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Test Drive: The Peugeot 408 in Germany

Whereas we traditionally test drive best-selling vehicles, we’ll make an exception this time with the Peugeot 408. Since its launch in July 2022, it has sold just 6,448 units in France, well below its competitor the Renault Arkana. (even though Peugeot calls the 408 a cross berline vs. a SUV coupe for the Arkana). In 4 months spent travelling around Europe I haven’t seen one 408 around. So we’re going to investigate why the 408 has failed to live up to its sales expectations. The model we’ll be driving is the PHEV 180 GT priced at 49,500€ (US$52,300). And we may have already found one of the issues with the 408 as this price is much higher than the Arkana’s most expensive variant, the E-Tech Full Hybrid 145 Esprit Alpine at 37,600€.

At first sight, the exterior design is aggressive and the car looks massive. It shares its headlights, taillights, and dashboard design with the third-generation 308, which was developed alongside it. It is 4,687 mm long vs. 4,750 mm for the 508 sedan and 4,545 mm for the Arkana. The silhouette is a bit confusing as it doesn’t fit any standard shape and is rather a mix of sedan, crossover and hatch, but the relatively low height (1,478 mm) gives off a rather sporty vibe, as does the imposing width (1,848 mm). These measurements are to be compared with a height of 1,576 mm and a width of 1,820 mm for the Arkana.

Standard equipment is plethoric for this GT variant, including traffic sign recognition, frameless rear mirror, semi-autonomous drive (level 2), line assist, adaptive cruise control with stop & go function, driver sport pack including stitching, hands free access and engine start, front and rear parking assist, electric back door with hands free access, and more… Sliding into the cockpit, first impressions are excellent. The i-Cockpit with 3D instrument panel we’ve last seen on the 208 is still impressive, the green stitching across the dash, seats and steering wheel is also present. Sitting is very comfortable with enveloping seats. The cabin feels light thanks to the sunroof.

Mummelsee In Freudenstadt Flamenküche in Freiburg am Breisgau Konstanz

This time we are headed from Paris towards the Black Forest in southeastern Germany. Our first stop is Baden Baden, famous for its curative waters. A quick stroll in town then we take the direction of the Black Forest proper through the Schwarzwaldhochstrasse (the Black Forest High Road), starting with the spectacular Geroldsauer Wasserfälle and ending with the Mummelsee, a glacial cirque lake amidst the forest. Legend says an underwater king and nymphs dwell in its depths. Next is Freudenstadt, sporting the largest square in Germany (216m by 219m) where a huge beer under the shade awaits. We then reach Konstanz on the northwestern shore of the eponymous lake. Highlights include a majestic church (pictured).

Meersburg Burg Hohenzollern Tübingen

Across Lake Konstanz is Meersburg. Its fortress, the Altes Schloss, was founded by Merovingian king Dagobert I in the 7th century. It is among Germany’s oldest. The bishops of Konstanz used it as a summer residence between 1268 and 1803. 136 km northwest and a lot more spectacular is the Burg Hohenzollern, dominating the surrounding valley from its high point. It is a neo-Gothic castle dating from 1867 and the ancestral seat of the Hohenzollern family, the first and last monarchical rulers of the short-lived second German Empire (1871-1918). Just half an hour north is Tübingen, a charming city with cobbled lanes, half-timbered houses and a 16th century turreted castle (all pictured above).

It’s time for an update on how the Peugeot 408 drives. The car is very dynamic and responsive despite a relatively heavy weight (1,706 kg), I would even go as far as saying it drives sporty, through a smooth 8AT gearbox. The most satisfying news is the finally intuitive cruise control commands, now on the steering wheel instead of an obscure wand hidden behind the wheel. Front obstacle warning is overzealous but the GPS directions are much less intrusive than the 3008 I tested a few years back (the 208’s media unit was inoperative). One negative note on the GPS is the fact there are almost constant warnings of traffic jams nearby that are not on our itinerary, so quite annoying in the long run. Call me old fashioned but with no USB port I was forced to charge my phone through induction and this merely kept it at the current level of charge. A nice touch is the Peugeot logo projected on the ground when closing the door (pictured above).

What about the car landscape in this part of Germany? What surprised me the most as this isn’t accounted for in current German car sales statistics is very high prevalence of station wagons. Audis, Mercedes, BMWs and Skodas (and the Peugeot 308) are almost exclusively present in station wagon format, with sedans barely ever seen.

To finish on a high yet unrelated note, I show you the highlights of the Porsche Museum in Stuttgart I had the pleasure of visiting (the Mercedes Museum was closed). Note the museum also includes vehicles created by Ferdinand Porsche before

Lohner-Porsche “Semper Vivus” (1900) Porsche 64 (1939) Porsche Typ 360 Cisitalia (1947)Porsche 356 Coupé “Ferdinand” (1950) Porsche-Diesel Super L 318 Schnittmodell (1960) Porsche 908/02 Spyder (1969)Porsche 959 Paris-Dakar (1986)

It is now time for our review of the Peugeot 408. Judging by the amount of positives vs. negatives I would say the main impediment to the 408 success is, as we predicted at the start of this article, its lofty price.

Aggressive exterior design

Refined and sophisticated interior

Dynamism

Comfortable seats

leg space in the back seats

Smooth 8AT gearbox

Sunroof

Spacious boot

Driver seat returns to memorised position at each start

Extravagant pricing

No USB port, induction charging not effective

Some driving aids are overzealous (front obstacle warning for example)

Some GPS bugs such as wrong traffic jam warning

This Post Has 8 Comments
  1. Besides the pricing ( Which is insane. Stellantis, and Peugeot in particular, are waaay too ambitious with what they’re asking for their cars. They’ll try again with the new 3008, but I don’t see it lasting long. They’ve already had to drop e308 prices, even before the car was widely available. ), I don’t really like the styling. I’ve seen a couple around Lisbon ( not many ), and it only really works in black. It’s a bit overwrought imo, wish they’d go back to a more subdued, classier look for Peugeot.

    1. To be fair, the german cars are even more expensive and they are not better, in fact the german cars are not very reliable. But they are german so people think that they are superior.

  2. Very much appreciate ex- en interior of the 408, clearly a niche model. Mock-up of a vehicle clearly resembling this 408 was already finished in … 2014. I read on ‘dedicated’ websites the siblings 408 and Citroen C5X are a project/effort to introduce a non-SUV and reduces height and weight. Don’t think the latter has been achieved.

    During the 408 / 308 III dev. phase, it was decided the 308 would get the 408 dashboard.
    In numbers: combined, the C5X + 408 duo might reach an annual volume of appr. 65.000 units.

    1. It was under Gilles Vidal – head design Peugeot – the 408 morphed from concept to street car. As the pro’s on this site will know, Vidal was hunted by De Meo, Renault in 2020. DeMeo, who joined Renault earlier that same year, drastically altered Renault’s product planning and design. Gone Laurens van den Acker’s curved, athletic, sensual, Latin style, in came a more brash,aggressive and less subtle design language. Example?

      The 408 clone Rafale!

  3. I like the 408, but haven‘t seen one so far here in Germany. The price seems steep. We will see how good the Renault Rafale will sell. Not sure if Renault needs another bigger SUV Coupe above the nice Arkana, although it looks handsome. And about prices: Citroen has slashed its prices in Germany permanently for as much as 6.000 Euros (C5 Aircross), 5.520 Euro (C4), 4.170 Euros (C3 Aircross) or 2.450 Euros (C3) for example to reflect its new entry level image. Also the Cupra Formentor is now available at some dealers for 129 Euros a month without down payment (leasing). That’s less than most small cars like VW Polo, Toyota Yaris etc. cost. So I guess we will see stronger sales for it soon again. In the end Cupra seems to give discounts as high, as Seat always did. So yeah price war is on again.

  4. Thanks Matt for a nice travelogue. Germany is a very beautiful and diverse country. In general, Europe is a good place to live.
    I fully agree, the price is braking the sale of Peugeots and Citroens for last few years. Declining market share is obvious. At the same time, these higher-class cars are of very high quality, and Europeans will appreciate the unrivaled anti-corrosion protection. When you visit central Europe in winter, you drive on salty roads very often and good anti-corrosion protection is important.
    Lower class of PSA + Opel are already entering a price war to save sales. Unfortunately, this doesn’t apply to higher classes.
    In my opinion, these cars are killed by the Tesla Y. So far, no one has found recipe for building a similar car for this price. When you put a TMY and a 408 side by side, what do you buy? Moreover, Tesla is acceptable to all countries in Europe, which Bryan calls chauvinistic.
    I suppose to have 2 type of engines in car is over. Yes,Toyota,do it but others don’t do very well and can’t find it at a reasonable price.

      1. Tesla was already „loved“ before. It’s like an iPhone, a kind of status. Then you don‘t look at the many flaws there might be. Maybe it’s just a very big market for them. And the other Europeans prefer German Teslas? 😉

        I just read a test of the DS3 E-Tense 156 Opera. Base Price is 51.990 Euro. So I guess I won‘t see many of them.

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