Peugeot 308 Review
01-July-2008
- Vital Stats
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$30,590 - $32,590
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Uneaded
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Very big for a small car! Like a small sedan!
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2
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We reviewed the Peugeot 308 – the 'Peugeot XSE Turbo', 5-speed turbo petrol engine model to be exact – and are totally in LOVE with this svelte 5-door hatch.
This cute car is packed full of impressive and somewhat luxurious features, sure to raise eyebrows.
Getting comfy
We drove the model with the leather seats and boy are they sexy! So comfy, chic and ergonomic, plus they feel extra fab when you turn on the seat heating in the front seats (which are both height-adjustable too).
It's got reverse sensors with a little computer display showing a generic image representing your car and lets off a rapid "dong" warning when you're getting a little too close to an outside object for comfort.
More impressive features include illuminated interior mirrors so you don't have to guess where your lippy should be going at night, headlights that you can set to come on automatically in the dark (so clever!), and dual air con (you can have one temperature for the left side and another for the right!), plus it shoots out air to the rear passengers too through a pipe.
Safety features
The Peugeot 308 has a 5-star safety rating from ANCAP. It has 6 airbags in total: 2 adaptive front air bags, 2 side air bags to protect the chest and pelvis of front passengers, and 2 curtain airbags to protect the heads of the front and rear passengers. You can even ask for a steering column airbags to protect the lower limbs of the driver on this and the XTE model.
We just love the huge side-view/blind spot mirrors that are so far-reaching you don't have to turn your head and look behind you to turn. The only bad thing is the tiny rear-view... the back window is narrower than a ruler and makes a scary reverse down a hilly driveway where you can't see shiz and have to rely on the side mirrors.
We also love the superb day-night mirrors that totally get rid of night-time glare (the lights appear as a lulled green in the rear-view mirror), the de-mister that amazingly blasts away mist on your window in about 3 seconds flat (!), how you can keep your eyes on the road with the stereo controls in flicking-reach of your hands on the steering wheel, and the cruise control system... although we have a bone to pick with this one (note to Peugeot:).
It's also got a tyre pressure sensor system that lets you know if you're getting too flat!
Storage space
The boot is surprisingly big for a small car – think the boot-space size of a sedan! It's also got this funky, hard, cargo cover that also has a spot to put any 'please don't crinkle' paperwork or thin books.
How it drives...
This has a girly turbo engine and totally flies! It's not like a meaty V8 muscle car or anything (!) but offers total 'get off my tail, like now!' acceleration – one quick swoosh of your right foot and you may already be smoothly speeding, so be careful with that!
In a nutshell, it's totally fabulous to drive and you feel as though you can get out of a sticky situation fast if you have to with its zippy speed (most efficient and noticeable when revving past 2500 RPM – revs per minute. It just kicks off – you can feel the point where the turbo jolts in. It's a very sexy car for women!).
Fuel economy
You can expect to drive about 100km on 7.5 litres of Unleaded. This is great fuel economy for a turbo car!
Peugeot 308 price
The Peugeot 208 XSE Turbo price is $30,590 (manual), or $32,590 (auto).
In summary
Best parts: The chic turbo, heated leather seats (if you get that package), the European and svelte design (v-sexy!), stereo controls on steering wheel, auto headlights, 5-star ANCAP safety rating, and the long list of luxurious features perhaps considered 'above' something of this price.
Worst parts: Narrow rear-view.
This car has a 5-star ANCAP rating. Find more information about ANCAP safety ratings at www.ancap.com.au 
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