Peugeot E-5008 review

Quick verdict

The appeal of the Peugeot E-5008 goes way beyond being one of the few electric cars available with seven seats. It balances style and substance very well, offering big space for passengers and their stuff, decent range and a refined, comfortable personality. It’s not an especially exciting car to drive, but you’ll quite quickly forgive that.

Peugeot E-5008: price, specs and rivals

There are plenty of seven-seater family cars available with petrol, diesel or even hybrid power – the Kia Sorento, Nissan X-Trail, and Skoda Kodiaq all spring immediately to mind. However, there are very few electric cars capable of ferrying an entire netball team to and from a match.

For a while, the only choices for an electric seven-seater were the circa-£100k Tesla Model X – no longer offered in right-hand drive – or ‘vans with windows’ like the Citroen e-Berlingo, Peugeot E-Rifter and Vauxhall Combo Life Electric. Then the Mercedes EQB arrived, followed by the colossal Kia EV9, the retro Volkswagen ID. Buzz LWB and, finally, the Peugeot E-5008.

The name will be familiar because the E-5008 is simply the zero-emissions version of the third-generation Peugeot 5008. Under the striking bodywork is the brand-new STLA Medium platform that allows for a selection of petrol-powered hybrid and pure-electric powertrains. It’s the same running gear used by its Peugeot 3008 and Peugeot E-3008 siblings, which aren’t as practical with their coupe-SUV shapes.

In 2025, there will be an all-wheel drive version of the E-5008 with 315bhp and another with up to 410 miles of range thanks to a whopping 98kWh battery. But the first to arrive is the ‘Electric 210’ which features a 73kWh battery and 210bhp front-mounted motor. 

The order books won't open in the UK until the autumn, so pricing is still under wraps. But we’ve been told to expect a roughly £2,500 premium over the equivalent E-3008, which would mean a starting price of just over £48,000 for the E-5008. That would undercut the Mercedes EQB by around £5,000, be over £10,000 cheaper than the ID. Buzz LWB that just launched, or roughly £17k less than the most basic Kia EV9.

With such a small price bump over the E-3008, we think many potential buyers will skip right past its smaller stablemate and go straight for its more practical E-5008. Peugeot thinks so too, because it’s considering launching a five-seat version for customers who know the third-row seats will never see any use.

For now, every E-5008 will come with seven seats as standard, along with a 21-inch curved HD screen, wireless Apple CarPlay and Android Auto, LED headlights, ambient lighting, a wireless smartphone charger, keyless entry and start, a reversing camera, and rear parking sensors. Upgrading from Allure to GT trim – the only two trim options – will add Alcantara upholstery, a hands-free powered tailgate, heated front seats, and adaptive cruise control.

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So far, the only Peugeot E-5008 we’ve tried is the ‘Electric 210’ version in Sweden. Power delivery from the 210bhp e-motor is smooth and much more progressive than in some EVs. It doesn’t have the rapid acceleration some have come to expect of EVs, even if you mash the accelerator in Sport mode. Still, the 9.7 second 0-62mph time of this 2.2-tonne SUV compares well with entry-level versions of the Kia EV9, and there’s enough still on tap in the E-5008 for overtaking and keeping pace with motorway traffic. 

Despite its size, the E-5008 doesn’t feel like an especially large car to drive, even around town and tight car parks, and visibility is good. The ride is well damped and takes the edge off the small imperfections, however we did notice some tyre roar – possibly a side effect of our test car’s 20-inch rims. But by and large, it’s not too bad. 

Paddles on the steering wheel let the driver toggle between the three levels for the regenerative braking system, with the strongest setting very nearly capable of full one-pedal driving.

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The entry-level Peugeot E-5008 offers an official range of up to 311 miles from its 73kWh battery. Based on the 3.6 miles per kWh we averaged during our test drive through uncharacteristically warm Scandinavia, the real-world figure is closer to 260 miles, which is still impressive for an EV of this size. However, that was with just two people in the car. On a road trip, and fully loaded with seven people onboard, that figure is going to drop. 

The dual-motor version uses the same 73kWh battery and will also offer a range of around 310 miles. If you want to go even further without stopping, then a long-range E-5008 is coming early next year with an enormous 98kWh powerpack that allows it to cover up to 410 miles on a single charge. However Peugeot hasn’t confirmed the range figures for either of these variants, nor have we had a chance to test them for ourselves. 

The E-5008 has a 160kW maximum charging speed, which can’t match any Tesla’s or a Hyundai Ioniq 5’s, but allows models with the smaller battery to be recharged from 20 to 80 per cent in exactly half an hour. Meanwhile a typical 7.4kW home wallbox will fully replenish the 73kWh unit in just under seven hours.

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Boil it down, and the Peugeot 5008 has always been little more than a stretched, seven-seat version of the Peugeot 3008. This goes back to when the pair were first introduced as MPVs in the late 2000s, before evolving into stylish yet still practical SUVs for their respective second-generation versions. 

The 3008 was recently reinvented as more of a coupe-SUV, sporting a dramatic, sloped roofline, but the 5008 isn’t as vain, and has stuck with a boxier silhouette to maximise cabin space. Although it does inherit the three-claw light motif, graduated grille pattern and unconventional wheel designs from its more rakish sibling.

Inside, the E-5008 features the latest evolution of Peugeot’s i-Cockpit design and it’s simply stunning. The heavily curved 21-inch HD display and spine that connects the dashboard and centre console cocoons you, but the cabin still feels very spacious. We really like the swathes of grey fabric that create a cool, Scandinavian living-room vibe, and the large pools of ambient lighting throughout the cabin. The overall cabin quality is good, but not exceptional.

Sat-nav, stereo and infotainment

The floating 21-inch screen is incredibly clear and responsive, but the built-in infotainment system isn’t quite as slick or intuitive as Renault or Hyundai’s latest software. Wireless Apple CarPlay and Android Auto are standard-fit thankfully, and fill the half of the screen used for media and navigation almost entirely.

The ‘i-Toggles’ panel below offers a handy bank of customisable shortcut buttons, though it does mean you have to adjust safety settings or the climate controls via the touchscreen. Alternatively, you can try your luck with the voice assistant that’s activated when you say ‘OK Peugeot’.

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The Peugeot E-5008 is around 150mm longer than the older Peugeot 5008, with an extra 60mm squeezed into the wheelbase. Overall, it’s slightly larger than the latest Skoda Kodiaq, but not as gargantuan as the Kia EV9. 

Like all modern Peugeots, the E-5008 features a small, squared-off steering wheel that you need to look over to read the driver’s display. We’ve frequently found this creates awkward, uncomfortable driving positions, but the setup feels much more natural this time around. 

The latest E-5008 forgoes the three individual seats of the older 5008 (each with its own ISOFIX child seat mounting point) in favour of a simplified second-row design with a narrower middle seat that does without the child seat mounts. This is because Peugeot found owners weren’t using the middle seat all that often, so opted to make the outer two positions larger and more comfortable for adults instead. Those in the second row are also treated to a generous amount of head and legroom – enough for six-footers to be happy – plus space under the front seats for their feet.

As well as being more comfortable, the middle row can slide forward by up to 150mm, and fold down in a versatile 40/20/40 split to make accessing the rearmost seats nice and easy. It’s simple to do; one handle takes care of the whole process. 

The third row is really meant for occasional use, but there is enough space for adults to squeeze in for short journeys. They may find their knees touching the bench in front, and the only amenities they’ll find are two small cup holders.

Including underfloor storage, there’s 348 litres of boot space on offer with all seven seats in place. The third-row seats fold down completely flat, opening up 916 litres of space, or a huge 2,232 litres with just the front seats in place. We like that you can stow the parcel shelf under the floor, but the boot release is awkwardly located between the tailgate and bumper. 

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The Peugeot 5008 and E-5008 haven’t been put through Euro NCAP’s battery of crash safety tests yet, and neither has the Mk3 3008 they’re related to. 

The Peugeot E-5008 is available with up to 40 driver assistance and safety features, including the French firm’s ‘Drive Assist Plus 2.0’ system, which combines adaptive cruise control, lane positioning assist, semi-automatic lane changing and advanced speed recommendations. 

Every E-5008 will be fitted with a reversing camera, and rear parking sensors. Lane keep assist, driver attention alert, and an advanced emergency braking that’ll help avoid or mitigate low-speed collisions with pedestrians and other vehicles are among the standard safety equipment list.

Peugeot provides a three-year/60,000-mile manufacturer’s warranty as standard, which is competitive with Volkswagen, but a long way off the five or seven years of coverage provided by brands like Hyundai and Kia. Drivers have the opportunity to extend the cover for the battery and electric drive system (the electric motor, charging system, etc) by two years or 16,000 miles at a time, up to a maximum of eight years/100,000 miles (whichever comes first), simply by getting their car serviced at an approved aftersales location.

Should you buy a Peugeot E-5008?

The Peugeot E-5008 will be an ideal choice for anyone with a keen sense of style who needs a large SUV that can seat seven people or just offers a huge amount of space. This is a genuine seven-seater that offers a comfortable, refined driving experience, with a stunning and spacious interior. Yet it will cost similar money to other electric family cars like the Skoda Enyaq, Ford Explorer, and Hyundai Ioniq 5.

The E-5008 also boasts big range figures, with even the entry-level version capable of 311 miles on a charge, and it impressed us with its efficiency during our own testing. If that still isn’t enough, a version will arrive in 2025 that’ll do 410 miles in one go – significantly further than any present EV with seven seats.

Admittedly, the E-5008’s projected starting price of around £48,000 will put it out of reach for some families. If that’s the case, there are mild-hybrid and plug-in hybrid versions of the 5008 also on the way, which will cost considerably less. Or if you just want a solid, practical family SUV, the Skoda Kodiaq starts from around £37,000.