Theo Austin
This humble family hatchback, which now comes with a selection of petrol, diesel, and electric power sources has been selected to be the European Car of the Year as the new revamped Peugeot 208, knocking Tesla’s Model 3 into second place.
Peugeot isn’t exactly a newcomer to European Car of the Year awards but the fact that it’s newly renovated 208 has won the 2020 one while also knocking Tesla’s Model 3 into second place, is particularly noteworthy. Almost as remarkable as the fact that last year Peugeot appeared as the most trustworthy car brand in the annual J.D. Power survey that places car brands according to the number of customers complain registered.
What will undoubtedly have helped the 208’s cause is the fact that it comes with a choice of petrol, diesel, or electric. The petrol starts at 18,300 Euros for the 1.2 version, the 1.5 diesel starts at 21,750 for the 1.5 version and the electric comes in at Euros 28,994, after grants and VRT reductions. That makes it inappreciably more economical than some other electric cars on the market in the same size variant.
The petrol version comes with 75 horsepower and 100 horsepower outputs and the diesel starts with 100 horsepower. The electric version, which Peugeot claims has a range of 340 kilometers, produces 136 horsepower. The electric comes with a battery warranty of eight years or 160,000 kilometers.
However, with a 0 to 100 kilometers per hour time of 8.1 seconds, the 208 does not have the accelerating capacity of other similar electric cars. Peugeot seems to have gone for battery power maintenance rather than brutal acceleration ability which, if it is the matter, would be fine by me.
The car has a low and sporty silhouette and it appears in five-door hatchback alone.
Peugeot’s i-cockpit pattern is again the main focus of the internal styling and it also comes with the company’s tinier steering wheel, which people either take to or don’t – it’s a matter of personal taste.
Standard equipment from the base model up includes 16″ alloy wheels, tire pressure monitor, spare wheel (for petrol and diesel versions), electronic stability control with hill assist, multifunctional leather steering wheel, hands-free start, alarm, six airbags, air conditioning, comfortable seats, cruise control, and speed limiter, extended traffic sign recognition, auto headlights, DAB radio, rear parking sensors, PEUGEOT i-Cockpit interior Mirrorscreen, USB socket, and smartphone holder.
