Peugeot 5008 SUV review

Few carmakers can afford to ignore the call of the SUV, so when Peugeot’s designers sat down to design the seven-seat Peugeot 5008, they clearly chose to abandon its predecessor’s MPV styling in favour of a chunkier, higher-riding design. They did the same with the 5008’s smaller relation, the Peugeot 3008, with great success.

The Peugeot 5008 is pitched at the Skoda Kodiaq and Nissan X-Trail. Being a seven-seater, it could also be regarded as a rival to the Kia Sorento, Hyundai Santa Fe and Land Rover Discovery Sport. During its facelift, the 5008 was given a styling overhaul to match the Peugeot 508 saloon, along with interior tweaks to boost its technology.

Power for the 5008 comes in the form of two petrol engines, both turbocharged – a 129bhp 1.2-litre and a 178bhp 1.6-litre – and a range of diesels. These haven't changed much for the midlife refresh, and the lack of hybrid technology could start to hold the 5008 back compared with its rivals. Of these, the 1.5-litre BlueHDi engine with 128bhp is the most economical. A 2.0-litre diesel engine with 175bhp – completes the diesel line-up. The most powerful petrol and diesel engines are only available with automatic gearboxes.

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The 129bhp 1.5-litre diesel returns up to 60.8mpg and emits from 122g/km of CO2. This last figure has a bearing on first-year road tax but from the second year, all petrol and diesel cars will set you back £150 a year regardless.

Don't expect any great diving thrills behind the wheel of the 5008. It’s a comfortable car first and foremost that flatters all but the worst roads thanks to its supple and absorbent suspension. It also has respectable handling for a seven-seater. Peugeot’s small steering wheel concept just doesn’t work that well in a car of this size and the Skoda Kodiaq feels slightly sharper to drive.

Just like the 3008, the 5008 has a striking-looking dashboard featuring Peugeot’s i-Cockpit instrument display as standard, which impresses. It has been updated in the facelifted 5008, with a new 10-inch infotainment display and updated 12.3-inch cockpit screen.

Rear-seat space is more of a mixed bag. Go for the panoramic sunroof and six-footers sitting in the second row will find headroom tight, while the third-row seats are easy to access, but best reserved for kids. The same can be said of many 5008 rivals, but an MPV like the Citroen Grand C4 SpaceTourer is a better bet if you plan on using seats six and seven regularly.

There’s no official word on safety yet, but standard autonomous emergency braking should help the 5008 do well when it’s assessed by Euro NCAP, and the mechanically similar 3008 scored five out of five when it was crash-tested. Peugeot performed well in our 2020 Driver Power customer satisfaction survey, coming eighth out of 30 carmakers.