The Peugeot 308 VTi and THP – Hot French Flair

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There are quite a number of manufacturers who say that the default vehicle choice of Asians are sedans – I wonder which statistical research do they base this conclusion on but if we are to assume that most Asians favour the practicality of size vs cost, then I guess this conclusion holds some amount of truth. But here in Malaysia, things are a little different. The Proton Saga, when launched back in the 80s look poised to be “The” car Malaysians need …. it’s a sedan that’s relatively cheap to own and was slightly larger than the Datsun 120Ys and Sunny 130Ys that were commonly seen plying our not-so-many-roads back then.

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Fast forward 30 years into the future and Proton has made itself a reputation of being unreliable, poor quality and despite all the improvements Proton has done to fix its image, many Malaysians would rather pay a higher price for another vehicle so long as it’s not Proton. In effect, Proton has effectively cured Malaysians of its need for sedans, if there was indeed a need for a sedan in the first place …. and instead, Perodua, the 2nd national car maker introduce the a choice for Malaysians who needed a fuss-free ride to commute daily; the Perodua MyVi.

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As year after year of being the top seller, hatchbacks seem to have replaced sedans in becoming the default choice of Malaysians … they’re easy to park, easy to drive, frugal on fuel, what more can you ask? And after using the trusty ride for a couple of years and purchasing an upgrade, no small amount of people would still buy a hatchback, albeit a bigger one since, in theory, it should come with little or no learning curve when driving or parking one.

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And this is where the Peugeot 308 fits in the whole hatchback demand-supply picture. Excellent spec sheet, beautiful design, superior performance with a very reasonable price, the first few years of its introduction in early 2009 saw Peugeot and Nasim Sdn Bhd, the official franchise holder of the Peugeot brand enjoying unprecedented sales success. Champagne bottles were popping and the bosses singing as they far exceeding what figures they had earlier planned … before problems begin to loom towards the end of 2010. It started innocently enough … a couple of complaints here and there about loss of turbo, engine knocking … small enough numbers that it was treated in isolation. Then the numbers increased and it became harder to control because the French suddenly developed an acute sense of hearing loss, senility and language incomprehension; put together is a potentially business damning condition, especially when no solution is made available.

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Eventually, the worms got too many that the can could no longer contain them and we hear customers threatening lawsuits …. consumer tribunal …. news papers ….. automotive forums ……their grandmother’s old set of dentures …. anything just to get a satisfactory permanent solution. It came in the form of a 6 speed gearbox replacing the older 4 speed (and probably a set of engine changes as well but Peugeot would have you believe the most obvious is the gearbox). Sadly, it could not be retrofitted into the 4 speeder and so 4 speed owners continue to rant about their rides.

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Which is kind of a shame because with the introduction of the 6 speed 308T, whatever issues plaguing the first generation is almost wiped out. Coupled with the increasing number of authorized SCs, where Peugeot and Nasim is today is a worlds apart compared to 2 years ago. Middle of 2012 saw the 308 facelift making its way to our shores and there were mixed reactions to its rather “tame” design. I had earlier written about it when it was first launched in June this year (article found HERE) but that was only a showroom visit with no test drives available yet. Is the new 308FL good enough to recapture lost ground and restore faith among the Malaysian buyers? Let’s find out:

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Design

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Available in both turbo and non-turbo form as its predecessor, the 308 facelift’s dimensions remains the same. At 4,276mm length, 1,815mm in width and 1,498mm in height with a wheelbase of 2,608mm, it’s exterior size is not much different from the rest of the C segment hatchbacks and only the new Ford Focus is slightly wider than it at 1,824mm. You might want to be a bit more careful navigating the alleyways and lorongs of some residential neighborhood least you scratch your car or worse still, drop a wheel into the drain.

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Looking from the front, it’s impossible to tell a VTi (non-turbo) apart from a Turbo unit. The new facelift features a smaller front grille, a “less-smiley” Lion front, if you like, with a slight protruding nose lending a more 3D effect in front. Both VTi and T sports LED Daytime Running Lights which replaces the halogen type DRLs found on the pre-FL models.

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Nope, no HID in there …. good ol’ H7 halogens on reflectors to illuminate your way at night. Saves you lots of money if one goes kaput compared to getting a replacement on say a Golf with bi-xenons.

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Looking at the DRLs up close, we could see that they’re made up of individual LEDs while the horizontal alien-antenna-looking part is a light rod transferring light from the LEDs shooting from below.

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From the outside, the most obvious way to tell a VTi apart from the Turbo (aside from the badge behind) is the rims. VTi (the one above) gets 16″ Santiaguito rims whereas the Turbo has 17″ Melbourne rims. If long term maintenance is your concern, the 205/55 tires on the VTi will certainly be a lot cheaper to replace compared to the 225/45s on the Turbo.

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The 308 is one of those few cars that automatically folds its side mirrors when the doors are locked (except for the first generation 308 VTi). I remembered back in 2010 when I first collected mine, there were a few concerns about the side mirror motor being jammed after all that locking/unlocking each day. Funny because until this day, I have not heard of a single side mirror motor failure …. getting whacked by motorists on the other hand is pretty common but then which manufacturer’s side mirrors are motorcyclist immune?

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Compared to the previous generation, the most obvious difference is the front end where it looks kinda “chopped-off”. Quite a number of people I know prefers the older styling but personally, I find the new design is fine … a little more grown-up instead of evoking a more racer-boy kind of mien.

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At the back, more elements has been added to its design. From the top, you get a GTi spoiler (only for the Turbo variant),  a chrome bar that splits the boot and a sporty rear diffuser which was first introduced in the 6 speed pre-FL model.

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As for the rear tail lamps, they’re halogen and left side features the only reverse light whereas the right has the rear foglights. Be prepared to have lots of good Samaritan colleagues, friends and family member showing concern for you having a blown reverse light on one side.

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Performance

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Important notes:

• Engine: 1,598cc,
• Output: 156bhp/240Nm for Turbo, 120bhp/160Nm for VTi

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Both variants features a 1.6litre engine but the Turbo gets a twin-scroll turbo high pressure unit mounted to it, generating 36 more horses and a good 80Nm of extra torque compared to the NA VTi. The Turbo hits century sprint in 9.1 seconds whereas the VTi takes a century to reach that speed. Seriously, if you have a need for speed, the VTi would probably give you anxiety attacks as the traffic lights turn green and you’re wondering if you’re moving in reverse.

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The Turbo, on the other hand will probably land you with more AES fines if you’re not careful in observing its speed since it moves more effortlessly. Compared to the 4 speeder, the 6 speed does not have the ummmph to thrust you to the back of the seats as you floor the accelerator. Instead, you get a good linear power delivery that comes from 1,400rpm onwards … honestly, I prefer the new 6 speed’s output characteristic. Less stressful on the road. The only problem with the Aisin-sourced gearbox is that the programming is geared towards high speed revving …. which is NOT what the Prince engine is supposed to do. I find the best rev range to be in is between 1,400 to about 4,500rpm so anytime when you go beyond that range, you’ll just be disappointed by the huge disparity of power within and without the power band.

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Since the 308 does not come with paddle shifters, the best solution is to shift the gears to tiptronic and change gears manually. Any spirited drive would be far more rewarding this way as you would be more in control of ensuring there is ever ready power, especially when overtaking. Speaking of the gears, it is an adaptive one so it records the driving patterns of its owners. Being adaptive, there is also a method to reset the ECU and record a new one. Simply turn off the engine, wait till everything has powered down then press the accelerator till you hear a faint click. From this moment on, if you start driving with a more aggressive style, the ECU will record and program a more torquey engine response.

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Don’t bother too much with the 4 speed VTi though. Regardless in manual or automatic mode, it’s still a heavy car being pulled by a 1.6litre engine.

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Ride and Handling

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Important notes:

• Independent front suspension with MacPherson type struts and anti roll bar
• Deformable U shaped cross member rear suspension system
• Brakes: Ventilated front disc, solid rear disc

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I have always found the suspension of Peugeot a little on the stiff side compared to Volkswagen and the 308 is no exception …. except between the 2 variants, the VTi, with its thicker 55 series tires may offer better cabin comfort compared to the Turbo. In exchange, the stiffer Turbo has less body roll and can take corners a little better …. and I use the word “little” sparingly because without independent rear suspension, the cornering ability of the 308 can never match multi-linked hatches such as the Ford Focus and the Volkswagen Golf. With a nose heavy front and front wheel drive layout, the 308 has a tendency to understeer and if you’re being courageous (or drunk) enough to attempt high speed corners, the MacPherson struts up front and  U shaped cross member rear can be easily unsettled, particularly when the road is uneven or worse, a pothole may throw your driving line completely off.

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You won’t have as much problem with the VTi though since with it’s 12.5second 0-100kph performance, you’d never get the car to speed at such corners. But then sensible VTi owners don’t buy the car for speed so the poorer suspension set-up (compared to VW and Ford) is not really an issue for them.

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On the noise and vibration side, the 308 is fairly comfortable and most noise come from the tires. Changing them to a more silent type makes outstation driving more comfortable for the family.

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Cabin Convenience

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If its one thing you can’t fault the French, it’s their flair for design. Up front with its slanted dashboard, driver and front passenger would have a sense of space and airines. The layout of the dash is simple yet functional and its certainly a lot more of living to the occasion when stepping into a 308 compared to the clinical designs of the VW Germans.

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The cabin is where you would see the biggest difference between the VTi and Turbo variants. The Turbo on top gets a glossy, finger-print prone headunit whereas the VTi’s is taken from the pre-FL Turbos.

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Other differences include the steering where the Turbo gets a thicker leather wrapped flat bottom one with aluminum ring while the VTi sports a more conventional 3-spoke leather wrapped steering.

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The white dials of the Turbo is back while the VTi uses the black with white lettering dials. I’d prefer the white any time.

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No buttons can be seen on the steering wheels as the 4 stalk butterfly layout remains the same where the upper left controls lighting and signal, lower left controls cruise control and speed limiter, upper right has the wiper controls and the lower right are audio controls.

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What’s not same is that the Turbo now has aluminum pedals.

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Both Turbo and VTi has manual headlight leveler which is very useful for those who often travel at night with different loads. Number 0 is the highest (used when the car is carrying only its driver) while number 3 is the lowest (for a fully loaded car and a heavy boot).

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And, typical of the French of leaving the fuse box where it is for left hand drive vehicles, you still get one of the world’s most shallowest glove box. Wait, aside from another Pug, I can’t think of any other car with a glove compartment this small. Can you?

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Equally bad is the world’s shallowest cup holders which almost always assures you that tin of Nescafe you bought will spill as you bend any drastic cornering.

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One particular feature that I appreciate about the 308 is the location of the puddle lights which is at the bottom of the door instead of at the side mirrors as found on most other cars. This ensures maximum light intensity on the ground whenever alighting from the car

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The panoramic glass moon roof has been a standard feature of the 308T but the VTi now gets it too. Some complain it makes the car unnecessarily heavier and transfers more heat into the cabin. Personally, I love it as it adds greater ambiance to the cabin. Besides, how many cars you know of has a roof this big?

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To help making it more difficult for you to choose between the VTi and the Turbo, rear air conditioning vents which was only available for the Turbo is also a standard feature for the FL VTi.

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While the front is great, the rear on the other hand may not be as comfortable. First of all, the seats are a tad too upright, rear legroom is not as good as some of its competitors and as mentioned about its stiff suspension, having anything to drink while driving will almost guarantee wet clothes for rear occupants.

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The thing that I do like is the boot which is deep and wide, certainly bigger than the Golf I have back home.

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What’s even better is that the rear seats can be folded almost completely flat, increasing the cabin space significantly. Put a mattress in, open the moon roof and you can have a romantic get-away with your loved one anywhere on the road.

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While you’d lying back there, feel free to use the hooks found on the left and right side of the boot to hang your underwear … I mean, drinks

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And below the boot, you will find a full sized spare tire

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Safety

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For its price, the 308 has one of the highest safety standards your money can buy in Malaysia:-

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• Driver airbag
• Front passenger airbag with deactivate switch
• Driver and front passenger side airbags
• Anti whiplash front seats with active head restraint
• Pre-tensioning and force limiting front seat belts
• Force limiting rear seat belts
• Rear door child safety locks
• 2 ISOFIX location points (2 outer rear seats)
• Auto illumination of rear hazard lights
• ABS
• EBD
• EBA
• Peugeot rolling code transponder immobilizer security

 

Additionally, the THP variant gets the following additions:

• Two curtain airbags (total 6 airbags)
• ESP
• Dynamic Stability Control DSC

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I love the child safety lock function which, instead of being activated at the rear doors is found conveniently on the driver’s side power window controls. Both rear door and rear window can be locked to prevent children from accidentally throwing themselves out of the car.

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Specifications

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Purchase the VTi and you can expect the following:-

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Interior

• Automatic dual zone air-conditioning (separate for driver & front passenger)
• Cruise control with speed limiter
• Auto dimming rear view mirror
• Leather wrapped steering wheel
• World in Peugeot Sound with 6 speakers and AM/FM/CD/MP3 playback capability
• Audio control stack at steering wheel
• USB and Bluetooth connectivity
• Rear passenger air-conditioning vents
• Adjustable front center armrest with built in storage compartment
• Rear center armrest with storage compartment and 2 cupholders recesses
• Instrument panel lighting dimmer
• Instrument panel LCD display (trip recorder, total distance recorder, cruise control, service indicator, warning & status display)
• Height and reach adjustable steering
• One touch electric window with anti-pinch feature on all windows
• Combined active carbon/pollen filter
• Light illuminated glove box
• 12V power outlet at front center console
• 60:40 split folding rear seats

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Exterior

•  Sporty rear diffuser
• Panoramic roof with electronically retractable blind
• LED Daytime Running Lights
• Halogen headlamps with auto function
• Manual headlamp leveling function
• Headlamps delay security illumination (“Follow Me Home”)
• Peugeot Smart Park Assist
• Front and rear fog lights
• Front windscreen (Laminated & Acoustic)
• Auto front windscreen wipers
• Electric folding mirrors
• Side mirror turn light
• Intermittent rear wash/wipe
• 16″ Santiaguito rims wrapped in 205/55 tires

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Additionally, the Turbo variant gets the following additions:

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• Leather wrapped sport steering wheel with aluminium ring
• Sporty white instrument dials
• GTi rear spoiler
• 17″ Melbourne rims wrapped in 225/45 tires

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Ownership and Maintenance

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The 308 Turbo could be purchased at a price of RM121,888 while the VTi costs RM102,888. Both are OTR prices with insurance and comes with 5 years unlimited mileage warranty, which is one of the key selling points of the 308. At such a price, it’s almost the same as Australia, a country known for its relatively affordable vehicles and Nasim has done a fantastic job at pricing it so low. To me, at least it was part of the reason why the 308 became the introducer of continental cars to the public and who knows how many people are poisoned by it to forgo Japanese made cars.

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Compared to its other similar hatchback competitors, here’s how the 308 fares:

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As for the maintenance cost, you can find it here:
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http://www.kensomuse.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/06/408_308-servicing-1.pdf

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Do note that Peugeot has changed their servicing schedule somewhat and the 60,000km service is no longer as expensive. Instead they have shifted some of the items that requires changing in the 50,000km mark and the service cost for that is now higher. Check with your respective SC to know more.

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Despite the fact that the 308T remains as the most affordable turbocharged continental car in Malaysia while the VTi offers one of the best package of space and spec for the price you pay, old crap stick …. and the stinkier the crap is, the stickier it gets. As Proton took 20 years to mismanage itself to the dislike of the public and spending twice the money and taking twice the effort to restore customer confidence, Nasim is a lot quicker to respond and as I understand it, has been the forefront at finding solutions and sharing them to the international platform among other dealers. The damage is done, the image is affected but I do believe it is not too late for Peugeot to make a come back.

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What the public needs to know is that the horror stories that accompany the 308 is related to the 4 speeder and even then not all 4 speeders are problematic. The engine revision in the 6 speed has effectively eliminated all the common negative issues related to the 4 speed. Really, if you read most of the complaints online about Peugeot, chances are, it’s started by a 4 speed owner. And being a once owner of a problematic 308 4 speed, I never thought that I’d be having thoughts of actually buying another 308 …. but I do!

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I find that the 308 has matured in more ways than one. From its design to its engine refinement, the 308 has become a car that has a broader appeal. Aside from the technical issues I had with my earlier car, the racy outlook was, IMHO not very suitable for my daily work. This design, being mellowed down projects a more conservative outlook that I won’t mind ferrying some of my more senior customers around. The one thing that prevents me from getting one is that I now require a larger car and hot hatches are no longer on my list of consideration.

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Back to the topic at hand, the challenge now is restore confidence among the general public of Nasim’s after sales and looking at the increasing number of 3S opening around the country, I’d say they are on the right track.  If you’re looking for a hatchback to upgrade from a MyVi, do drop by a Peugeot showroom and request for a test drive. Do your research and isolate all complaints related to the 4 speed (if you’re looking to buy a Turbo, that is) … you’ll find that the complaints is not as numerous as one might think.

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