so final details as regards electric-only range are still unknown, but the 180 e-EAT8 system combines a 150hp petrol engine with an 81kW electric motor to produce 260hp, with the 225 e-EAT8 using a 180hp engine and the same 81kW motor to deploy 290hp. All engines, the petrol model included, send their power to the front wheels via an eight-speed automatic transmission.

Charging time for the plug-in hybrids is an estimated 1 hour 40 minutes using the optional 7.4kW charger or 3 hours 55 minutes using the standard 3.7kW charger.

When is the 408 due to land?

Peugeot says that the 408 will arrive on the market “at the very beginning of 2023”, but, as is so often the case these days, that that could be subject to change depending on the global supply chain situation.