I LOVE the seven-seater Peugeot 5008 SUVÂ and the small five-seater Peugeot 2008 a little bit too much so you can understand why I was EXTREMELY excited to pick up this very attractive 2023 Peugeot 308 GT can't you?!…
The Peugeot 308 is a hot-looking little five-seater car. Its low-slung green exterior makes you want to get in and drive. Let’s find out how good it is as a BabyDrive…
Affectionately named “froggie” by my two-year-old (more to do with the colour than insulting the French people who made it), the gorgeous green exterior of the car I tested continues with details in the interior with contrast stitch details on the doors, dash and steering wheel to match the paint colour…
…and in the media screen and driver's display panel.
The seats are super comfy and the interior is minimal and modern.
When it comes to family practicality the Peugeot 308 a pretty good. In the rear seats, there are ISOFix points in both the outer rear seats, they are behind beautifully concealed zips…
..and top tether anchorages on the back of all three rear seat backs.
With a rear-facing child seat behind the driver's seat, legroom is very minimal; I can only just sit in front of a rear-facing Attain More and I’m 162cm! However, with forward-facing child seats, we can fit a 186cm passenger in front of them.
If you have one child in a car seat, then there is room next to it for two older kids to sit beside it comfortably.
When it comes to storage, the Peugeot 308 is quite minimal, especially in the back, with just small net map pockets that will hold but not conceal an iPad.
A small phone shelf is in the back of the central console box and door bins will hold a water bottle.
In the front things are more generous with two cup holders that will hold a reusable or disposable coffee cup.
A wireless phone charging pad and a tray below it with a USB socket are provided and the generously sized central console box will hold a large water bottle or, in VERY French style, a wine bottle!!
The glove box is a good size to hold a wallet and iPad and the door bins are large enough in the front for a large refillable water bottle and iPad.
Storage in the boot of the Peugeot 308 is good, holding ten bags from empty. That’s comparable to the Volkswagen Golf which also holds ten shopping bags and Honda Civic which holds thirteen shopping bags.
The boot will also comfortably hold a twin side-by-side pram…
…or a double modular pram.
The air-conditioning settings are controlled through the media screen and I did struggle with the lack of real buttons, especially in the Australian summer climate.  I still prefer real buttons and dials for this but the latest Peugeot system isn't too bad.
The reversing camera image is nice and clear and the birds-eye view helps when parking and manoeuvring.
Driving the Peugeot 308 is great as it's nippy and responsive, it has light steering and a tight turning circle which makes it especially good in school and supermarket car parks.
How big is the boot of the 2023 Peugeot 308 GT Hatch?
The 2023 Peugeot 308 GT hatch has a practical shape and surprisingly good sized boot with a small net area on the left for small items.
From empty, it would hold ten shopping bags, comparable to the Volkswagen Golf which also holds ten shopping bags and the Honda Civic which holds thirteen shopping bags.
A twin pram fits in the boot of the Peugeot 308 and you'd have enough room above for a couple of bags in there too.
A tandem pram fits in the boot of the Peugeot 308 with two shopping bags.
The boot space and its functionality are really important. I like to have a big boot space and little side wells or areas I can divide things into. So something I don’t want to move around while I’m driving such as Bub’s lunch bag or her wet swimming gear can be sectioned off in a little well where it’s not going to spill or get squashed by the rest of the things in the boot.
Hooks for securing shopping bags to are also favourites of mine, I like being able to secure the bag containing more fragile things like eggs so they don’t move around on the journey.
I measure the boot space in freezer shopping bags, prams and dogs. Not because I think all there is to a mum’s life is food shopping, prams and dogs. (Although it can feel like it sometimes!!) But because these are visually mesurable items we can all associate with. For me, the car company boot measurement of litres is not an amount I can easily visualise and 400L in one car may differ in usability to that in another due to the configuration or shape of the space.
A single pram or stroller fits in the boot of the Peugeot 308 with two shopping bags beside it.
A compact stroller fits in the boot with eight shopping bags beside it.
The boot floor of the Peugeot 308 is nice and flat, making it good for an emergency nappy change and good for transporting the family pet dog; you could fit a small-size dog in the boot if you took the parcel shelf out. Peugeot also makes a wagon version of the 308 if you need a bigger boot!
How good is storage inside the 2023 Peugeot 308 GT hatch?
Storage in the front cabin of the 2023 Peugeot 3008 is good too; there are two cup holders in the central console they are both a good size to hold a reusable and a disposable coffee cup.
Behind them, the central console storage box is a good, deep size (great for holding a bottle of wine!) and there is a USB-C point in there too.
In front of the cup holders are two phone shelves. One has a wireless phone charging pad and the other has a USB and 12V socket.
The glove box will hold my iPad and wallet with the manual.
The door bins in the front will hold a large refillable water bottle and an iPad fits in them too.
In the back, the door bins are smaller, they will still hold a refillable water bottle and an iPad fits too. The handles act as little storage wells in the back, which is great for storing little distractions in when buckling Bub into their harness!
There are net map pockets on the back of both front seats in the 2023 Peugeot 308 that will hold but not conceal an iPad. There is a small shelf for a phone below the rear air vents in the back of the central console box and two USB sockets there which is great for rear charging.
There is no fold-down armrest in the central seatback so there are no cup holders in the back of the 2023 Peugeot 308 GT hatch.
BabyDrive Indepth - Noise
How noisy is the 2023 Peugeot 308 GT?
The 2023 Peugeot 308 is a nice, quiet BabyDrive. The media screen is a nice big touchscreen that has the green accents to match the outside of the car. It is controlled using the buttons below it on the central dashboard to select menus and then the touch screen (I preferred the silver paddles in the Peugeot 3008).
The Peugeot 308 has Apple CarPlay and Android Auto, making connecting your phone and using its navigation, messaging and listening apps easy to access on the move.
Within the media system, you also have sat-nav.
The climate controls are within the media screen and I found it quite difficult while driving to have this three-step process to change the fan speed etc.
The reversing camera image is lovely and clear and the birds-eye view is very helpful when parking.
Becoming a parent I soon realised there are some noises and sounds I feel are unnecessary and I could happily live without if it meant my baby stayed asleep!!
That often the distraction of my screaming, distressed baby is more dangerous when driving than not having a lane departure warning for example.
If it is the lane departure warning beeping that creates distress with my baby then which is safest?
It’s where I think we need to be able to strike a balance and choose when we can mute the warnings or swap them to a vibration in the steering wheel or flashing light perhaps?
A lot of these noises come with the increase in technology and especially linked to safety features and alerts. For me these all have their place.
Another thing I have realised is I spend my time in a lot more places where small children roam, parks, beaches, play gyms, swimming lessons, daycare centre etc. I have become more aware that when I’m reversing or manouvering in the car parks I have to tripple check for small children running around behind me or being in my blind spot when reversing. For this I LOVE reversing cameras, I just don’t like their beeping sounds!!
I have become so much more aware of safety and potential accidents or hazards since having a child and so I love the peace of mind that I get from the cameras and sensors combined with my own vision from windows and mirrors as I don’t trust cameras alone.
Road and engine noise is good in the Peugeot 308, the 308 has a bit of a growl and there is the usual engine sound when going uphill but nothing baby-waking.
The windows in the Peugeot 308 can be locked from the driver's door control panel and I found they are pretty quiet and would not disturb small sleeping passengers when opening and closing them.
The doors in the 308 are quite quiet to open and close and would not disturb a sleeping Bub.
Since becoming a mum I spend A LOT of time parked up somewhere with a nice view while my daughter is asleep in the back! If it's hot I need to leave the engine running and the aircon on but I do like to get out and drink my cuppa tea in the fresh air while enjoying the fact my limbs are free from said dangling child!!
So this is a very important test as I have found that sometimes I have been held hostage by a cars BEEEEPING alarms when I have taken off my seatbelt or opened the door while the engine is still running!! (I only stand outside the car, I am not a bad mother!!)
There is a seatbelt removal alarm and a really good visual in the ceiling (where a sunglasses case would usually be) for both the front and rear seatbelts.
BabyDrive Indepth - Car Seats
How many child seats fit in the 2023 Peugeot 308 GT?
There are three top tether anchorages in the back of the 308's rear seat backrests. They are all clearly labelled, though they are not within plastic guides and tucked behind the seat back fabric. They are nice and easy to connect to and access through the boot.
There are ISOFix points in the two outer rear seats. They are not within plastic guides but are behind beautifully concealed zips.
The rear seats are quite sculpted at the edges…
…so as a result we found that two Infasecure child seats fit in the back comfortably with a bit of breathing space between them. I installed the Infasecure Attain More and Achieve More.
With a rear-facing Infasecure Attain More child seat installed, there was only just room for me, a 162cm driver in front of it.
However, with forward-facing child seats in the back we could fit a 186cm passenger or driver in front.
We found with forward-facing child seats in the back the Peugeot 308 didn't feel cramped for our family of four and was a good balance of style and family practicality. Posting Bub into her seat was okay in the 308 and even though it is a low car I didn't find it a problem.
Australia being a country of weather extremes; blazing sun and torrential rain, mean you may find it easier to put Bub into their seat from inside the car sometimes. If it’s hot you can get the air-con going, cool the car down and not stand out in the sun while you fasten them in or shelter from the rain and not get soaked yourself whilst you’re doing it. So it is important to test whether Bub can be easily installed from either direction!
There is plenty of room to feed bub in the back if you only have one child seat installed.
BabyDrive Indepth - Drive & Comfort
How comfortable is the 2023 Peugeot 308 GT hatch? And how good is the 2023 Peugeot 308 GT hatch to drive?
In the front of the 2023 Peugeot 308 GT hatch, the seats are very comfortable and well-shaped so they feel nice and snug. They are upholstered with perforated leather panels.
The headrests are not adjustable backwards and forwards and I found I couldn't have a ponytail in the driver's seat.
I had spent hours styling my hair this morning to get this ponytail just right too… said no new mum ever!!!
For a mum travelling in the back with Bub, the seats are very comfortable. There is a small hump in the central footwell which is great for resting your feet on and makes moving between the rear seats easier.
For the first year of Bub’s life when we would go out as a family, if I wasn’t driving, I would travel in the back with Bub so it’s important to check the back seat comfort as you may be spending a lot of time in them! They were never something I gave any thought to before but I definitely notice a good or bad back seat now!
The steering wheel is nice and slim, so it fits very comfortably in your hands and I love the slightly different shape and lower positioning of it, making for a really comfortable driving position. The steering wheel is fully adjustable in/out and up/down, with cruise controls on the left-hand side. I found these easy to use and very accurate.
There are four horizontal air-conditioning vents across the front dashboard; two central ones and another at either end.
The air-con controls are within the media screen which I found tricky to use while driving, I'd prefer old-school buttons and dials!
There are two small air vents in the back of the central console box for rear passengers as well. I found I could reach those while driving and there are two USB sockets here too for rear passengers to charge their devices.
There are two tiny rear interior lights located centrally at the rear ceiling. They are too far back to reach from the driver's seat while driving. There are handles above both rear doors that are great for hanging a toy from for little rear-facing passengers.
I have found Bub does not like travelling in the dark in the car so if it gets dark whilst travelling then I reach back and turn the interior light on for her. So it’s really important for me that I can reach the rear ceiling light.
Also if I am traveling home and it is getting near to bed time and I DEFINITELY DON’T want her to fall asleep in the car as even a five-minute nap in the car means bed time is all over!!!! I lean back and pop the light on so it’s not dark and try to keep her awake!! Along with screaming/singing at the top of my voice!!!
It is also useful when there are lights situated above the doors where the handles are usually positioned. These are good for when putting baby into their child seats when visibility is poor, so you do not have to reach across them to a light situated in the ceiling centrally etc.
Visibility in the 2023 Peugeot 308 GT with two child seats in the back is good. The rear-view camera image is nice and clear and great for reversing and manoeuvring.
One thing I have noticed since being a mum is I hate it when I reach a destination or get home from being out and Bub has either done really well in the car or she is screaming her head off and I have done really well to keep it together for the entire journey (usually the latter!!) and it takes 10 minutes to park the car! It can be really stressful. Usually I dread parking new cars as they take longer in our tight apartment block carpark, but the Peugeot 308 was easy to park.
Aesthetically the 2023 Peugeot 308 GT hatch looks AWESOME and feels like a great five-seater hatch for a family of four. This joins my Peugeot love list with the Peugeot 2008 and the Peugeot 5008.
It scored a total of 79% for adult occupancy protection and for child occupancy protection the Peugeot 308 scored 86%. ANCAP wrote this about their findings in the child occupancy crash testing-
In the frontal offset test, protection of the neck of the 10 year dummy was MARGINAL and chest was ADEQUATE, while protection of the neck of the 6 year dummy was ADEQUATE. Otherwise, protection of both dummies was GOOD.
In the side impact test, protection of all critical body areas was GOOD for both dummies, and maximum points were scored.
The Peugeot 308 is fitted with lower ISOFix anchorages on the rear outboard seats and top tether anchorages for all rear seating positions.
Installation of typical child restraints available in Australia and New Zealand showed most child restraints could be accommodated in most rear seating positions, though the Type A capsule and the Type E booster could not be correctly installed in the centre rear position.
Six airbags come as standard; there are dual frontal airbags and front side airbags and side head curtain airbags for the front and the rear side passengers.
Some of these safety features are also features that drive me crazy as a mum! Like the lane departure and forward collision alert or the parking sensor beeping sound. I want all the safety technology AND to be able to mute the sound when Bub’s asleep!
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