THE Peugeot 3008 is a compact crossover from the French carmaker first launched eight years ago and has since received many accolades.
In 2010, the 3008 won the Car of the Year award from British motoring magazine What Car? and the Semperit Irish Car of the Year award in Ireland.
Earlier this year, the new 3008 was picked as the European Car Of The Year 2017 by a jury of 58 motoring journalists from 22 European countries.
Nasim Sdn Bhd, the official distributor for Peugeot vehicles in Malaysia, recently launched the second-generation Peugeot 3008 sport utility vehicle (SUV).
Members of the media were invited for a drive to Taiping. We tested and were left impressed with the Peugeot 3008 SUV Allure variant.
The 3008 SUV is powered by a 1.6-litre THP, with variable valve timing petrol engine, hooked to a six-speed automatic transmission with paddle shifters. The mill produces 165hp at 6,000rpm and 240Nm of torque from 1,400rpm.
Peugeot claims that the 3008 SUV can sprint from zero to 100kph in 8.9 seconds, with a fuel efficiency of 7.0 litres per 100km. It can reach a top speed of 211kph.
The Peugeot 3008 measures in at 4,447mm in length, 1,841mm in width and 1,624mm in height, with a wheelbase of 2,675mm. With all its rear seats up, it has 591 litres of boot space and a fuel tank capacity of 53 litres.
Its equipment list includes full LED headlights with LED daytime running lights and sequential turn signals, ambient lights, and powered adjustable leather seats with memory function for the driver side, “lion claw effect” LED tail lights, 18-inch alloy wheels, eight-inch touch screen linked to its infotainment and climate control systems, six-speaker 3D Arkamys sound system, rear air-conditioning vents and armrest with 11 litres of cold storage.
It also has piano-key toggle switches, a rectangular-shaped steering wheel, electric impulse gear control, electronic parking brakes and an advanced grip control that comes with five driving modes, as well as the award winning trademark i-Cockpit interior, which highlights the 12.3-inch digital instrument cluster.
The Allure variant has a different grille mesh, silver-painted front bumper underguard, as well as chrome trims at the lower section of the side doors which differentiates if from the Active variant.
As for its safety aspects, it comes with six airbags, anti-lock braking system, electronic brake distributor, emergency brake assist, traction control, dynamic stability control, electronic stability programme, hill assist, lane departure warning, reverse camera with 180 degree view, front and rear parking sensors, as well as Isofix child seat mounting points.
It has achieved the full five-star rating from Euro Ncap.
The 3008 SUV Allure retails at RM155,888. All prices quoted exclude insurance but inclusive of the six per cent Goods and Services Tax.
It comes with a five-year manufacturer’s warranty, 24-hour Peugeot Assistance service and complimentary access to the Sky Park Subang.
The Drive
The media drive, with 32 journalists in 12 Allures, started from the Holiday Inn Kuala Lumpur Glenmarie.
We drove for more than 600km through highways, rural areas, trunk roads, as well as rough and damaged road conditions.
After the flag off, the convoy headed to the North Klang Valley Expressway, and exited near Slim River to test the car on trunk roads.
The 1.6-litre THP with variable valve timing petrol engine felt smooth and powerful. The six-speed automatic transmission switched gears smoothly and quickly.
The engine and transmission are well-tuned. There were no problems overtaking other vehicles when driving on the trunk road.
The firm front suspension and absorber system overcomes most rough, uneven and damaged road conditions effortlessly. It provides the front passengers a comfortable ride.
However, the rear semi-independent wheels with twist beam axle and pressurised shock absorbers system were slightly sensitive towards road conditions.
There was very minimal body roll when tackling winding roads. The Allure clings to the tarmac on high speed corners but was short of steering feedback as it has a relaxed steering setting.
The Allure has plenty of head and leg room for both the front and rear passengers. It can easily fit any large framed, tall adult.
The front centre armrest has 11-litres of storage space that can easily store a mini tablet, SLR camera, or even a small size handbag.
Although the Allure offers many goodies, there is still room for improvement.
It should come with blind spot warning and the “lane keep” assist systems. The lane departure warning system will only beep when the SUV cuts into another lane without the signal indicator. It doesn’t vibrate the steering or even help to correct the steering so it would keep to the lane.
Another aspect of the 3008 SUV that can be improved would be the rectangular-shaped steering wheel. It certainly felt and looked more futuristic, but it is a little small.
The position of the steering wheel is also quite low for a tall adult.