Peugeot 308 road tests and consumer car reviews

Peugeot 308 1600cc HDI 90 S 2007

What can I say? This is probably the best car I have ever owned! After 4 years of total pleasure I traded my 308 in to purchase the brand new facelifted model. I bought my 308 1.6 HDi 90 S in September 2007, never once did it break down or have to go back to the dealers for repair. I regurlarly serviced the car at my local Peugeot dealer and covered over 110000 miles in supreme comfort too! I love my new 1.6 e-HDi 112 Allure 308 and I hope it serves me as well as my previous one. I highly recommended this car to the say least!

Peugeot 308 SE 1.6 vti 120 2009

I submitted a report in 2010 regarding the car. I have mine on a Motability lease. I did have a fault in the first month of the lease with the engine management light coming on but it was quickly diagnosed by my dealer that it was the CAT that had failed and was faulty in manufacture. Peugeot replaced it with no quibble at all. Well 18mths down the line I still have no gripes with the car, it is still running very well apart from a minor fault with an oil sensor, which was found on a routine check by the dealer. The new part has been ordered and the dealer does a collect and drop service once the part has arrived. I have always had a quick response from the main dealer any time I needed the car checking over. The 1.6 vti engine still runs very smoothly and the car is keeping up well in respect of the exterior bodywork. Minor niggles are in the boot as a plastic clip broke on a cover over a storage space for a spray de icer can (that’s what just fits in there fine) so the thing rolls around. I noticed one review mentions road noise; YES it it the type of tyres fitted. I had my front tyres replaced with Bridgestone ones and the road noise has subsided. The lease is up at the end of this year and I will be certainly looking at the Peugeot brand once more. I have had nine Peugeot cars so far (inc this one) and I have found them to be no more worse than other makes. A lot of it is down to how you treat the car, look after the car it looks after you and there is a lot of truth in that saying. Also remember it is a piece of machinery, which is not built to last forever parts do wear out.

Peugeot 308 2008

Absolutely the worst car I have ever bought. Issues with Catalytic converters and other costs totalling in excess of £3,000. I have recieved no help from Peugeot UK and yet it is a common problem (check the internet for ’Catalytic converter Peugeot’ - scary!!!!). Peugeot parts are expensive and anti competitive on certain models. Total Rip off. I will never buy Peugeot again

Responses to this review

I have no help from Peugeot UK, we are told about the 60k mileage warranty, but that does include certain parts, therefore feel that 25k for a shock absorber being wear and tear, is the original shock absorber fit for purpose? - David Ellis from Yorkshire

Peugeot 308 1.6 110 S HDI 2009

I own a 308 59 plate 1.6 110 S HDI. The performance is great around town and on the motorway. The only thing I do not like is the the lack of space in the glove box you would struggle to fit a small bird in there but what the 308 does give you is two small storage trays underneath the front drivers seats and passangers seats to accommodate this problem. The 308 is one of the most comfortable cars I have driven. To fill up my car it takes around £70 to £80 of diesel. Driving around corners is a bit sluggish also to reverse the car is a bit awkward at times. Also the view out of the two side mirrors is a bit daunting at times compared to other cars I have driven, but for a small second hand hatchback with only 13k on the clock, which I paid £7248 for it’s the best car I have bought so far. Thank you Peugeot.

Peugeot 308 1596cc HDi 110ps Sport 2007

Bought my 308 in October 2007 from a local Peugeot dealership, with 81k on the clock and I am very impressed with the car! Never has let me down once, it’s superb to drive and the engine is very flexible. One gripe is the rear 3/4 vision with the thick C- Pillar can make reversing hard. Thankfully I ordered rear parking sensors on mine which really helped. Overall, I would highly recommend this car to anybody thinking of buying one new or used.

Peugeot 308 sport hdi 110 2010

Purchased 308 sport hdi 110 october 2010, the car was registered 1 march 2010 with 11000 miles. At the moment I have no gripes with the car execept tyre noise , which on certain surfaces can be annoying especially when cold, but I intend to use a different brand when the original contis have worn out. The car itself is easy and pleasant to drive and being the hdi diesel gives good fuel consumsion. I do not think the car is worth the new showroom price though; I purchased this at 7 months old from local main dealer for around £8-9k cheaper than new, that’s a lot of money to drop in 7 months and still 2years 5 month warranty to go. Overall a good car for money, not in Audi/VW golf league, but not same price.

Peugeot 308 SE HDi 2009

The first car I have had with no problems. Fantastic to drive. Very nippy and quiet for a diesel. The only minor criticism is rattle sometimes coming from front left of engine which the garage cannot identify! Possibly the air filter? Atleast the noise is not getting any worse! and the ride tends to feel a little bumpy. Very comfy and with adjustable centre arm rest ones hand falls naturally on the controls. Am thinking of changing but like this one too much at present.

Peugeot 308 1.6 HDi 110 Sport 2008

Overall a great car. Completely different to my old 05 Astra, this car works! Lovely and comfortable and smooth, also quite torquey for only being a 1.6! Was very surprised when I seen the interior, its just as well built as the Golf and I think the materials look and feel better! I can safely recommend this car!

Peugeot 308 1.6 HDI 110 SE 2007

Fantastic Car! I used to drive a 2003 307 2.0 HDi 110 Rapier and this is a far better built, driving and designed car. Never any problems unlike my old 307. I love it!

Peugeot 308 2009

This is our third Peugeot the other ones were 307 and apart from the disc brakes on our last car we had no problems. Our last car was a black, alloy wheels and tinted windows. There was an advert from our local Peugeot garage in Kendal Cumbria picture of 308 with alloys and tinted windows 58 plate for only £9950, traded ours in for one and was told if we paid £500 more we could have an 09 plate with electric windows so we did. Picked the car up a week later, this was February 2010, the only thing that was right was the colour black, the sales man said it must of been crossed wires and if we want a sport we would have to pay more so that was an on going dispute. Then on the 13th of May driving to work the faulty anti-pollution and orange engine symbol appeared on the dashboard and I had loss of power. I took it back to the Peugeot garage where they kept it for nearly a week and said it was fine. Picked the car up and on the 20th of May and was driving on the motorway when it happened again; loss of power and faulty anti pollution, the garage had to pick the car up. They gave us a 207 to drive; they had the car for a week again, did a sync with a computer. I picked it up and this time I was on the motorway with my children in and it happened again; it’s very frightening in the second lane doing 70mph, the AA had to recover us. Up until then I think the garage thought we were making it up because of the issues in the first place but I had the AA report and was going to pass it on to trading standards because it’s putting peoples lives at risk and the Peugeot garage are not bothered, now they have our sale that’s it. Picked the car up after a while, by this time I am very stressed out. Anyway, there’s damage to the horrid wheel trims and marks on the plastic panels on the drivers door the garage admit responsibility take it back the next day they fix the wheel trims and wait for the other parts, pick the car up at 5.15pm on the17th of June I set of to work at 5.45pm same night and 5mins down road loss of power and lights on dash, as you can imagine by this time I’ve lost it. I drove straight to the Peugeot garage and told them to shove the car where the sun don’t shine. What a nightmare to get our money back, we will have to take them to court which will cost and be a long time. We asked for a 308sw which, is advertised like our first car at £99950, the picture shows alloys and tinted glass but we can’t have one because it’s a different deal so at the moment they have offered us a dark blue 308. I DONT WANT DARK BLUE if I did I would have bought a dark blue, I just wish someone would HELP, I’m not being unreasonable am I ? If I get a replacement I’m going to look at trading it in for a non-Peugeot car.

Responses to this review

We have had the same problem with the Turbo charger. Last June, six days out of warranty, the car failed and cost in excess of £2,500 for repairs and this has happened again now. The anti-pollution shows faulty on the display. There is lack of power, extractor fan runs on when engine is switched off, depollution system faulty showing on display. This was checked by Peugeot and confirmed, traced to ignition timing out, turbo faulty, turbo pump fault. Less than six months later, we are back to square one. Watch this space for results - Marjorie Potts from Devon

Peugeot 308 2008

Love the car,60+m.p.g,smooth, quiet, good performance solo & towing a caravan, but pulls to left on most roads (dealer says they can’t find anything wrong and have not felt it pull left). Paintwork very soft, soon marks around handles and boot release, very disappointed with Peugeot’s response to my rear brake disc corrosion (not our problem), even the dealer has not made a goodwill gesture towards us, even though we have bought 2 new cars in 3 years off them. Still love the car.

Responses to this review

I also have a pull to the left..only 22 months old. The garage can’t find out why and have now said it’s a feature - Catherine Blake from West Lothian (Linlithgowshire)

I’m thinking about buying the same car, we too have a caravan, is the 1.6 a good towing car? Claire from England

Peugeot 308 2008

I have the same car 308 2008 petrol automatic trans. I noticed this slight tendency to pull to the left. With this exception, it is a nice car.

Peugeot 308 1.6 HDI 90 VERVE 2009

Personally I cannot fault the car, but I think it is better to opt for the Sport model because you can have the HDI 110 engine with the 6 speed gearbox and also you get cruise control and a centre armrest on the Sport editions. Even though the ride on Sport models can be very bumpy/ bouncy I think its worth it and you also get lovely 17" Alloys compared to my ugly 16" alloys. If I where to go back in time I would opt for the Sport over the Verve anyday. More to the point the car is fantasticly built and the materials are far better than what you would get in a Volkswagen Group Car. The engine isn’t the most progressive but it has a substancial amount of power for me to overtake other cars and for when towing but on the open roads it feels to over worked due to not having the 6th gear and also because the car is on the heavy side. I would certainly recommend any 308 with the HDI 110 engine but not the HDI 90 engine as it struggles to pull the car.

Peugeot 308 1600cc HDI SE 110 207

Fantastic cars, I really don’t understand why people buy Golfs and Astras because they are very expensive compared to this My 308 Sport 1600cc SE 110 is an excellent car and its far better looking than a Golf or Astra and far better to drive. The engine is extremely keen to rev and provides excellent torque low down for only being 1.6. On the road it is extremely smooth and refined and road noise as well as wind noise is next to non existant in the cabin, the suspension provides a good subtle ride and corners with absolute precision. In the car it doesn’t get much better because the interior is flooded with light partly due to the massive wind screen and the SE glass roof, the seats are very supportive and are lovely and comfortable. The dash is very well designed with the highest quality of materials used, the new Golf doesnt even match the Peugeot for interior quality! Overall in my opinion its the best European small family hatch out there! I have had NO problems at all which shows Peugeots new quality programme has worked well.

Peugeot 308 4C5FW 2009

I have recently purchased a Peugeot 308 tvi 5 dr hatchback. Whilst the car has a great stylish and stream lined look both inside and out and the petrol consumption is very good there are however a few what I think are bad points. Firstly the main concern is the drivers windscreen wiper which happens to be shorter than the passenger side so if you are tall the top half of the screen is still obscured after wiping also the way the wipers are set up, the passenger wiper has the last downward stroke so that means there is always a line left in the drivers field of vision. Not good. I have tried to find if there is a way of swapping the wipers over so the larger wiper is on the drivers righthand side but apparently the wiper timing mechinism would need to be altered so they would not catch each other. There would be no problem if the driver was on the lefthand side. I would like to know if the company/Peugeot garages can modify the wiper or give a solution to solve this issue or if anything can be done to aleviate this problem? Other than this the car is a nice drive, quite nippy and has good fuel consumption.

Peugeot 308 1.6hdi 2007

I had a chance to test drive a 308 the other day and was struck by the strong tendency to pull to the left. The salesman told me it was the road camber, then the tyre pressure, then the tracking, then different tyres etc. If this is a safety feature it’s lunacy .... other than that it was a nice car. Reading the previous reviews and the left pull thing was interesting.

Peugeot 308 1.6 vts 120 SE 2009

I took charge of the car in January 2009 and I have now done 12,500 miles in it without any problems at all. The car is well finished, comfortable to drive and the 1.6ltr petrol engine performs very well and has enconomy to boot (ave 43 mpg). Nice brisk acceleration around town and cruises well on the motorway.

Peugeot 308 308sHDI 90 5DR 08 2008

GOOD STUFF: Cheap Tax, 62MPG, Big inside. That’s it.. Yep thats it, I can’t think of any thing else. The BAD STUFF: Had new F/R Discs 9,000ml,. Two engine oil leaks, Six trips to Bristol Street Motors in Worksop to have a fuel leak sorted - ended up having new tank. It had new mirror switch and yes it does tend to pull to left, I sorted this with a trip to Kwikfit and asking them to set the track spot on as if you have it set to within the tolerance it pulls. The head lights are made this way or so Peugeot say. When you use full beam and there is damp in the air i.e Mist Fog Spray. You have pillars of light shining to the heavens and you must try and look around them in order to see ahead. The ride is so hard I should invest in a gum shield. Loads of road noise from rear of car. Oh yes the intermittent wipers are auto, so the faster you go so do the wipers. only more often than not you dont need them to speed up as it is only road spray. You end up doing them your self as and when you need to give the screen the odd wipe. 9/10 times this makes the intermittent setting of no use. The cost of a service that should include an engine air filter is high due to them having to drop the engine to even get to the filter. Making it hard to find some else to do the service if you should ever wish. The list goes on..

Peugeot 308 Verve 2009

I read so many conflicting reports I was doubtful about buying it. However, I am delighted. It is a comfortable, quiet, economical workhorse and a delight to drive. I have owned many cars, Mercedes, Lancias, Fords, BMWs, Fiats, Renaults, Toyotas, Nissans, Opels, Volkswagens and there isn’t such a thing as a perfect car, its all about compromise. As a compromise the Peugeot 308 is an excellent all rounder. If I had a criticism it is price, because the Euro is so strong the price in sterling is rather high but that is the fault of our Government not the car.

Peugeot 308 SW 2008

I have test driven the 308 SW today. The vehicle was pulling to the left and I was told that it needed to go through the workshops and that it would be sorted then, however, after reading the comments here and on the Peugot owners forum which mirrored those here I think I will stay with my Renault Senic which does not pull to the left and is more comfortable.

Peugeot 308 2007

I Purchased this vehicle with 4,000 miles on the clock and have had nothing but problems with the drivers window, locking mechanism etc. It is now back at the dealership for the 9th time in four months. Had new BSI (main brain) now having new rubber on window, new lifting mechanism. Any idea’s as the main dealership is running out of idea’s. Peugueot at Coventry are now also involved with this case

Peugeot 308 1.6 HDi 110 Sport 6spd 2007

I absolutely love my 308; it’s a fantastic motorway cruiser and it’s great craic on the b roads. (I had the mk5 golf 1.9 tdi before and it really peaved me off, it was so boring to drive and the engine sounded like a canal boat and it drove worse than a canal boat). The 308 is a completely different car and the 1.6 hdi is a gem, I’m actually getting 63mpg on the motorways and the quality and build quality is so far ahead of others in this class. I’ve owned this car since 2007 and it’s great; fair enough, I have had a couple of rattles but partly my own fault. I can recommend this car to anybody buying one, forget about the Golf, Focus, Astra, C4 etc... Get one of these!!!

Peugeot 308 Turbo Diesel HDi 1.6 ltr 90bhp 2008

Owned for the last 16 months. Very economical and impressive stylish design. Offers good comfort in the inside and boasts of a number of gadgets that enhance the drivers feeling inside the cabin. One major problem with this car is that the experience behind the steering wheel is an absolute NIGHTMARE. When driving, you have to grip the steering wheel and exhert a lot of strength to maintain the car in a straight trajectory. If the steering wheel is left free for JUST TWO SECONDS the car would IMMEDIATELY LOOSE ITS TRAJECTORY VERY HEAVILY, no matter at what speed or the condition of the road surface. In actual fact, this renders the car, the most UNSAFE and UNSECURE. Peugeot claim that this is not a defect but just a characteristic of the car. If this is the case, I really wonder how the PEUGEOT 308 has in fact won the Golden Wheel Award. I reported these problems to the local agent of Peugeot on 4 different occasions. They simply denied that the car has any problems since all the tests they carried out did not reveal any mechanical flaws. I am REALLY DISAPPOINTED that with all these DEFECTS the local agent persists glorifying the car as working in perfect condition. Writing to the mother company in France was also a shock. My complaint was diverted to Peugeot UK branch which in turn advised me to revert back to my local agent for help... so, BACK TO SQUARE ONE. Sixteen months after acquiring the car, these problems have remained unsolved. Any advice on how I could proceed towards the resolution problems cited will be greatly appreciated.

Responses to this review

I’ve only had mine a couple of weeks but have noticed a tendency for it to pull to the left, but as there’s a bit of wheel wobble I’ll get the tracking checked. No surprise the main company don’t want to know.....had the same problem with Seat and them going on about franchises. Maybe get an AA report and submit that or print it in the local rag. Only real way is to walk with your money. I had to work so hard to buy my 308 and Peugeot won’t get my money next time! - Lisa Mead from Essex

I am having the same problem on a new 59 plate. I have been told by my dealership management that it is a "safety feature" of the car. After speaking to several technicians and Peugeot customer care they have never heard of this "feature" and, along with my friends and family, have never come across it before either. The matter is ongoing and is due in for examination on 7th December. If it it still there I will be changing the car - Martin Miller from East Lothian (Haddingtonshire)

Hi, I have a 08 308 1.6 HDi 110 Sport and my car was pulling to the left alot, I took it to see if the wheels needed aligned and they were fine. It turned out that uneven tyre wear was the cause of it in my case. Also I had a light on my dashboard ’Depolution Filter’, the car struggled to start and when it did start i revved it to about 4000 rpm and the light dissapeared soon after and I have had no problems since with it. Apart from that I find the passenger level for adjusting the back of the seat quite stiff. Overall apart from these few things I am extremely happy with my 308. I had the choice of a Focus, Golf, Astra and my 308 and I do not regret taking my 308 because its economical and lovely and comfortable to drive, I also love the centre arm rest!! - Jack 0’ Callaghan from Northern Ireland

You think you’ve got a problem....? http://www.davidjaundrell.co.uk/308cc/ - David Jaundrell from Shropshire

I agree totally with everything Mario said and can add that when there is the least bit of snow or ice my car is also a NIGHTMARE and VERY UNSAFE. All the other cars in my street cope fine and I get stuck and need pushed. Same recently at a festival when it was the only car to get stuck in a bit of mud. With regards to the steering my local dealer said that it is due to the width of the wheels on such a small car. I love the look of the car but I will be forced to trade it in before winter as I couldn’t cope with another winter worrying about the road conditions. Gwen Scott from Scotland

With regards to the depollution problem. I had a problem with my 407 HDI - had fuel filter changed for £40.00 - problem gone - Mark Farrimond from England

Peugeot 308 2008

Here is the brand new Peugeot which has excellent sound isolation and comfortable suspension. An economic engine and automatic gearbox too...

Peugeot 308 1.6 HDi 110 S 5dr 2007

A really nice car. The 308 has sporty lines and comes with some nice standard kit. Quite good on fuel and nice and quiet engine. My only gripe is the driving position, why is everything set so far over to the left? Come on Peugeot, this should be a great car not just a nice car.