FAMILY CAR REVIEW: 2019 PEUGEOT 3008

How big is the boot of the Peugeot 3008?

The Peugeot 3008 has a practical shape and size boot. From empty, it would hold eleven shopping bags, that's one less than the Hyundai Tucson and VW Tiguan and two less than the Mazda CX-5.

The Mountain Buggy Duet twin stroller fits with two shopping bags.

The Britax Flexx tandem stroller fits with five 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 Tulsi’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.

The Mountain Buggy Urban Jungle single stroller fits with four shopping bags beside it.

The Mountain Buggy Nano compact stroller fitted with eight shopping bags beside it.

Or you could fit a medium size dog in there! The boot floor is nice and flat so good for an emergency nappy change.

How good is storage inside the Peugeot 3008?

Storage in the cabin of the Peugeot 3008 is good; there are two cup holders in the central console that will hold a re-usable and a disposable coffee cup.

Behind them, the central console storage box is a good, deep size and there is a felt-lined tray in the top for your glasses (as there is no glasses case in the ceiling).

In front of the gear lever is a cordless phone charging well and a 12V and USB socket in there too.

The glove box is small; it would only hold my wallet with the manual, the iPad would not fit.

The door bins in the front will hold a large refillable water bottle although the doorhandles are not little storage wells in the front they go straight through.

In the back, the door bins are smaller but will still hold a large refillable water bottle and the handles do act as little storage wells, which is great for putting the keys in when loading bub in and out of the car.

There are map pockets in the back of both front seats that will hold but not conceal an iPad. There is a small shelf below the rear air vents in the back of the central console box and another 12V socket there too.

In a fold-down armrest in the central seatback are two cup holders. They would hold a disposable or reusable coffee cup.

How noisy is the Peugeot 3008?

The Peugeot 3008 is a lovely quiet BabyDrive; it is smooth and you are cocooned from a lot of the usual exterior noise and stimulation when driving, which is great.

The media system in the Peugeot 3008 is a bit slow to react so that when you pressanything on the touch screen there is a delay which makes you second press because you think you mustn't have pressed it the first time! I did get used to it over the week but we are used to technology being much more instant. I did find it nice and easy to connect my phone to and it has Apple CarPlay and Android Auto, which is great.

To select menus within the media screen you use the silver paddles on the dash below the screen, which is a little bit different but I found it easy to get used to and I really like the design and feel of the silver paddles to use.

The reversing camera does have a handly bird's-eye view as well, which I found really useful when manouvering.

The parking sensors can be turned on and off within the screen settings.

The sat-nav is quite easy to use and navigate but it is laid out in a list format which felt a little old fashioned.

You can turn the voice commands off deep within the screen settings and lists but it is not as simple as a one touch button unfortunately.

All the air-con in the 3008 is almost completely controlled using the touch screen and because of its slow response and the temperature changing only half a degree with each press, changing the temperature was super annoying!

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.

The lane departure warning makes a beeping noise to alert you in the 3008. I have found it is rather sensitive so it could be baby waking! It can be turned on and off by pressing the car icon on the dash, then through the media screen.

The Peugeot 3008 also has a beeping warning for the forward collision warning and if it thinks you are too close to the vehicle in front of you, then it beeps to warn you of that too.

The indicators aren't very quiet in the 3008 and could disturb a sleeping baby.

Road and engine noise is good in the Peugeot 3008; it can rev a little loudly when going up hill but nothing baby waking.

The doors in the 3008 are lovely and quiet to open and close, the windows however have quite a loud mechanism and they close with a considerable thump. Both can be locked from the driver's door control panel and I found both the doors and windows are really nice and quiet and would not disturb small sleeping passengers when opening and closing them. You can come to a stop with the engine still running and get out of the car without sounding any alarms.

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 with a really good visual in the ceiling (where a sunglasses case would usually be) that lets you know exactly which seatbelt in the front or back is undone.

How many child seats fit in the Peugeot 3008?

There are three top tether anchorages in the back of the 3008's rear seat backrests. The outer two are clearly marked, though they are not within plastic guides and tucked behind the seat back fabric. Despite this they are nice and easy to connect to.

The central top tether anchorage is a D-shaped metal loop.

There are ISOFix points in the two outer rear seats. They are not within plastic guides but are still nice and easy to connect to due to the way Peugeot has stitched the fabric around them.

The rear seats are nice and flat and wide, which made installing child seats easier.

To my surprise I could fit three forward-facing child seats in the back of the Peugeot 3008; it was a bit of a squeeze but they fit!

I also tested two forward-facing and a rear-facing and they fitted well too. With a rear-facing child seat installed there was room for a 180cm driver in front of it.

We did find space felt quite cramped in the back during the week we tested the Peugeot 3008. Space when loading and unloading bub into their rear-facing child seats is good, the doorways are spacious and the ceiling inside is nice and high.

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.

How comfortable is the Peugeot 3008? And How good is the Peugeot 3008 to drive?

In the front of the Peugeot 3008, the seats are very comfortable. They are upholstered with hounds-tooth, grey marl and solid woven panels, with contrast stitching and I LOVE the combination of textures. They are like a really successfully put together winter outfit! I'm not sure how practical they are for keeping clean from kids' crumbs and spills but for keeping mummy's eyes happy they get a big tick!!

The headrests are not adjustable but 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 comfortable at the sides. I could feel the fold-down armrest in the central seat back.

There is a low hump in the central footwell, although it is not too bad to rest your feet on or straddle.

For the first year of Tulsi’s life when we would go out as a family, if I wasn’t driving, I would travel in the back with Tulsi 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 was fully adjustable in/out and up/down. I love the different shape of the steering wheel; it is more petite than most and the driving position means it sits lower so your arms can be in a more relaxed position while driving.

The cruise controls are on a stalk behind the steeringwheel on the left hand side. Although they are quite simple to use, you can't see them at all while driving and that makes them quite hard to use. I am sure after a while you would instinctively know how to control them via touch but to begin with it helps to be able to see them!!

There are four air-conditioning vents across the front dashboard; two long central ones and a smaller one at either end.

The air-con controls are within the media screen and would be easy to use if the screen response wasn't so slow!

There are also two 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 is a 12V socket too.

The controls for the aircon are within the media screen, they are nice and easy to reach and use while driving.

There are carpet floor mats throughout the 3008 too.

The rear interior lights are located centrally in the ceiling but too far back to reach them from the driver's seat while driving!

I have found Tulsi 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.

There are handles above the rear doors to hang a child's toy from and the headrests will hold a rear-facing conversation mirror.

Visibility in the Peugeot 3008 is quite good, I didn't encounter any problems with visibility in my week of driving.

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 Tulsi 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 3008 was easy to park.

Aesthetically the Peugeot 3008 looks and feels like a great five-seater SUV. It is just the media screen that lets it down a little for me and doesn't make it a favourite like its big sister the 5008.

How safe is the Peugeot 3008?

The Peugeot 3008 scored a five-star ANCAP safety rating in 2017.

Scoring a total of 86% or 32.9 out of 38 for adult occupancy. Broken down into 7.47 out of 8 for the full-width frontal crash test, 6.99 out of 8 for the frontal offset test. Full marks for the side impact test, 7.92 out of 8 for the pole test and 2.50 out of 3 for the whiplash test.

For Child Occupancy protection the Peugeot 3008 scored 42 out of 49 which is 85%.

Six airbags come as standard; there is are dual frontal airbags and front side airbags and side head curtain airbags for the front and the rear side passengers.

As standard, all models of the Peugeot 3008 come with seat belt pre-tensioners in both the front seats and rear outboard positions, anti-lock braking system (ABS),  automatic headlights,  daytime running lights (DRL), hill launch assist, electronic brake-force distribution (EBD), electronic stability control (ESC), emergency brake assist (EBA), emergency stop signal (ESS), fatigue reminder, lane departure warning (LDW), reversing collision avoidance camera, speed assistance – automatic / intelligent speed limiting (ISA), speed assistance – manual speed limiting speed assistance – speed sign recognition traffic sign recognition, tyre pressure monitoring system (TPMS) all come as standard.

Available on some variants are adaptive cruise control (ACC), autonomous emergency braking (AEB) for the city, Interurban and VRU, automatic high beam, blind spot monitoring (BSM), forward collision warning (FCW), lane keep assist (LKA).

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 Tulsi’s asleep!