Peugeot’s 2024 3008 GT Sport does a damn fine job of standing out from the crowd, thanks in part to its peppy 1.6-litre turbocharged petrol engine that delivers 133kW of power and 250Nm of torque. It makes the trip to 100km/h in 8.8 seconds.
In a market flooded for choice in the mid-sized front-wheel drive space, those are not bad numbers. Pair that with an 8-speed automatic transmission, and three driving modes (Eco, Normal and Sport), and it’s a pretty impressive bit of kit.
We actually found Normal mode to be the most comfortable and practical of the trio, ensuring good fuel economy (5.6-litres/100km) while still having enough get up and go. The suspension is nicely tuned, and feels a little sporty when cornering.
You don’t feel like you need to slow down to 40km/h every time you go into a bend. There’s a decent amount of damping too, allowing you to hit a bump or pothole and not rattle your brain loose. Given there’s no adaptive tech, it’s a great all-round ride.
With aggressive exterior styling, the 3008 GT Sport features a host of black accents. Sharp lines set the tone, with daytime LED running lights running down to the front bumper. The traditional lion has been blacked out and the grille features a unique look.
It’s a theme that carries across the remainder of the vehicle, making sure it stands out nicely, particularly in the Celebes Blue offering we’re testing here. The wheels are sporty and continue the sharp look. Ride height is decent.
Inside, you’ll find Peugeot’s unique steering wheel, and a driver focused console and infotainment system. There’s plenty of nice switch gear, all in an aluminium look that makes the cabin feel a little special.
The leather on the steering wheel and seats feels premium and the driver’s seat comes with a massage function. Both front seats also score seat heating, and there’s plenty of room, with space for full-sized adults in the second row.
You’ll also find a healthy 591-litre boot that expands to 1,670-litres. The infotainment system is, like many things in this French SUV, a little quirky, with physical buttons below the screen controlling the high level selection process.
It’s a little odd but you get used to it fairly quickly. It’s exceptionally good once you get the hang of it. While there is no head-up display in this variant, the instrument cluster can be customised to suit your needs. Navigation mode is a standout.
The Focal 10-speaker sound system turns up the noise rather well, with a pretty killer audio experience. Apple CarPlay and Android Auto is wired, and there’s a wireless charging bay. The safety tech is a little average though.
You do get a reversing camera and (that’s capable of a sort of 360-degree view), front and rear parking sensors, traction control with mud, snow and sand mode, autonomous emergency braking, blind spot detection and traffic sign recognition.
There’s even adaptive cruise control with stop/start technology, but it’s the fuel saver auto restart functionality that’s really pretty ordinary. On multiple occasions as we came up to an intersection or set of lights, but didn’t actually fully stop, the car would switch off.
What made it worse was the fact the car wouldn’t recognise your throttle input until you braked so that the vehicle stopped completely. In the end we ended up disabling it every time we drove the car.
That aside, the Peugeot 3008 GT Sport offers a premium package, with plenty of nice features. The price tag is a little steep though, at $68,519 drive away, and that may be a little too much for some buyers.
Peugeot offer a 5-year unlimited kilometre warranty, and there are seven colours to choose from. It’s worth a test drive if you can fit the price into your budget. Build your own on the Peugeot Australia website. If you’re keen on one and need finance, talk to CreditOne.
Our test vehicle was provided by Peugeot Australia. To find out more about the 2024 Peugeot 3008 GT Sport, contact your local Peugeot dealer.
