Peugeot E-2008 GT long-term test: holiday highlights EV’s pros and cons

Verdict

A refresh has given the Peugeot E-2008 a new lease of life; it might not be the most contemporary electric car, but a trip to Cornwall showed it in a more modern light. We’re looking forward to getting under its skin.

• Mileage: 2,055
• Efficiency: 4.0mi/kWh

You may have noticed more and more Auto Express staffers are taking their electric test cars on holiday. Only a few weeks ago editor-at-large John McIlroy drove his Polestar 2 to France, proving there’s now very little to stop EV owners venturing further and further afield.

So the fact that just days after taking delivery of our new Peugeot E-2008 I drove it to deepest Cornwall, isn’t that newsworthy. Indeed, I’ve driven upwards of 40,000 miles in various electric cars over the last five or six years – including the same trip to the West Country three summers on the trot.

Every June, we travel to a tiny hamlet called St Anthony-in-Meneage just outside Helston. It’s about 20 miles from Falmouth, but once you’ve arrived, it feels like you’re stepping back in time. There’s no shop, no post office – not even a pub.

Yet it’s the perfect place for a mental detox. Providing the weather is kind, there is honestly no place I’d rather be – enjoying the fresh air and the calm creek with my extended family, it’s perfect for sailing, walking, and even a spot of paddle boarding.

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The place is a complete time-warp – something that was only emphasised when Sean, one of the people responsible for keeping the coastal community ticking over, turned up on his Ford tractor to pull one of the many boats from the water.

While my knowledge of vintage farm machinery leaves a little to be desired, I’m led to believe this specific example dates back to the mid-sixties. Wikipedia (not the most reliable source, admittedly) tells me it’s likely powered by a three-cylinder water-cooled engine with around 35bhp.

So if the juxtaposition of taking an EV to these parts wasn’t evident enough already, Sean’s noisy arrival brought the Cornish contrasts with my latest fleet car into sharp focus. The Peugeot certainly isn’t the most cutting-edge car on sale, but it felt like a spaceship in this company.

The 2008 did us proud over the course of a week and 700-odd miles. It’s on the smaller end of the family-car scale, and at times, the 154bhp front-mounted motor did feel a bit laboured with two adults, a toddler, and all our luggage on board. But we were never in a hurry, so easing off and letting the world go by became the priority.

I’ve averaged a respectable 4.0 miles/kWh over the first 1,800 miles, although a lot of that has been longer motorway stints. 

I’ve seen as much as 5.5mi/kWh around town using the ‘B’ mode to ramp up the regenerative braking and feed power back into the battery. It’s not strong enough for one-pedal driving, but it’s pretty well judged and feels progressive in its application, even when you need a bit more stopping power.

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Our car is the range-topping E-2008 GT, which looks relatively expensive in a market dominated by models like the Hyundai Kona, MG4, and even our newly announced Car of the Year – the Citroen e-C3. As such, you’d be mad to buy the Peugeot outright; but find an affordable PCP or lease deal, and there is plenty to pique the interest.

As standard, you get all-round LED lights, 17-inch alloy wheels, climate control, a 10-inch HD touchscreen with 180-degree reversing camera, and Peugeot’s polarising i-Cockpit instrument cluster. This forces you to look over the steering wheel (rather than through it) to see your speed and trip info, and while I don’t find it too much of a challenge, a couple of colleagues say they’ve found it hard to get truly comfortable.

It’s a shame, because the 2008 strikes a good balance in this regard. It’s darty enough to be fun on a twisty back road, small enough to navigate easily around town, and soft enough to soak up the lumps and bumps on the motorway. The seats could do with a little more support, but I’ve recently discovered the massage function that’s fitted to my car, which seems to keep the blood circulating in my back after a couple of hours at the wheel.

Seems there’s plenty to unpick in the coming months, then. The biggest question, though, will be how private buyers could (or should) justify the Peugeot when more affordable – and often more modern – alternatives are already flooding the new-car market. More on that in a future report.

*Insurance quote from AA (0800 107 0680) for a 42-year-old in Banbury, Oxon, with three points.