Why we ran it: To see if Peugeot could refresh the family car market with an innovative mash-up
Month 4 - Month 3 - Month 2 - Month 1 - Specs
Life with a Peugeot 408: Month 4
A hatchback? A crossover? To us, it was simply appealing, practical transport - 13 December 2023
So: has Peugeot delivered on the mission stated above? It's too early to say based on sales figures (there aren't even a thousand 408s on British roads yet), but based on my time with our 408, I'm convinced it has the potential to do so.
A few weeks ago, the national press quoted a report from a climate change campaign group that said:
"The Chelsea tractor has launched an assault on the future, and if we don't fight back fast, we will all find ourselves under its wheels."
I would back that claim and add the Suburbia tractor too, plus a few more reasons besides their considerable environmental impact: namely that they're usually uglier and worse to drive than the alternative.
The 408 is a hopeful car, then, being essentially a big hatchback with a long, fairly low silhouette yet still exuding the SUV vibe that the public pines for. Its close relation, the Citroën C5 X - a less 'rugged' and more comfort-centric car - is equally so. They bring optimism that this battle is not yet lost.
The 408 also bodes well for the future of Peugeot. I was wary about the brand shuffling upmarket, but the look, drive and interior of my car all felt fitting - even if £37k is still hard to swallow. Sochaux just needs to get the digital tech working perfectly, which, as I said last week, it hasn't quite managed to do.
But, generally, this interior is 'upper mainstream' done superbly well. I always felt comfortable and well supported (by electric adjustment) in the chunky, faux-leather seat, and although I'm still unconvinced by the i-Cockpit layout, I soon got used to the small, oddly shaped steering wheel and got around the common issue of not being able to clearly see the dials over it by choosing a digital dash layout that made the speedo small and shoved up into the top-left corner. Not ideal, but you might not feel the need to do that.
Every aspect of the 408 on the road turned out to be satisfying - and my expectations had been high, in light of the price. The ride was always smooth, whether cruising on motorways at 70mph or being tested to the fullest by terrible urban surfacing - the tyres' unusually thick sidewalls adding further absorption to the pretty adept damping and springing.
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If the road tester can't see the instruments over the steering wheel, he won't be able to see the front wings either. Why is he sitting so low in the car? The last time I did that, I had a crash helmet on for a track day. That's not "a normal driving position". Skip the Max Verstappen fantasies when on the road.
A technically and visually interesting thing, how does 1.2 litres albeit with 170lb ft at 1750rpm cope when full of people and possibly luggage and how reliable is the engine going over the longer term with a high specific output. 'Drifting upmarket' may be easier now as there are less mechanical bits, but how will the fixtures and fittings hold up over time and does it handle well like old peugeots did? I will be keeping an eye on these.
Never mind the 43k for a car with finger prints, it' 35k plus for a bigg'ish family sized car with a 1.2 3 pot, autocar might think it can get to 60 in 8.3 seconds with 130 hp but I'd be don't.