2019 Peugeot 5008 Crossway review

Peugeot has added a limited edition crossway model for its range of ‘008 SUVs, those being the compact 2008, the middling 3008 and the big bear, the seven-seater 5008. This sees a few thousand dollars worth of extras added to the entry level allure model, for which $1000 is added to the price.

All Crossway models get compass-themed badging featuring GPS coordinates, and where do these point? Some desert location steeped in Peugeot rally raid history? Nah, being a marketing department special they lead to the Peugeot shop on the Champs Elysées.

Specific to 5008, Crossway bits include special decals, chromed mirror caps, a black roof, Alcantara and leatherette trim with blue stitching, Crossway door mats and door sill trims and alloy topped pedals. Peugeot reckons this amounts to $3000 worth of extras for just a grand. The 3008 gets the same Crossway treatment while the 2008, which is reaching the end of the line, gains further enhancements to spur on a late flourish of sales.

These include 17-inch alloys, a chromed grille, tinted windows, Peugeot’s Grip Control traction system, front sensors, a park assist feature, and AEB. But it’s the 5008 we’re here to talk about, Peugeot’s ‘big SUV’ joining the Autocar team for the next few months.

The Allure, and therefore the Crossway, is powered by a 1.6 turbopetrol turning the front wheels via a six-speed auto. Though it’s the entry model, it’s still $53k, but is well dressed. Peugeot’s i-Cockpit lays the 12-inch configurable display above the squashed donut steering wheel with the eight-inch touchscreen on the centrestack being the master controller for the interior functions.

This has you covered and with the help of a few hard menu buttons, you can get things done with relative ease. The 5008’s cabin is smartly styled with various curved surfaces melding cohesively and the interesting dash treatment continues around on to the door trims. Its seats are manually adjusted, not a big deal, as they are comfy and supportive.

And we’ll tell you after our experiences whether the Alcantara is as hard wearing as it is suave. There’s enough cabin storage for family life, the centre bin generous, so too the door pockets, though nothing is lined. The glovebox however is all but useless due to the fuse box location. There are the now usual safety items including AEB with pedestrian detection, blind spot monitors, lane departure warning, driver attention alert and speed limit sign recognition.

So no active cruise but the AEB incorporates a warning when you’re too close to the car in front, reminding you to back off. Other bits include an electric tailgate with foot waggling opening function, a wireless phone charger and smart key.

Can a 1.6 pull this 1530kg wagon along adequately? Well, it never feels wanting with sufficient torque below 3000rpm for urban sorties. There’s no idle stop function, so no hesitation off the mark, and the boost is streaming quickly. The four will kick on, 0-100km/h taking 10.3sec, and extends itself to 6000rpm for the overtake, but with 205m required, best leave such moves for the passing lane.

The six-speeder is up to task, neither too relaxed nor intent on hooking high gears for economy. When you need more, the sport button helps when tackling the hill roads with better gear selection and throttle response. It’d be nice to have a little more connection from the steering however, and the small wheel does feel a little odd when driving a larger machine like the 5008. This wears 18-inch alloys shod with what are labelled ‘Mud and Snow’ tyres. These types usually surrender grip on wet roads, but the Contis perform well in slippery conditions, progressively edging toward their limits.

The traction control is also well versed in the wet, good at soothing the torque but keeping things trucking. As the 5008 isn’t really an SUV per se, it has decent body control in bends, and the ride is sorted, with just a bit of pattering at the rear over the bumps, while the road noise is reasonably subdued.

We collected the 5008 with only a few delivery kays on the clock, but have accumulated 511 mainly city-type kays, averaging 10.8L/100km according to the computer. Though versus actual fuel used, (57.3L) that equates to 11.2. That’s more than the urban cycle claim of 10.2, so hopefully both the engine’s efficiency and the computer’s accuracy improve with mileage. There are seven seats on board with three individual chairs across the second row, fitting either a trio of regular humanoids or halflings in car seats, with all the positions having Isofix points.

Handy bits include window blinds, tray tables and you can fold the middle seat flat so kids can access the rear easier. There’s not much leg room in the back however without sliding the second row forward a tad to accommodate lower limbs.

The folding system for the rear seats is straightforward, but the cover for the boot floor seems a tad flimsy and fiddly. Hopefully it’s still functioning as intended once we’ve finished with it.