Peugeot e-308 SW long-term test

The car Peugeot e-308 SW GT Run by Mark Pearson, used cars editor

Why it’s here To see if an electric estate car can cut it against a small number of similar rivals and a plethora of similarly powered SUVs 

Needs to It’ll need to dispatch commuting, work and family life without any range anxiety issues and cope with a wide variety of everyday duties

Miles covered 3006 Price £43,450 Target price £38,973 Price as tested £44,070 Official range 254 miles Test range 201 miles 

4 September 2024 – Losing the space race

Even someone in my trade can occasionally get their car stats wrong.

My Peugeot e-308 SW is longer between the front and rear wheels than the hatchback Peugeot 308, and I’d assumed that this would mean that it would have a decent amount of rear leg room. Disappointingly, the e-308 SW is, like the 308 hatch, fairly tight in the rear, offering less head and leg room than the MG5 electric estate car and even conventional estate cars like the Ford Focus Estate and Seat Leon Estate. 

It means that with the driver’s seat set up for me, there isn’t enough room for another six-footer to sit behind me comfortably. On top of that, because of that limited rear space, the small door apertures and the fact the car is lower than an equivalent SUV, meaning you'll be ducking down quite a way to put your small children or car seats in, I wouldn’t think this car is a good choice for families either. 

The boot, on the other hand, is very usable. Its official capacity is a reasonable 548 litres, which compares favourably with the petrol-engined 308 SW’s figure of 608 litres. The versatile rear seats split 40/20/40 and fold flat, liberating 1574 litres of space, which proved useful on a recent trip to the tip to dispose of several bags of gardening waste. 

On a separate occasion, we even managed to shoehorn holiday luggage for a family of four into the car, and we Pearsons don't travel light. True, we had to remove the rear parcel shelf, and one of the suitcases had to sit between the rear passengers. However, as we were only taking the car to park it at Gatwick Airport we came away impressed. 

I’m pleased with the driving experience too. Of course, this is not a sports car or anything like one, but I like its handling. The steering is precise and the car has plenty of grip, so it’s competent in the bends, if not exactly fun. Its body control is impressive - there’s little body lean in corners and little dive or pitch under braking or acceleration.

Its ride is a mixed bag. It’s quite firmly damped and can feel slightly unsettled on poorly surfaced roads. When it meets a large pothole or speed bump it does at least deal with them quietly and quickly, dispatching them like an officer dismissing a regiment of soldiers. The sporty seats may be comfortable to sit in and good to look at, but they are also rather unyielding, which adds to the impression of firmness. 

However, it wasn’t just in the issue of rear seat space that I got my stats wrong. My car doesn’t have a panoramic glass sunroof, which you'd think, given its upmarket GT trim and the fairly hefty list price of £43,450, it would. A sunroof would certainly have helped to brighten up its rather dark interior. It doesn’t have wireless charging either, or an electric tailgate, both things I like to have and both things I’d hoped for this sort of money it would have. I could have specified all of these options on my e-308 SW, of course, but I wasn't prepared to spend the extra for them. 

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