The Peugeot 5008. Picture by Robin Crossley.
ROADTEST FACTFILE
Car...Peugeot 5008
Model...Sport HDi 110 FAP six-speed
mpg (comb cycle)...53.3mpg
CO2 emissions...140g/km
Price...£20,045
Loaned by Staddlestones Peugeot, Bembridge
AT first glance, it is hard to believe the new Peugeot 5008 is a seven-seater.
It is being marketed as Peugeot’s first compact MPV and like some amazing magic trick, it looks petite and is as nimble as a smaller car, yet it is remarkably spacious inside.
It’s a very attractive looking car from the outside — not big and bulky but sleek and perfectly proportioned, with effortless style.
The Sport is the mid-range trim level, which offers numerous appealing finishing touches, including 16ins alloy wheels with energy saver tyres; an aluminium pack with sparkling front grille, front fogs and chrome strip, front fog lights and colour-coded trim.
Inside, it offers seven seats with flexible seating options and it is spacious and adaptable enough to carry almost anything.
The back row of two Isofix seats fold flat to provide tonnes of luggage space, while the middle row of three seats also folds and all five seats move independently for those times when you have something long and awkward to fit into the car.
There are lots of other smart storage solutions, which add up to an amazing 2,506 litres of luggage space.
The interior is well designed, with high quality finishes, plenty of leg room in all seats and everything situated close to hand.
The cockpit has been ergonomically designed around the driver, to create an intuitive and enjoyable driving experience and the higher driving position means that you have excellent all-round visibility, which is always handy when you are driving an MPV.
As MPVs are traditionally the preferred choice of people with children, the new Peugeot 5008 has plenty of respect for passengers’ safety, with six airbags, Isofix child seat fittings, ESP electronic stability programme, traction control and much more — all of which has netted this MPV a five-star EuroNCAP rating across the range.
The new Peugeot 5008 also benefits from an electronic parking brake, which not only frees up valuable space in the centre console area, but is really easy to use and can even be applied manually if you feel you need to.
The Sport model I drove had cruise control with a speed limiter, plus the optional panoramic glass roof, which really is a fabulous invention because it lets in the light and makes you truly appreciate the sense of freedom when you are driving.
Drivers can also choose from a wide range of in-car entertainment packs, including ones featuring satellite navigation and Bluetooth hands-free telephone systems.
To drive, the Peugeot 5008 offers a smooth drive with good acceleration and amazing manoeuvrability.
The HDi 110 FAP engine in the model I drove was surprisingly quiet for a diesel and provided plenty of power.
It can do a maximum 114mph and does the 0-62mph sprint in a respectable 12.9 seconds, while putting out relatively low carbon dioxide emissions of 140g/km with energy saving tyres on.
It offers good fuel consumption, too, and is capable of doing 53.3mpg on a combined cycle.
The new Peugeot 5008 starts from £17,345 on the road, rising to £24,145.