… Peugeot 2008 SUV …
At first glance the new Peugeot 2008 SUV looks a bit like a 208 saloon that’s been furtively sipping and/or injecting banned substances, but the bodyshell really is quite different. It’s got what you would expect of a compact SUV these days with a heightened on-road stance, plastic protection trim front, rear and along the sills to give it that hilbilly look, but the ‘GT Line’ moniker is a bit misleading. It’s not a GT and it’s not sporty.
In Peugeot parlance ‘GT Line’ is a trim level, not a performance specification. That said, the top of the range 1.6 litre diesel unit pumps out a less than beefy 118 bhp. Disappointing? Not a bit of it. For a car of this size it’s more than adequate and the wee thing is a joy to drive.
There’s plenty of room up front for the front two, but the two in the back would be better off if they were below average height! Even allowing for the stepped, raised roofline, rear headroom isn’t ideal. So if the weans are getting big, best give them a trial run first.
But what makes this wee car a bit special is Peugeot’s ‘Grip Control’ tricky diff system. Using electronics to control power and brakes, the engine will divert power to the front wheel which has most grip while easing power on the one that’s spinning. It’s a kind of constant two wheel drive system that helps the driver maintain momentum in slippery conditions.
And it works. Although the rotary dial on the central console is a bit of stylistic overkill (more often seen on ‘proper’ 4WD machinery) it does manage the power delivery well whether on wet roads, ice or snow.
Although it wasn’t snowing when I had the car I did drive a Peugeot Bipper van with Grip Control a few years back at the Tamworth Snowdome just outside Birmingham. Peugeot had taken over the artificial ski slope for the day and presented journalists with a choice of vans. One without Grip Control and one with, and instructed them to drive both up and down the slope. Nobody managed it in the standard van while the Grip Control van managed to stump a few before ‘yours truly’ had a shot.
Having watched the efforts of colleagues failing miserably, I picked a different line. I had spotted quite a steep hump on the inside of the right hand turn, and for those who got that far, that was as far as they got, sliding backwards down the hill.
I took a run at it, driving up to the hump, veering left across the width of the slope and then up the far left side all the way to the top. One up for the hack from the north. Mind you all sense of smugness evaporated when I tried to do the same with the standard van! But I was in good company, no-one managed that either.
In other words, the system works, and works very well. Wet grass is always a good test too and although I didn’t venture far from the tarmac, the 2008 coped very well on its Goodyear Vector 4 Season tyres. In fact, it’s almost as good as a 4WD vehicle. In fact I actually drove a rival make of French van with the same system at another event and followed a short wheelbase Land Rover Defender around a boggy, muddy, water-filled course with little difficulty. It’s all down to confidence.
That makes the 2008 SUV an ideal choice for those who don’t really need a full sized off-roader but have to negotiate fields, paddocks and muddy tracks or who live in areas where extreme weather can cause added difficulties. And for the agricultural types, you could probably get a sheep and a lamb in the back if you don’t mind them licking your neck!
It also makes it rather more frugal than the bigger engined heavier machinery.
For someone who follows rallying and has to make the occasional trip up forest roads or park in ditches, then it makes plenty of sense. I really liked it, and would have one like a shot.