Having talked about the moving sands of fashion in previous stories, I am going to avoid delving into them for fear of incurring boredom, let alone discovering that some of them might be of the ‘quick’ variety, which is as sure-fire a means of getting stuck as any. Yet, fads can be notoriously quirky and ‘of their time’ and, just as the market tires of them, they can be dispensed with, only to re-appear sometime later, for a fresh generation that the marketers feel will hold no memorable qualities.
Reeling off the classifications - station wagon, grand tourer, hatchback, sedan, de ville, fastback and hot hatch, among an array of model descripts – highlights the fickleness of the car scene and the impact of design fads over the years. Of course, the most recent of them are MPV and SUV. While I can comprehend readily the multi-person, or multi-purpose, of the former, the SUV definition has always stuck in my craw, mainly because the motor industry has butchered and messed it about so much that it no longer holds any connection with sport, or utility, and perpetrates a compounded fib by way of deft body cladding and an increased ride height, even though neither is needed, because, with only a front-driven axle, becoming stranded in roadside puddles is not such a major issue.
Acquired predominantly by drivers whom neither know, nor care, about which end of the car is doing the driving, as long as it can ride the kerbs outside the local comprehensive and double-yellow stripes that bedeck every other road in civilised GB, the make and model is immaterial, although a perception of ‘premium’ is preferred.
Although it has taken an inordinate amount of time for me to come around to accepting them, I must admit that the latest Peugeot 5008 is the consummate transition vehicle, from MPV to SUV, accepting that SUV is now just a type and not a typing error. By splashing a soupcon of ‘bling’ around the interior and dipping into the pseudo-off-roader, one-size-fits-all box of body addenda, as well as hiking up the suspension a tad, 5008 is now an SUV in all its glory and it is also a darned good one.
The interior décor is the stuff of genius; a wonderful blend of what used to be typical Gallic fabrics, more than a splash of style and illuminated highlights that seem to enhance its presence to new peaks. It is the most comfortable Peugeot that I have driven since the 504 of several decades ago, incorporating cushy seats and a great driving position.
Personally, I am not a fan of Peugeot’s current predilection for installing tidgey steering wheels in its models, over which the driver must peer to see the instrument faces (digital and reconfigurable). At least I have clearance for my long legs beneath the tiny tiller. The amount of cabin space is masterful, as there is copious room fore and aft and the boot is immense, when the rearmost pair of seats is not drawn into use. Although it features deep storage bins and door pockets, the typical PSA impractical glovebox is half-occupied by the fuse-box.
The build quality, assembly and the materials used are excellent, as are equipment levels, as they should be for a car (in test guise) that weighs-in at £27,695 (not including FCD discount), with metallic paint (£525), black roof (£280), smartphone charging-plate (£120) and a motorised tailgate and keyless-go (£750) hefting the invoice bottom-line perilously close to £30k territory. Connectivity is bang-on, while a plethora of safety and security addenda (lane discipline, distance cruise, blind-spot recognition, driver attention and emergency braking) are all included, along with auto-on wipers and smart-beam headlamps.
The test car also featured the six-speed fully-automatic transmission option that costs an extra £1,400 over the manual alternative. Its lever movement (depress a safety button and move the stubby, inverted ‘hockey-stick’ lever fore and aft to select the usual PRNDL settings) demands a small amount of acclimatisation, mainly due to the fact that it is set-up for LHD markets. I enjoyed the ‘Manual’ setting that enables the use of the shift paddles located behind the steering wheel cross-spokes instead. The shift speeds are quick and engage the ratios smoothly, to make the best use of the 131bhp, 1.2-litre, three-cylinder turbo-petrol engine that emits 120g/km CO2 (£160 first year road tax and £140 annually thereafter).
Despite its small capacity, the engine delivers a 0-60mph time of around 10.0 seconds, with a top speed of 117mph. Its combined fuel economy is given as 54.3mpg, although nearer to 45mpg will be the norm. Considering its kerbweight of 1,317kgs, the power unit makes a seriously good fist of its available potency and never sounds as if it is under strain.
Although 4WD is not even an option, intelligent electronics enable a series of surface conditions to be dealt with by the car’s front differential, drawing in the traction enhancing aspects of its anti-lock braking system that aid its descent control function. It is hardly a serious off-road system but it can manage forestry drives and extractions from rain-soaked fields with a modicum of competence.
Overall, the Peugeot 5008 is an excellent family car, providing a level of practicality and ease of use that is eminently satisfactory. While ‘SUV’ has now become a hackneyed handle for this class of car, as long as you can tolerate that it actually defines as ‘family car’, it should provide relatively fuss-free transport for a number of years.
