HOT on the heels of the 308 hatchback, Peugeot is now introducing an SW estate version which will formally take a bow at next month’s Geneva Motor Show. It taps into a long tradition of Peugeot estate models in this size bracket that stretches right back to the 1969 304 estate.
the launch coincides with the arrival of Peugeot’s 1.2-litre 3-cylinder PureTech petrol engines
Although the market for Golf-sized estates represents only about ten per cent of car sales in this bracket, it has been enlivened recently by the introduction of the new SEAT Leon ST and Honda Civic Tourer, so the Peugeot will also face some tough competition.
Like the new 308 hatch (read our review here), the 308 SW is based on the new weight-saving EMP2 Efficient Modular Platform architecture but it has some interesting new features.
For example, Peugeot has returned to its previous practice of stretching the wheelbase of its estate models; in the case of the Peugeot 308 SW, this is 11 centimetres longer than that of the hatch, and the SW is 22 cm longer overall.
Also, while the SW will share its engines with the hatch, the launch coincides with the arrival in the 308 range of Peugeot’s 1.2-litre 3-cylinder PureTech petrol engines offering either 110 or 130PS.
Tax-conscious business users may be more interested in the Euro 6 BlueHDi diesel engines, including the new BlueHDi 1.6-litre 120bhp diesel which, when linked to a six-speed manual gearbox, has a combined fuel consumption of 88.3mpg and emissions of 85g/km. Peugeot claims these are the best numbers achieved by any car in this segment.
The Peugeot 308 SW arrives in UK showrooms in June 2014.
