Generally it doesn’t pay to be first. You could bear in mind the unique Peugeot 2008 that had the excellence of technically being the primary B-segment SUV to be bought in Malaysia (discounting, in fact, the Mitsubishi ASX based mostly on a C-segment platform). It might have been a trendsetter, nevertheless it – and the Ford EcoSport that adopted – hardly made a dent within the market earlier than the Honda HR-V took the nation by storm.
For years afterwards, the Japanese wunderkind reigned supreme, not solely making mincemeat of current competitors but in addition seeing off newer rivals (I’m taking a look at you, Mazda CX-3 and Toyota C-HR). Not even a useful facelift – which launched a brand new turbocharged engine and a recent gearbox – managed to save lots of the 2008 from fading into obscurity.
However right here’s the factor about dominance – it by no means lasts. Proton’s tie-up with Geely enabled it to convey two new SUVs to market in comparatively quick order, and the attractively-priced X50 and X70 instantly knocked the ageing HR-V off its perch. The Honda now has to struggle with the remainder of the marketplace for the remaining slice of the crossover pie, and there’s no scarcity of contenders nowadays.
It’s on this evened-out market area the place this new 2008 slots into. This second-generation Gallic soft-roader arrives in Malaysia on a wave of renewed optimism, backed by a brand new distributor with a confirmed historical past. It actually appears to be like the enterprise, however is there sufficient substance beneath to match the sharp new garments? We take the brand new child on the block for a spin to seek out out.
First, a bit little bit of background. After years of Naza administration, the Peugeot model is now being stewarded by Bermaz in Malaysia. The French marque achieved modest success within the late 2000s and early 2010s however its title has been tarnished considerably with a popularity of poor reliability and customer support.
Bermaz does have a good observe file of promoting and servicing Mazda automobiles, nevertheless it stays to be seen if will probably be capable of banish recollections of subpar servicing and lengthy wait instances for spare elements – in addition to fixing any technical points which will crop up in the long term. However the firm has acknowledged previous shortcomings and is making an effort to appease consumers, which is at all times an excellent signal.
Additionally an excellent signal is the truth that the 2008 has undergone 200,000 km of endurance and high quality testing, in line with Peugeot’s dad or mum firm Stellantis. The latter now totally owns the Naza-built meeting plant in Gurun, Kedah, from which this fetching crossover has rolled out from.
Onwards to the automotive itself, which was launched final month priced at RM126,753. That’s fairly an excellent deal for a turbocharged crossover, coming in a few thousand ringgit under the range-topping naturally-aspirated Toyota Corolla Cross petrol (though that automotive is usefully bigger than the Peugeot).
As such, the 2008 makes a mockery of the also-NA Hyundai Kona which, when specced accordingly, is a full RM10,000 costlier (to say nothing of the frightfully dear turbo variations). After all, you even have to contemplate the 2 elephants within the room, the dominant X50 and X70 that supply much more for much less cash (a lot much less within the case of the X50). That’s simply the truth of being a international participant in our market.
Measuring 4,300 mm lengthy, 1,770 mm large and 1,550 mm tall, the 2008 is on the tinier finish of the B-segment crossover market, being 34 mm shorter, two millimetres narrower and 55 mm decrease than the now seven-year-old HR-V. Which means it’s additionally smaller than the X50 (which is sort of equivalent to the Honda in each dimension bar width), though its 2,605 mm wheelbase evenly splits the 2 by 5 millimetres.
Even so, the Peugeot’s exterior styling imbues it with loads of highway presence, notably by the overtly aggressive entrance fascia. The “three-claw” LED daytime working lights, culminating within the illuminated slash that runs the whole top of the bumper, give the automotive a little bit of a KISS vibe, whereas the big grille with its community of chrome “dashes” and 2008 badge provides loads of welcome jewelry.
It’s unlucky that the fog lights are lacking on Malaysian-spec fashions, their areas within the bumper taken up by apologetic little slats that try a poor impression of air intakes. Even so, it is a very attractive-looking machine from the entrance, and this continues additional again with the interaction of slashes alongside the aspect of the automotive.
For its dimension, the 2008 has an extended wheelbase that pushes the wheels to the corners for a robust stance, though the 17-inch two-tone rollers are a bit bit on the small aspect, good-looking although they’re. The blacked-out C-pillars present an in-vogue “floating roof” look, though the impact is masked by the Nera Black paint on this check unit. You additionally get roof rails for that quintessential off-roader look.
On the rear, you’ll discover robust haunches that lead into the slim full-LED taillights, once more carrying the “three-claw” lighting signature. The black tailgate bar (once more hidden by the paint) holds the spaced-out Peugeot script that’s all the fad nowadays, whereas the chrome bar on the black bumper is paying homage to the bigger 3008. Disgrace the tailpipes are such tiny pea shooters, although. General, nonetheless, it is a great-looking automotive.
One neat and handy function is proximity locking and unlocking, saving you from having to work together with buttons or contact surfaces on the door handles (such a ache, I do know). That is one thing Honda pioneered with the FC Civic in 2016 and has solely not too long ago began showing on BMWs that value double the value, so it’s good to have it on a automotive this reasonably priced.
It really works nice, besides in cases if you stand close to the 2008 for too lengthy and it locks you out. This requires you to both use the buttons on the important thing or stroll away from the automotive and stroll again once more, the latter making you appear like little bit of an berk. The automotive additionally produces a cheap-sounding beep when it locks up, though at the least it’s loud sufficient to listen to so that you simply don’t should double again to test.
As ever, the Peugeot’s actual celebration piece is the inside, which oozes class, polish and zany French styling and ergonomics. You’re met with an expansive dashboard that sweeps into the doorways, comprised of soft-touch plastics (partly imprinted with a curious fake carbon fibre sample) and making considered use of expensive-looking and feeling silvered trim.
You sit excessive on the plush leather-based seat, giving a commanding view out the entrance windscreen, though the steeply-rising beltline and tall rump means rearward visibility is sort of non-existent. The excellent news is that the reverse digicam, whereas missing in decision, has a top-down view that extends the rear feed down the edges of the automotive as you again up, providing a number of the performance of a 360-degree digicam setup.
Proper in entrance of the driving force is Peugeot’s trademark i-Cockpit instrument cluster, which continues to amaze and befuddle in equal measure, positioned above (and barely blocked by) the small two-spoke steering wheel. The newest model includes a customisable ten-inch show and a separate display hidden within the hood of the cluster, which is mirrored by a lens to supply a holographic three-dimensional impact for the velocity readout, gauges and car knowledge. It’s so cool it nearly distracts from the duty of driving.
It’s not all excellent, nonetheless – for some cause, Peugeot insisted on making use of flashy however time-sapping animations for each interplay, so pop-up data takes some time to point out up. This trait is repeated within the seven-inch infotainment touchscreen, which juts out abruptly in direction of you and infrequently runs a bit sluggish, as soon as packing up fully throughout my time with the automotive.
The person interface additionally leaves loads to be desired, with menus and settings strewn in all places so that you can dig up. Worse nonetheless, like all fashionable Peugeots, the exhausting buttons for the local weather management have principally been eradicated. Sure, there are some features mapped onto the beautiful bodily piano keys on the centre console, however the fan velocity and temperature controls are buried within the touchscreen, versus the opposite (proper) method round. However hey, at the least Apple CarPlay and Android Auto come normal, proper?
Most consumers can even be disenchanted to study that the three de rigueur gadgets for vehicles on this section in Malaysia – power-adjustable entrance seats, rear air-conditioning vents and rear USB ports – are conspicuously lacking right here, though you do at the least get a central entrance armrest. On the intense aspect, the beneficiant wheelbase does afford the 2008 a good quantity of rear legroom, even when it isn’t a patch on the HR-V. Nevertheless, the again seat squab does come up at an angle, so the seating place isn’t essentially the most snug.
Hidden behind the (sadly non-powered) tailgate is a 405 litre boot, which dwarfs the X50’s 330 litres and is sort of a match for the HR-V. A slight load lip does make loading a ache, although, and the parcel shelf doesn’t raise up if you open the tailgate (in contrast to the Proton), so that you’ll should do it your self. Additionally, the tailgate on our unit rattled due to a unfastened screw, which doesn’t precisely encourage confidence within the automotive’s construct high quality.
Security-wise, the 2008 marks a quantum leap for Peugeot in Malaysia with the introduction of autonomous emergency braking – making its first reappearance because the second-generation 308 was launched right here again in 2015. This instantly makes the automotive a much more recommendable proposition, particularly given the rising variety of driver help options making its method into the competitors.
Blind spot monitoring and lane maintaining help proceed to be supplied and work nicely, though the latter can get confused by badly-painted lane markings that dot Malaysian roadworks (it almost put me right into a wall as soon as). Six airbags, stability management and ISOFIX baby seat mounts are additionally fitted, as are the superb computerized excessive beams on the full-LED headlights.
Beneath the pores and skin, the 2008 rides on Stellantis’ newest Widespread Modular Platform (CMP) platform. This at present doesn’t imply a lot within the native context, however contemplate the truth that its shut relations, the Opel Mokka and Citroën C4, have been noticed present process testing right here. Creating these vehicles utilizing a single platform generates economies of scale that can doubtlessly permit the group to assemble the automobiles right here, paving the way in which to the reintroduction of the Opel and Citroën manufacturers in Malaysia. Thrilling instances forward.
Powering the 2008 is the 1.2 litre PureTech turbocharged three-cylinder engine, which was launched within the facelifted previous-generation mannequin. Within the intervening 5 years, Peugeot has massaged the mill to supply an additional 18 PS and 15 Nm of torque at 130 PS at 5,500 rpm and 230 Nm at 1,750 rpm.
The facility determine isn’t a lot to shout about, however the torque output is nothing to be sniffed at and comes near matching the brand new Honda Civic (and surpasses the MPI model of the X50). So it’s no shock that the 2008 is deceptively quick, particularly in the course of the rev band the place it pulls with devastating ease – at the least till it runs out of breath close to the redline.
However that’s solely as soon as it will get in control. At decrease revs, the three-pot feels a trite lifeless and you must get it previous 1,500 rpm to achieve any sense of ahead momentum. It’s sluggish sufficient from a standstill to grow to be an annoyance in cutthroat Kuala Lumpur visitors, particularly when hordes of egocentric drivers are chomping on the bit to chop the queue in entrance of you.
This wouldn’t have been a difficulty if the gearbox was fleet-footed sufficient to work round it, which the Aisin six-speed computerized sadly isn’t. That is an ageing transmission and it reveals – every stab of the throttle ends in a second or so of latency because the automotive lazily shuffles right into a decrease ratio earlier than firing you forwards with a burst of sudden torque. As you possibly can think about, this makes clean low-speed driving a bit tough.
You may mess around with the handbook mode by flicking the gearlever to the proper, however there aren’t any steering wheel paddles and whereas the sequential shifter is configured like a race automotive (pull to shift up, push to downshift), the gearbox upshifts routinely earlier than the redline, defeating the aim of the handbook mode. Granted, most drivers will simply stick it into “D”, nevertheless it’s one thing you need to know however.
That’s a disgrace, as a result of elsewhere the engine and transmission mixture delivers a clean and seamless driving expertise. Barring some vibration when beginning up and decelerating, the PureTech mill reveals not one of the trademark three-pot judder – this, mixed with the fast and light-weight steering and the slug of mid-range torque, offers the 2008 an easygoing manner that’s actually fairly pleasant on the proper highway.
Refinement is nearly common for the category. The engine makes itself heard with a Kancil-on-steroids thrum that rises into a fascinating straight-six-like whine simply earlier than the redline, however settles down at a cruise. There’s additionally fairly a little bit of tyre roar on tough surfaces and a slight whistling noise across the A-pillars on this specific unit at speeds above 110 km/h, however they’re not particularly intrusive.
Nevertheless it’s within the corners the place the 2008 feels at house. It is a enjoyable automotive to chuck right into a bend, due to the razor-sharp steering that begins out mild however builds weight naturally as you wind the lock. It’s ably aided by the taut chassis, which lets you carve a decent line by the apex with out it being unsettled by mid-corner bumps. There’s additionally not a number of physique roll to talk of and first rate grip regardless of the dearth of all-wheel drive.
The trade-off is, in fact, the journey. Whereas the dampers are capable of spherical off the large bumps and undulations within the traditional European huge automotive method, the 2008 is stiffly-sprung and utilises a torsion beam on the rear, so that you’ll really feel each floor imperfection. That is very true on the poorly patched-up tarmac that litters our roads, the place the Peugeot generally feels prefer it desires to jostle you out of your seat.
The journey high quality truly jogs my memory a bit of Hafriz’s previous 208 GTi, which I remarked was snug for a scorching hatch. This, nonetheless, is a small household crossover, with a totally totally different goal demographic – and in that sense the 2008 falls quick. Keep in mind that most consumers on this section might be approaching center age and possibly gained’t respect their fillings being rattled out.
As such, the 2008 feels a bit contrived and ever so barely irritating to drive, as there’s a nice automotive beneath simply ready to be unleashed, held again solely by just a few minor flaws. Had the engineers tuned it additional in both route – both softening the journey and buying and selling the mid-range punch for low-end tractability, or giving this sporty SUV the trendy gearbox it’s crying out for – they’d have an actual winner of their palms.
Judged as it’s, the 2008 is an efficient crossover that would use a bit extra refinement. However that is nonetheless an pleasant automotive to reside with, helped by its baggage of fashion and panache. Each single individual I confirmed it to throughout the Chinese language New Yr holidays was blown away by how handsome it was – particularly the sharp entrance finish and the eye-catching 3D instrument cluster – and didn’t give a toss in regards to the agency journey.
This, then, is a automotive whose showroom attraction is aware of few equals – and that’s earlier than you have in mind the significantly engaging pricing. Sure, Bermaz has its work lower out in bettering the Peugeot model’s stature within the eyes of most Malaysians, and there are lingering doubts in regards to the construct high quality and long-term reliability, however the 2008 is proof that a bit verve and a number of visible sparkle go an extended, lengthy method.
The brand new Peugeot 2008 is priced at RM126,753 for the only real 1.2 PureTech Attract variant, on-the-road with out insurance coverage. Included is a five-year, 100,000 km guarantee and three years of free servicing. Browse full specs and gear on CarBase.my.
