2021 Peugeot 3008 Allure 1.6T Review

We’re big fans of the Peugeot 3008 here at DiscoverAuto. It’s a medium SUV that can do so much: it’s practical, good to drive, well equipped and offers a range of good powerplants (with plug-in hybrid variants on their way soon). We tested the top-spec GT Sport recently and found that it was a great car but that it was sadly priced at the top end of the segment. What’s the 3008 like in a less expensive form? We tested the 2021 Peugeot 3008 Allure to find out.

The Allure variant of the 3008 range is the entry-level car that’s priced from $44,990 plus on-road costs. While overseas you can get a proper base model Active, Peugeot Australia canned that with the 3008’s recent mid-life update. The 3008 competes in the hugely popular medium SUV segment against cars such as the Volkswagen Tiguan, Mazda CX-5, Skoda Karoq, Toyota RAV4, Hyundai Tucson, Kia Sportage and Ford Escape. 

Price & Equipment: 7/10

Priced at $44,990 plus on-road costs (around $50,000 drive away), the 2021 Peugeot 3008 Allure is not cheap to buy, but it is well equipped. Standard equipment includes all-LED lighting including front and rear LED daytime running lights, half cloth and leather upholstery, 18-inch alloy wheels, dual-zone climate control with rear air vents, multiple USB ports, a 10.0-inch touchscreen with satellite navigation, wired Apple CarPlay and Android Auto, digital radio, wireless phone charging, a six-speaker sound system, auto lights and wipers, a digital driver’s display, an electric tailgate with kick-to-open functionality, roof rails, keyless entry and start and heated and auto-folding mirrors. 

All models feature a long list of standard safety equipment too with six airbags, auto emergency braking (AEB) with day and night pedestrian and cyclist detection, blind-spot monitoring, adaptive cruise control, speed sign recognition, speed sign recognition, driver attention alert, lane keep assist with lane departure warning, auto parking, a reversing camera that combines with a front camera to create a 360-degree camera – in theory – and auto high beam. 

The only options available for the 3008 Allure are the premium paint options, which range from $690 for ‘Platinum Grey’, ‘Nera Black’ and the ‘Artense Grey’ of our test car to $1,050 for ‘Ultimate Red’, ‘Pearl White’ and ‘Vertigo Blue’. ‘Celebes Blue’ is the only no-cost colour choice. 

We see the Skoda Karoq 110TSI (from $36,990 drive away – $47,390 drive away fully loaded) and the Mazda CX-5 GT ($49,990 drive away) as the the 3008’s main competitors. They’re both – like the 3008 – on the smaller side of the segment and end up quite similarly priced. Around $50,000 drive away gets you a fully loaded Karoq 110TSI with the three optional packs and a panoramic roof or the second-from-top CX-5 GT, which still features leather upholstery, a sunroof and 19-inch wheels. 

At this price, both the Skoda and Mazda offer more kit than the Peugeot. Both feature full leather upholstery with heated front seats, electric adjustment for the driver’s seat with memory functionality, branded premium 10-speaker sound systems, sunroofs – the Mazda’s is a single pane unit while the Skoda’s is panoramic, cornering lights and front fog lights, automatic rear braking and in the case of the Mazda, a heads-up display and all-wheel drive. The Skoda also features auto parking, switchable LED mood lighting, a driver’s knee airbag and emergency assist, which gently stops the car if the driver becomes unresponsive.

Performance & Economy: 7/10

The 2021 Peugeot 3008 Allure uses the same 121kW/240Nm 1.6-litre turbocharged four-cylinder petrol engine as the pre-update models, while the top-spec GT Sport has earned a new 133kW/250Nm 1.6L turbo engine that’s matched to an eight-speed auto, which is two more gears than the lower-powered engine. The newer engine is 1.1 seconds faster to 100km/h (8.8 versus 9.9), and it’s also more efficient at just 5.6L/100km combined (versus 7.0L/100km of the older engine).

The lower-output engine offers more than enough grunt for everyday use. Peak 240Nm of torque hits at just 1,400rpm, which ensures that you’re in the torque band just after pressing the accelerator. This aides the 3008’s drivability significantly as you don’t have to rev it to get the most out of it. When you do, you find that the 3008’s engine is willing, though it’s not particularly quick or nice to listen to – in fact, with its whiney engine note, it almost sounds strained. But is it worth spending another $10,000 for the punchier engine in the GT Sport? We think not – though the $6,000 jump to the GT diesel is definitely worth consideration as you get more kit and a better performing and yet also much more efficient engine. 

The six-speed automatic transmission in the 3008 Allure is a good unit. Made by Japanese company Aisin, it’s a torque converter auto that rarely puts a foot wrong. It’s a slightly lazy auto though, and upchanges as early as possible to preserve fuel – that’s very common these days, but the 3008 Allure’s auto holds a higher gear as long as possible except at around 80km/h, where it’s constantly changing between fifth and sixth gear, which is annoying. The eight-speed torque converter auto – also made by Aisin – in the Skoda Karoq is more intuitive.

Peugeot claims that the 3008 Allure uses 7.0L/100km on a combined cycle, and we achieved 9.4L/100km in our testing. Interestingly, moving up to the GT Sport’s newer engine of the same capacity (but with slightly more power and torque) increases the fuel economy to just 5.6L/100km, though the 131kW/400Nm 2.0L diesel in the GT uses just 5.0L/100km combined. Like other Peugeots, the 3008 Allure needs minimum 95RON premium unleaded and it has a 53-litre fuel tank.

Ride & Handling: 9/10

Based on Peugeot Citroen’s ‘EMP2’ platform, the 3008 uses a traditional multi-link front/torsion beam rear suspension set up. This looks positively old-fashioned against the multi-link set up of the CX-5, and torsion beams traditionally ride worse than more advanced set ups, but the French love the torsion beam and it shows in how well-tuned the 3008’s ride is. 

Even on the 18-inch wheels of the Allure, the urban ride quality is excellent and typically French. Even larger bumps simply do not phase the 3008 and it feels solid, no matter how rubbish the road is. Particularly impressive is its ability to settle quickly after even a large bump and on country roads, the 3008 is even better with a solid and planted feel. It definitely rides better than the Karoq and the independently-rear suspended CX-5, that’s for sure. We didn’t see that coming!

The 3008 rides well but it’s also a respectable handler too. It doesn’t quite hit the highs of the CX-5, but it’s also more comfortable around town. It also doesn’t feature adaptive dampers, which we think adds to the simple drivetrain feel of the 3008 – its low 1,390kg tare weight is 300kg less than the all-wheel drive CX-5. Get on a good country road and the 3008 is actually quite fun to drive with a keen chassis and a darty feel that’s no doubt enhanced by the low kerb weight. 

The steering is particularly nice too with a well-weighted feel, and a quick rack making it feel quite nimble. The smaller steering wheel can take time to get used to, but it just adds to the go-kart feel of the 3008’s chassis. Road noise levels are also relatively low, and visibility is good thanks to large windows and a relatively boxy rear end. In all, the 3008 drives very well, and while it’s great in the city, it’s also excellent as a long distance country touring machine. 

Interior & Practicality: 9/10

Despite launching five years ago, inside the 2021 Peugeot 3008 Allure still feels fresh and still offers one of the most interesting designs in the mid-size SUV segment. The quality is fantastic as well, with liberal use of soft-touch plastics, comfortable and attractive half leather and cloth seats, appealing cloth on the dashboard and doors and lots of funky touches, such as the piano keys underneath the touchscreen. Put simply, the quality inside the 3008 is best in class, and it’s a testament to how hard Peugeot has worked on its quality over the past five years.

Peugeot’s ‘i-Cockpit’ digital driver’s display caused some controversy thanks to its unusual layout with the dials mounted above the small steering wheel. This writer quite likes it – the high positioning negates the need to have a heads-up display as the screen is mounted within your line of sight – but people shorter than my six-foot frame may not.

Centre of the 3008’s cabin is a new 10-inch touchscreen that features wired Apple CarPlay and Android Auto, as well as satellite navigation and digital radio. Unlike the pre-updated 3008’s smaller 8.0-inch screen, the new screen shows the set temperature on each side of the main audio display – you still annoyingly have to go into another menu to change it, though. The screen’s resolution could be sharper as well, and every control requires a hard press. But worst of all is the grainy 360-degree parking camera, which looks positively cartoonish. Screen quality and ergonomics are definitely better in the Karoq and CX-5. 

The rest of the 3008’s cabin is great though. Unlike a lot of past French cars, it’s actually quite a practical space. There are reasonable cupholders, a large tray area under the screen with a wireless phone charging spot, a huge centre console bin, large flock-lined door bins and the typically-small right-hand drive conversion glovebox. 

The rear seat of the 3008 is not massive but it’s more than big enough for two adults with ample headroom, much like the Karoq and CX-5. Six-footers will be fine sitting behind each other. The rear seat also features a centre arm rest, air vents, two USB-C ports, a 12V socket, the same flock-lined door bins as the front and two map pockets. 

The boot of the 2021 Peugeot 3008 is huge at 591-litres – this eclipses both the 588L Karoq and 432L CX-5. Folding the rear seats down flat unlocks 1,670L of space – larger than the Karoq’s 1,605L (though removing its rear seats entirely opens up 1,810L) and the CX-5’s 1,342L. The boot is also well featured with hooks, a 12V socket and a dual-layer boot floor. Under the floor is a space-saver spare. 

Service & Running Costs: 7/10

Like both Skoda and Mazda, the Peugeot range is covered by a five-year/unlimited km warranty. Skoda only provides one year of roadside assistance – both Mazda and Peugeot cover their products with a longer five-year term. The Peugeot’s service intervals are once yearly or every 20,000km, whichever comes first – 5,000km more than the Skoda and double that of the Mazda’s short 10,000km intervals. Those travelling longer than 15,000km annually will like the Peugeot’s longer service intervals, though it’s not cheap to maintain. 

Servicing the 3008 Allure over five years/100,000km costs $2,767 ($535 per service), which is expensive. The CX-5 GT costs $1,969 for five years but only 50,000km of servicing ($393 per service) and the Karoq costs $2,284 over five years/75,000km ($456 per service), though buyers can pay $1,400 for the same timeframe of servicing ($280 per service) at time of purchase and that also includes five years of roadside assistance.

The 2021 Peugeot 3008 Allure DiscoverAuto Rating: 7.8/10

The 2021 Peugeot 3008 Allure is an excellent range-opener for Peugeot’s excellent mid-size SUV. While it’s not quite as well equipped as the top spec GT Sport, there isn’t much in it – larger wheels, black styling details, Nappa leather upholstery and a punchier sound system are the biggest differences. And for an extra $10,000, the GT Sport seems like poor value – and that’s even without considering that rivals from both Skoda and Mazda are much better equipped at the Allure’s level, let alone the GT Sport’s $60,000 drive away pricing.

The long list of 3008 attributes are still loud and clear in the base model Allure without the GT Sport’s extra tinsel – it still drives very well, the cabin is excellently finished and quite practical, the engine is willing and reasonably efficient and although it’s a subjective point to make, it still looks excellent. It’s still not great value for money, but the 3008 Allure is better value than its siblings and is a great family SUV. But do check out the competition as – even at the entry-level – you do get more standard equipment with some other brands.