2025 Peugeot 2008 review

[Mike T]

In England and Scotland, we rented a 2025 model Peugeot 2008 in light grey metallic for the period of September 6 to 17, 2025. The car was a mild hybrid with a “Hybrid” badge on the tailgate. We drove it 2800 km during that period.

It’s designed to look like a SUV but this is strictly a front wheel drive that is based on the 208 platform, in this application with an extended wheelbase (2.605 m versus 2.55). But the bottom line is this car still fails the “me behind me” test; with the driver’s seat set as best as I can manage (more on that later), there is not adequate legroom behind.

The luggage space is also disappointing and in this case it’s not due to the hybrid battery like the 5008 SW Hybrid we drove for 7000 km in 2023. With two large suitcases and some hand baggage, one rear seat had to be folded down at all times.

The look of the car from outside is OK in a modern way, with decent proportion and assembly.

Inside is a bit worse. Here are the main concerns with ergonomics and the interior:

• The sills are VERY high like a SUV but the floor is not, so there is a bit of gymnastics required to get into the car, rather like a shallow bathtub. For the driver, with the tiny steering wheel and the VERY pointy dashboard corner conspire to nail your knee, which I did most times. It truly is awful for taller people.
• The front interior door panels are nice and padded on the tops next to the window, but the rear ones are rock hard Airfix model kit plastic. This “cheat” is used by so many carmakers there days….it is disgusting bean counter-driven cost cutting.
• The instrument panel is to be viewed above the steering wheel, which worked for me in the 508 but in this car, despite the height adjustable seats, the combination of the windshield size and the other factors meant that lower part of the instrument panel was invisible without a stiff neck stretch.

Yes, that is a nice, rare Peugeot in the background......

About the driving characteristics:

• Even modern Peugeots usually have excellent steering feel and precision, but this one is not true to form. The steering required frequent corrections for road camber and other things.
• The suspension was very harsh and some passengers we were visiting commented on this when driving near Glasgow!
• The engine was powerful enough with clean acceleration, but it’s a 1.2 litre PureTech, so this car will not be a keeper. Even with camshafts driven by a chain, the longevity of the prime mover is suspect.
• This car was automatic (6 speed dual clutch, not an Aisin) and the gearbox operation was lumpy on low speed with downshifts occasionally being very harsh and exposing some driveshaft slack.
• Despite what is likely a reasonably aerodynamic shape, and the tiny engine with mild hybrid assistance, the fuel consumption is merely adequate, averaging 5.9 L/100 km overall, which is OK but no more. The 508 plug-in hybrid SW we had in 2023 achieved something near that despite being a lot larger, more comfortable, heavier and rarely being plugged in!
• The brake pedal and accelerator pedal are too close together. Maybe this is just a RHD quirk, but I found several times that my size 12 shoes were simultaneously pressing the brake pedal and the gas! Not good. This could be partly down to the “Italian Ape” driving position, where unless you drive with perfectly straightened elbows, the pedals will be too close to you.
• The menu system for the electronic controls is obtuse. Among the worst I’ve ever seen. Sometimes it would let Apple Car Play (and therefore our phone-based navigation) work and other times not.

In my view, we are not missing anything at all by the absence of this model from North America. I’d be hard-pressed to say which Peugeot model we should be lamenting the absence of, though the soon-to-be-killed-off 508 SW Hybrid may be on that list for some. Perhaps the 208? Definitely not the 2008. Press reviews of the revised 3008 and 5008 have been reasonably savage, so maybe not them either.

 

[SRDT]

They call it a urban crossover, the CMP platform was designed more with this type of bigger car in mind unlike the former PF1.

The gearbox has technically 2 or was it 3 clutches but in any case isn't a "classical" dual clutch gearbox.

One thing to keep in mind is that customers really, really like the look of those SUV/Crossovers so manufacturers can get away with cheaper materials for the interior and many other things that wouldn't fly on a bland sedan of similar price.