• Interior space is acceptable rather than class-leading…
• … although the cabin is well-organised
• Petrol and diesel models have big boots

How much space is there?

Those in the front have plenty of space to stretch out. There’s lots of shoulder room between the two front seats and acres of leg room under the dashboard. However, because of the Peugeot 308’s strange driving position, the front passenger seat is the most comfortable place in the cabin. More on that later, though.

The rear is a little more cramped. There’s enough space for children, but the bulky shape of the front seats means that there’s only just enough leg room for taller adult passengers. The wide C-pillars and heavy window tints on some hatchback models also block out a lot of light, which can make the rear of the car feel claustrophobic.

122

The latter of these two issues is remedied by the estate variant (the interior of which is pictured above), which has a slightly longer wheelbase and an extra side window behind the rear bench. Leg room doesn’t change, but there are a few extra millimetres of headroom which means taller passengers can get comfortable easier.

122

Boot space and storage

Petrol and diesel versions of the Peugeot 308 have some of the largest boots in the family hatchback class. There’s 412 litres of capacity with the rear seats in place and 1,323 litres of space with the bench folded flat. That’s more than you get in the Hyundai i30, Toyota Corolla and SEAT Leon. 

PHEV models are a little pokier. The battery pack is mounted under the boot floor, which drops the hatchback’s boot space down to 361 litres with the rear seat up or 1,271 litres with the bench stowed. That’s a big hit – but 308’s seats-down figure is still 34 litres more than you get in a non-electrically assisted Volkswagen Golf.

122

The seats fold in 60:40 split, and there’s a handy load-through flap which pokes through the back rest. Peugeot has also made the boot a good boxy shape, which means it’s easy to pack items neatly into the space.

Is it easy to park?

Yes. Rear parking sensors come as standard, so you’ve no excuse for reversing into a bollard. Mid-range Allure models add front parking sensors and a 180-degree reversing camera, complete with a clever piece of software that records the car’s surroundings as you reverse into a space. So, by the time you’re parked, you’ve got a 360-degree view of your surroundings on a separate widget in the corner of the infotainment screen.

The range-topping 308 GT Premium model features  a 360-degree parking camera and a semi-autonomous parking function that can navigate the car into end-on and parallel spaces. It also gets a function that automatically dips the door mirrors when the car is in reverse to help you avoid kerbing the alloy wheels.

Safety

• Euro NCAP hasn’t crash tested the 308 yet…
• … but the mechanically similar DS 4 scored well
• AEB and rear cross traffic alert as standard

Euro NCAP hasn’t crash tested the newest Peugeot 308 yet, but results from other Stellantis vehicles suggest the hatchback will perform well once the time comes. For example, the new DS 4 (which shares the same mechanicals as the 308) scored five stars when equipped with the company’s safety pack.

The Peugeot 308 comes with a comparable amount of standard safety technology to the DS 4. This includes active safety braking, lane-keeping assist, cruise control, a speed limiter and a traffic sign recognition system. There are eight airbags dotted around the cabin and two Isofix points for the rear seats. You don’t get an Isofix point for the passenger seat, though.

If you move up the 308’s pecking order, you gain some extra safety equipment. For example, mid-range Allure Premium models feature rear cross traffic alert and adaptive cruise control. The flagship GT Premium variant gains Peugeot’s Drive Assist Pack Plus, which adds lane positioning assist and a semi-autonomous parking function.