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First drive: Peugeot 3008 Hybrid4. Image by Peugeot.

First drive: Peugeot 3008 Hybrid4
Peugeot releases its most powerful production model yet. Yay! It’s a PHEV crossover. Ah.

   



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Peugeot 3008 Hybrid4 GT

3.5 3.5 3.5 3.5 3.5

Peugeot reveals its most powerful series-production car yet, the 300hp/520Nm plug-in hybrid (PHEV) version of the superb 3008 crossover. With a 0-62mph time dipping under the six-second barrier and yet the promise of almost 220mpg with less than 30g/km of CO2 emissions, this 3008 Hybrid4 sounds a bit too good to be true. And then we come to its price...

Test Car Specifications

Model tested: Peugeot 3008 Hybrid4 GT
Pricing: 3008 range from £25,865; Hybrid4 GT from £46,735 as tested
Engine: 1.6-litre turbocharged four-cylinder petrol with 80kW front, 83kW rear twin electric motors and 13.2kWh lithium-ion battery pack
Transmission: all-wheel drive, e-EAT8 eight-speed electric automatic
Body style: five-door crossover-SUV plug-in hybrid
CO2 emissions: 29g/km (VED Band 1-50 Alternative Fuel Cars: £0 first 12 months, then £455 per annum years two-six of ownership, then £135 annually thereafter)
Combined economy: 217.3mpg, electric range c.37 miles
Top speed: 146mph (Hybrid mode, 84mph Electric mode)
0-62mph: 5.9 seconds
Power: petrol 200hp at 6,000rpm, front electric 110hp at 2,500rpm, rear electric 113hp at 14,000rpm, system maximum 300hp
Torque: petrol 300Nm at 3,000rpm, front electric 320Nm at 500-2,500rpm, rear electric 166Nm from 0-4,760rpm, system maximum 520Nm
Boot space: 395-1,545 litres

What's this?

A 1.6-litre Peugeot 3008, only with added electrical goodness. As part of the revitalised French manufacturer's drive to have some sort of volty-based offering in every one of its model lines by 2023, the shift to electrification is well and truly on. The Lion has already gone 'full EV' on us with the super-stylish e-208 hatchback, while there's also a pure electric version of the 2008 crossover available using the same running gear; we've driven this e-2008 and will be bringing you a full review very soon.

But while pure EVs are headline-grabbers, we're still in that transitional phase where the battery packs aren't quite offering enough cruising range for electric cars, and as consumers it would appear we're still not quite ready to give up internal combustion just yet. Which is where a good PHEV steps in. Having already sampled the new 508 Hybrid, now it's time to turn the spotlight on Peugeot's new performance flagship (sort of).

The 3008 Hybrid4 GT, to give it its full honorific, takes that 508 Hybrid drivetrain and enhances it, by virtue of having a slightly more potent tune of the 1.6 petrol in the first place (200hp, instead of 180hp), as well as a second 83kW e-motor mounted on the rear axle to go with the 80kW front item and a larger 13.2kWh battery pack powering the whole lot. The addition of the 83kW motor means this 3008 is all-wheel drive, hence the 'Hybrid4' bit of the nameplate - that makes it the first 3008 Mk2 to have AWD, as all other models have employed (at best) Grip Control, but kudos to you if you recall that it is by no means the first AWD 3008 nor the first to be called the Hybrid4, either; as the old diesel-electric Mk1 takes that signal honour.

Also like the 508 Hybrid, spotting a 3008 Hybrid4 will largely depend upon an observer clocking the boot-and-front-wings dichroic badging, or its surplus of what look like fuel filler flaps (only possible to note if you walk around the car in its entirety), or the cyan light shining from the interior mirror if the car is in motion and not using its combustion engine. Inside, it's much the same story, as Alcantara upholstery and some extra hybrid-related switchgear and digital displays are the main distinguishing features. But, as Peugeot was starting with one of the best-looking crossovers in its class, which also happens to have the finest interior, then this is no bad thing. What is slightly less pleasing is that while the 3008's EMP2 chassis was always designed with electrification in mind, housing a second e-motor at the rear of the car inevitably saps cargo capacity and so the Hybrid4 has a 125-litre smaller boot than its conventional siblings.

That's not the 3008 Hybrid4's biggest problem, though. No; the major issue here is the price. Sorry to keep harping on about the 508 Hybrid, but its single-motor, front-wheel-drive, 225hp petrol-electric drivetrain will become available in the 3008 later this year. It will be sold in Allure (from £36,585) and GT-Line trim grades (from £38,485) when it arrives in showrooms, but it will also come as a top-spec GT, whereupon it breaches the £40,000 'rich-tax VED' barrier with a hefty £41,735 ticket. However, this 300hp Hybrid4 is only available as a GT. And having an extra 75hp, another electric motor and four-wheel traction is enough to load another £5,000 onto the asking price.

Which means we're in a world where a £47,000 Peugeot exists, and it's not some homologation-special revival of the 205 T16, either. As lovely as the 3008 is and as noble the idea of offering a family-sized crossover that can seemingly do everything, given its highly impressive array of on-paper stats, you nevertheless inevitably start to wonder just how much BMW X3 £46,735 would get you. Or Audi Q5, for that matter. Or Volvo XC60... we mean, we could go on, but we think you get the point. And the point is this: the 3008 Hybrid4 needs to be bloody spectacular to justify that price tag. So, is it?

How does it drive?

It drives really well. In fact, the first thing to hit you about the 3008 Hybrid4 is that there's no reason to doubt the veracity of Peugeot's claims about its power and performance. With both its electric and petrol motors engaged, this is one seriously quick crossover. And it gathers its pace nice and cleanly, with merely a touch of coarseness from the 1.6 beyond 4,000rpm being the only minor grumble to note. But the e-EAT8 gearbox is a fine companion for all that insta-torque, while the traction the 4WD can serve up is beautifully exploited by this PHEV 3008.

But, as rapid as it is, the Hybrid4 doesn't feel as punchy as, say, a dedicated performance-crossover like the Cupra Ateca. But why should this be so? We mean, the Cupra has 300hp and 400Nm, managing to match the Peugeot for horsepower but possessing a sizeable 120Nm torque deficit. And the answer, as 'twas ever and so with hybrids, comes down to weight.

The 3008 Hybrid4 is a porker. At 1,840kg, it has ballooned in mass by 360kg over the next heaviest model in the line-up, which is the 2.0-litre 180hp BlueHDi turbodiesel (1,480kg). Compared to the lightest 3008, which comes in at 1,320kg, you're talking about more than half-a-tonne of additional ballast that the Hybrid4 has to deal with. Half-a-tonne. This is hardly an insignificant amount and, regrettably, it permeates everything the 3008 Hybrid4 does, quite beyond dulling the acceleration you're expecting from a C-segment-derived vehicle with 520Nm of grunt.

You see, the 3008 in its regular incarnations drives rather well... for a crossover. So while the handling isn't totally shot by the hybrid running gear, there's no doubting the 300hp variant is nothing like as fun and involving to steer as a regular two-wheel-drive petrol version. There's grip aplenty and decently controlled body movements, but beyond this there's not much else of interest for a keener drive to tap into.

As with the 508 Hybrid (yes, we've mentioned it again!), thankfully the 3008 Hybrid4's real strengths are its comfort and refinement, as it rides really nicely and manages to suppress almost all external noises long before they permeate the cabin and make the interior raucous. But then, the 3008 Hybrid with just 225hp and a single e-motor will probably do much the same thing, for a price anything between five and ten grand cheaper to boot. And as there aren't enough fireworks from the 300hp powertrain to make it feel like an unmissable treat, then we think the 3008 Hybrid4 is scuppered by its extraordinary list price. Even if you can get it on a decent PCP deal, or if its tax implications make it a tempting fleet purchase.

Verdict

A technically excellent creation, the Peugeot 3008 Hybrid4 is an understandable addition to the crossover's line-up. But a near-£50,000 asking price simply cannot be ignored: Peugeot positions itself as the 'most premium mainstream manufacturer' but £46,735 is just an out-and-out premium figure; there's no 'mainstream' about it. It's fast and it has earned itself the epithet of Peugeot's most powerful showroom offering yet seen, but in the end the Hybrid4 is not special enough to make it worth the significant extra outlay, over and above its extremely talented siblings. You'd be just as well off with a 130hp 1.2 PureTech, if we're honest.

4.5 4.5 4.5 4.5 4.5 Exterior Design

4.5 4.5 4.5 4.5 4.5 Interior Ambience

4 4 4 4 4 Passenger Space

3.5 3.5 3.5 3.5 3.5 Luggage Space

4.5 4.5 4.5 4.5 4.5 Safety

4 4 4 4 4 Comfort

3 3 3 3 3 Driving Dynamics

4 4 4 4 4 Powertrain


Matt Robinson - 29 Jan 2020



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2020 Peugeot 3008 Hybrid4 GT. Image by Peugeot.2020 Peugeot 3008 Hybrid4 GT. Image by Peugeot.2020 Peugeot 3008 Hybrid4 GT. Image by Peugeot.2020 Peugeot 3008 Hybrid4 GT. Image by Peugeot.2020 Peugeot 3008 Hybrid4 GT. Image by Peugeot.

2020 Peugeot 3008 Hybrid4 GT. Image by Peugeot.2020 Peugeot 3008 Hybrid4 GT. Image by Peugeot.2020 Peugeot 3008 Hybrid4 GT. Image by Peugeot.2020 Peugeot 3008 Hybrid4 GT. Image by Peugeot.2020 Peugeot 3008 Hybrid4 GT. Image by Peugeot.








 

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