The Underrated French Estate? Peugeot 308SW GT-Line
Discussion
Car number 12 of 17 years driving history, brings this what I feel is very underated car which is not a regular sight on our roads (excluding police cars).
Step back to just before 2020 and I was travelling a lot to Sheffield / Manchester for work and wanted something cheap workhouse which is where my £400 MK1 Skoda Octavia 1.9 TDI took daily duties and with a mere 170k on the clock, was a great asset to the fleet but when Covid hit and lack of travelling was minimal, I had an itch to scratch which is where my MK6 Fiesta ST150 came on-board;
https://www.pistonheads.com/gassing/topic.asp?h=0&...
After 2.5 years of ownership though and getting another itch for an economical estate car again, the time was right to start looking for a new car. Not sure what it is about estates, but I just love the room they bring and just a car I really like driving. I set out with with a £5k budget and the only 3 points were;
1. Good spec
2. Diesel
3. Looked after
I had been trawling through Autotrader, Pistonheads, eBay and local garages nearby - mainly at 508SWs, Mondeos and even a few Golfs, but all were Euro5 and not much history, so I knew at this point I had to up the budget or move into something else.
Neighbour and I had discussed about him getting rid of his 308 soon but wasn't expecting it for a while and I didn't expect it to be in my region either, but when I saw him taking pictures last week, we had a chat, test drive and the deal was done. I had not even considered 308s before this conversation.
The car in question is a July 2016 registered, 308 SW GT-Line in Magnetic Blue - upfront is a 2.0 BlueHDI 150bhp engine which puts out a mere 102g/km which equates to £20 road tax and averaging around 55mpg on mixed journeys. It had just ticked over 110,000 miles which doesn't bother me at all, given it's spent most of its life on the motorways. My neighbour is a Peugeot Master Tech so it's been looked after during his ownership - having cam belt water pump 10k ago, all season tyres all around, recent new brake discs/pads, renewed suspension parts (front), fully stamped service book, new battery and serviced just before I took the keys.
The more I drive the car, the more I realise it's a very underrated alternative to your Leons', Focus' and Golfs' - but also on the cheaper end of the scale due to Peugeot's reputation out there. Having had an old 307 back in 2008, I do understand why but these are another level these days and they also look great with plenty of standard equipment.
Enjoy the pictures..
Step back to just before 2020 and I was travelling a lot to Sheffield / Manchester for work and wanted something cheap workhouse which is where my £400 MK1 Skoda Octavia 1.9 TDI took daily duties and with a mere 170k on the clock, was a great asset to the fleet but when Covid hit and lack of travelling was minimal, I had an itch to scratch which is where my MK6 Fiesta ST150 came on-board;
https://www.pistonheads.com/gassing/topic.asp?h=0&...
After 2.5 years of ownership though and getting another itch for an economical estate car again, the time was right to start looking for a new car. Not sure what it is about estates, but I just love the room they bring and just a car I really like driving. I set out with with a £5k budget and the only 3 points were;
1. Good spec
2. Diesel
3. Looked after
I had been trawling through Autotrader, Pistonheads, eBay and local garages nearby - mainly at 508SWs, Mondeos and even a few Golfs, but all were Euro5 and not much history, so I knew at this point I had to up the budget or move into something else.
Neighbour and I had discussed about him getting rid of his 308 soon but wasn't expecting it for a while and I didn't expect it to be in my region either, but when I saw him taking pictures last week, we had a chat, test drive and the deal was done. I had not even considered 308s before this conversation.
The car in question is a July 2016 registered, 308 SW GT-Line in Magnetic Blue - upfront is a 2.0 BlueHDI 150bhp engine which puts out a mere 102g/km which equates to £20 road tax and averaging around 55mpg on mixed journeys. It had just ticked over 110,000 miles which doesn't bother me at all, given it's spent most of its life on the motorways. My neighbour is a Peugeot Master Tech so it's been looked after during his ownership - having cam belt water pump 10k ago, all season tyres all around, recent new brake discs/pads, renewed suspension parts (front), fully stamped service book, new battery and serviced just before I took the keys.
The more I drive the car, the more I realise it's a very underrated alternative to your Leons', Focus' and Golfs' - but also on the cheaper end of the scale due to Peugeot's reputation out there. Having had an old 307 back in 2008, I do understand why but these are another level these days and they also look great with plenty of standard equipment.
Enjoy the pictures..
These are lovely in the flesh for an estate car.
My parents have the same car, only thing to watch for is Adblue issues (often the pump on the tank IIRC and only comes as a kit with the tank with north of a £1000 bill) and paying that just for some emissions junk! Other than that the engines are solid. I’ve had a few 306 HDI’s which i’m pretty sure this engine is originally based on but obviously with newer tech etc (DW10 engine code).
Wishing you many years happy motoring.
My parents have the same car, only thing to watch for is Adblue issues (often the pump on the tank IIRC and only comes as a kit with the tank with north of a £1000 bill) and paying that just for some emissions junk! Other than that the engines are solid. I’ve had a few 306 HDI’s which i’m pretty sure this engine is originally based on but obviously with newer tech etc (DW10 engine code).
Wishing you many years happy motoring.
Bobupndown said:
Nice enough looking car, last Peugeot estate I had was a 405, 20 years ago now that I think about it!
Does the small steering wheel with the clocks above not irritate?
Not at all, if anything it's how all cars should be - so much easier on the eye and comfortable I feel.Does the small steering wheel with the clocks above not irritate?
Macron said:
Rev counter of freakiness...!
Always thought these were great, sodding Octavia won all the group tests, so this didn't often get a look in.
You could get the full leather and massage seats, and some of the lower power GT lines were sub 100g so free tax....
Thank you Always thought these were great, sodding Octavia won all the group tests, so this didn't often get a look in.
You could get the full leather and massage seats, and some of the lower power GT lines were sub 100g so free tax....
MY95 said:
These are lovely in the flesh for an estate car.
My parents have the same car, only thing to watch for is Adblue issues (often the pump on the tank IIRC and only comes as a kit with the tank with north of a £1000 bill) and paying that just for some emissions junk! Other than that the engines are solid. I’ve had a few 306 HDI’s which i’m pretty sure this engine is originally based on but obviously with newer tech etc (DW10 engine code).
Wishing you many years happy motoring.
Agreed, the engine is great - same one as our Kuga except thet has the 180 map rather than the 150.My parents have the same car, only thing to watch for is Adblue issues (often the pump on the tank IIRC and only comes as a kit with the tank with north of a £1000 bill) and paying that just for some emissions junk! Other than that the engines are solid. I’ve had a few 306 HDI’s which i’m pretty sure this engine is originally based on but obviously with newer tech etc (DW10 engine code).
Wishing you many years happy motoring.
Yes, this has had the adblue fault and has had a repair done to hopefully fix it, but if not - you can get the adblue mapped out instead for around £180.
We had a 2016 SW Allure diesel until it got written off in an accident a few months ago. It was the most reliable car that I have ever owned and it was the longest that I have ever kept a car (bought it in 2017). I have a soft spot for these cars, as they just work. My only beef with it was the cup holder situation in the front.
I hope yours treats you well.
I hope yours treats you well.
Shrugging for victory said:
We had a 2016 SW Allure diesel until it got written off in an accident a few months ago. It was the most reliable car that I have ever owned and it was the longest that I have ever kept a car (bought it in 2017). I have a soft spot for these cars, as they just work. My only beef with it was the cup holder situation in the front.
I hope yours treats you well.
Sorry to hear that, I suspect you were very upset by that. What is the replacement?I hope yours treats you well.
We did 250 miles in it yesterday, to the Lake District and it didn't miss a beat - achieved around 58 to the gallon too.
LukeyP_ said:
Yes, this has had the adblue fault and has had a repair done to hopefully fix it, but if not - you can get the adblue mapped out instead for around £180.
Which is illegal, almost certainly invalidates your insurance and means you can't legally sell the car without declaring its not roadworthy. LukeyP_ said:
Shrugging for victory said:
We had a 2016 SW Allure diesel until it got written off in an accident a few months ago. It was the most reliable car that I have ever owned and it was the longest that I have ever kept a car (bought it in 2017). I have a soft spot for these cars, as they just work. My only beef with it was the cup holder situation in the front.
I hope yours treats you well.
Sorry to hear that, I suspect you were very upset by that. What is the replacement?I hope yours treats you well.
We did 250 miles in it yesterday, to the Lake District and it didn't miss a beat - achieved around 58 to the gallon too.
Enjoy!
I do like these, they were a welcome return to styling form after a lot of 206/7 like dross. Love the colour of it, and you can always pick your neighbours brains if it goes wrong!! Peugeot are often overlooked and derided, so make epic value for money with the right model.
I have a lot of respect for the Engineering side. I had a 306 HDi I put over 200k on, it made good value for money when I bought it at 4 years old for the same price as 6 year old Golf's with 150k on vs the 70k mine had, everyone assumed it was always days away from the scrap yard. Handled superbly and was very comfortable on its frequent near-200 mile journeys. Maintenance was always well thought through I felt, having done it myself, I hope that theme continued onwards.
I have a lot of respect for the Engineering side. I had a 306 HDi I put over 200k on, it made good value for money when I bought it at 4 years old for the same price as 6 year old Golf's with 150k on vs the 70k mine had, everyone assumed it was always days away from the scrap yard. Handled superbly and was very comfortable on its frequent near-200 mile journeys. Maintenance was always well thought through I felt, having done it myself, I hope that theme continued onwards.
Fastdruid said:
LukeyP_ said:
Yes, this has had the adblue fault and has had a repair done to hopefully fix it, but if not - you can get the adblue mapped out instead for around £180.
Which is illegal, almost certainly invalidates your insurance and means you can't legally sell the car without declaring its not roadworthy. Bobupndown said:
Nice enough looking car, last Peugeot estate I had was a 405, 20 years ago now that I think about it!
Does the small steering wheel with the clocks above not irritate?
I was never much a fan of that small steering wheel (not helped by the odd shape) or the fact that it obscures the instrument binnacle if you have the wheel where it feels best. I was always able to find a compromise though, where you could position the wheel to feel alright to use and see enough of the screen to be useful. I recall reading that due to the chips shortage, Peugeot were going to go back to making the 308 with traditional dials rather than a screen. That would be a positive move IMO as I prefer those to a screen. Does the small steering wheel with the clocks above not irritate?
Don Roque said:
I was never much a fan of that small steering wheel (not helped by the odd shape) or the fact that it obscures the instrument binnacle if you have the wheel where it feels best. I was always able to find a compromise though, where you could position the wheel to feel alright to use and see enough of the screen to be useful. I recall reading that due to the chips shortage, Peugeot were going to go back to making the 308 with traditional dials rather than a screen. That would be a positive move IMO as I prefer those to a screen.
The driving position I have is perfect I feel - the wheel is set right vs the dials - literally to the point where I prefer driving this over our family Kuga now.Nothing much to report to be honest, but thought I'd update it.
Still love this car, very underated and just eats up the miles with ease. Approaching 6,500 miles since ownership, so far - cost of little bits = £79.29 which is a set of wipers and MOT test fee which it flew through at 114,000 miles.
Seem to be averaging 40 - 43 around town, around 55-60 on long runs!
Long may it continue.
Still love this car, very underated and just eats up the miles with ease. Approaching 6,500 miles since ownership, so far - cost of little bits = £79.29 which is a set of wipers and MOT test fee which it flew through at 114,000 miles.
Seem to be averaging 40 - 43 around town, around 55-60 on long runs!
Long may it continue.
I kind of have one of these but mine is the hatchback with the petrol engine. Faster than my mx5!
Very very easy to drive and a pretty decent place to be inside. Ours is a tech edition so very nice (similar to your) seats and panoramic roof.
The only thing i don’t like is the self parking is acheived through about 3 sub menus which isn’t helpful when you’re blocking traffic so I have only used it once!
Very very easy to drive and a pretty decent place to be inside. Ours is a tech edition so very nice (similar to your) seats and panoramic roof.
The only thing i don’t like is the self parking is acheived through about 3 sub menus which isn’t helpful when you’re blocking traffic so I have only used it once!
Sheetmaself said:
I kind of have one of these but mine is the hatchback with the petrol engine. Faster than my mx5!
Very very easy to drive and a pretty decent place to be inside. Ours is a tech edition so very nice (similar to your) seats and panoramic roof.
The only thing i don’t like is the self parking is acheived through about 3 sub menus which isn’t helpful when you’re blocking traffic so I have only used it once!
I'd quite like the roof, but unfortunately haven't got that.Very very easy to drive and a pretty decent place to be inside. Ours is a tech edition so very nice (similar to your) seats and panoramic roof.
The only thing i don’t like is the self parking is acheived through about 3 sub menus which isn’t helpful when you’re blocking traffic so I have only used it once!
I haven't got that feature, but I do understand - the screen is a bit fiddly so takes a while to jump through certain screens doesn't it.
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