This month’s road test puts me in the driving seat of the new Peugeot 508. First off, the 508 is a great looking car with some wonderful swooping lines flanking its sides. Plus in its current Blue/Black paint job, it reminds me so much of ‘KITT’ the Black Pontiac Trans Am from the 80s TV show ‘Knight Rider’. Which of course, makes it a good spot for Peugeot. All that’s missing is the swooping red LEDs just under the bonnet edge although the rear lights do have something funky going on when you lock or unlock the 508.
For a while now, my own perception of Peugeot has grown massively and I’m beginning to see more and more interesting designs coming forward, plus more innovation. I just hope this is the tip of the iceberg from Peugeot and I’m now excited to see what more there is to come in the future.
Power and efficiency
The 508 I had on test was powered by a 1499cc, 4-cylinder diesel engine that has 130HP on tap, which also happens to boast a very respectable top speed of 129mph, plus a 0-62 time of 10 seconds. Fuel consumption is also very good with a combined figure of around 51.4 mpg.
A big plus point for this car though is the brilliant EAT8 (Efficient Automatic Transmission) 8-speed gearbox that does a proper job of changing up and down the gears at a decent rate with minimal fuss. Also, for a 1.5Litre engine, it’s quite refined and its low grunt and steady power delivery makes for a good unit truth be told.
On the road
First off – great chassis, along with a suspension setup that you know has taken Peugeot many hours of testing to get just right. The steering is also direct, and the grip levels are good, which means the 508 feels tight and taught into the corners. I’m going to say that Peugeot has done a pretty good job of getting the whole package to work together and I have no issues in saying that it performs very well out on the open road.
On the motorway, the 508 really does feel like a Grand Tourer, which is not surprising. Also, I did over 300 miles and I still felt relaxed and composed even after a 4hr drive to the coast.
Interior & technology
The interior is of a good standard – with lots of chrome fittings and clear displays. Along with a decent amount of standard equipment such as; cruise control with speed limiter, tyre pressure monitor, ABS, EBD, EBA, ESP, PEUGEOT i-Cockpit, dual zone air conditioning, RDS radio, FOCAL premium HiFi speakers, connected 3D navigation, LED headlights, automatic windscreen wipers, 18” diamond cut ‘Hirone alloy wheels’. Plus, GTLine model badging, twin exhaust pipes in chrome and a driver alert system.
To sum up
I’m going to give the 508 four stars in this test, not only because I like its looks, but because I believe it’s a good family mile muncher with bags of extras and space – plus a decent engine that’s tied to a pretty good chassis.
Price: £29,689 OTR (excluding options).
By Tony Yates
