By unveiling the new 308 months before its Frankfurt Motor Show reveal, Peugeot have clearly decided to leave the hatchback’s once frothy styling and forecourt appeal behind for something a little more toned done in the next 308. As you can see from these images, the new 308 is far more conventional looking, as the French manufacturer feels it needs to be to take on the mighty World and European Car of the Year winning Volkswagen Golf 7.
The next 308 looks far more masculine than it has ever done in the past, and yes, perhaps a little more handsome than before too, but it’s the first car to come around from the quirky French maker that doesn’t put a wry grin on your face. Not good for the impulse-Peugeot-buyer that lives inside any French car fanatic. We also can’t help but notice the similarities between this 308 and the current Citroen C4 hatchback. Is this simply another example of French re-badging?
Well, sort of. Peugeot is keeping most of the new 308′s details under their hat for now, although the 308 does ride on the same EMP2 platform that underpins the Citroen C4 Picasso. PSA Peugeot Citroen’s push to join the modular platform crowd means the EMP2 architecture replaces the older PF2 and PF3 platforms. The PSA Peugeot Citroen ‘world modular platform’ will in time cover 50% of production. The first vehicles to benefit from these innovations are the replacements for the C4 Picasso and the Peugeot 308.
Late versions of the PF platforms, the PF2, underpin almost everything being sold from the French at the moment. This includes the current 308, the still-new Citroen C4, DS4 and DS5, along with the Peugeot RCZ coupe. Peugeot says the EMP2 platform’s lightweight construction will make a significant impact on both fuel consumption and driving feel. 140 kg of weight has been cut from the new 308, compared to the outgoing model.
“The initial design brief of the New 308 had the highest levels of quality at its core. This ambition has guided the designers and engineers from the very start of the project. Every element, both inside and outside, has been developed and refined with exceptional attention to detail. The choice of high quality interior materials and the satin chrome or gloss black detailing add to the feeling of sophistication and maturity in the car’s design and assembly,” Peugeot says.
On the inside of the next 308, Peugeot have created what they call an ‘i-cockpit’ layout with a big centre console featuring a 9.7-inch touchscreen allowing Peugeot to create a dash with a sleek and uncluttered feel and heads-up display. The minute steering wheel from the 208 seems to have made it across as well. Under the bonnet there will be a choice of equally small petrol and diesel engines with emissions as low as 85 g/km in some models.
The current range of PSA Peugeot Citroen products are not superbly built or as quiet on the inside as the Volkswagen Golf, which comes as no surprise to many. Lots of the components shared between Peugeot and Citroen leave the driver forgetting which car he or she is in a lot of the time. But they are spacious inside and hopefully improvements to build quality will pull the next 308 closer to its Volkswagen Golf benchmark.
