· Peugeot—a brand most tend to overlook—for a good reason. Peugeot used to sport horrifying designs, ride quality, blah blah blah. Till now. With up and coming designs, more people are flocking towards the niche filler, especially with the brand new 508.
· Design & Engineering:
From the front, the Peugeot seems fierce and dominating. The large protruding grills and logo, the piercing design of the headlamps (and patterned LED’s), along with the boat like curves all seem to make the 508 ooze appeal. From the side, the ill-fitting rims and the Hyundai Elantra lookalike doors simply turn me off. The same can be said for the odd fitting rear. Really, about seventy percent of the 508 is relatively awkward, as if the best parts of the best Peugeot’s made in the past two years have simply been thrown in together. Nevertheless, there is attention to detail on the 508—for instance, press the number ‘0’, on the boot’s 508 badge, and voila, up comes the boot.
· Interior
The interior makes up for the somewhat crabby exterior. Open the driver’s door, and one instantly feels that everything is well placed together, as the car exudes a sort of Germanic touch, especially with the featured Start/Stop button. The 508 feels superb with the use of soft-touch surfaces, and ‘higher quality’ leather. The Skoda like 3-spoke steering wheel is surprisingly accurate, and it fits comfortably in ones hands. The instrument panel is outlined in chrome, featuring a white/red on black design, making the Peugeot classier. The well-sized multi-function display sits in between the chrome-ringed dials, adding on to the word ‘class’. An LCD information system displayed in neon orange is snuggled between the center console’s air conditioning vents, with an option of being replaced with a sat nav system. The leather seats are nicely bolstered, though in the 508, one would never need to use them, due to the urge to cruise, and to not speed. Despite all of this, some of the switchgear seems to be placed illogically. For instance, the automatic headlamps switch is next to the gear lever, and the switch for the heads up display. At the rear, rear air conditioning comes as standard, as part of the 4-zone standard climate package, something not even standard in a Mercedes-Benz (C, E, S, ML, R, GL, class). Rear legroom is much improved from the previous model, especially after being topped off with standard side window pull up ‘sun sheets’.
· Ride & Handling
What a magic carpet ride for such a car! The 508 passes with flying colours in the handling and ride department. Uneven tarmac, potholes, humps, bumps, you name it, are mostly canceled out by the terrific dampers. Amazingly, there is minimal body-roll, despite the soft sprung suspension. Steering is direct and linear, although more response would be much appreciated. The most famed part about the 508 would have to be its 1.6-liter, turbo charged engine, developed together with BMW. Mated together with a six-speed gearbox, what more could one want?
· Verdict
Quietly brilliant with visible flaws. Wait for the station wagon variant.
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