Peugeot 404 Reviews

The recent revival of interest in Peugeot in Australia following the launch of the European Car of the Year, the Peugeot 308, has apparently drawn attention to the rest of the French marque's range. Cars to benefit from this new focus on Peugeot here include one of the most popular of all, the small-medium 206 that's

Not everyone, it would seem, wants a compact SUV on their drive.Sales of these 'quasi-fourbies' are through the roof but if you look at sales of the new Peugeot 308 Allure Touring (wagon) there may be life left in the traditional small family wagon.They've waxed and waned on the whim of consumers and right now, they're waning.But the new Pug wagon, with a classy, almost Audi look, could be a game changer or at least make people think twice when they shop for a set of 'sensible' new wheels.This is a totally new generation 308 that's been out in Europe for a year winning European Car of the Year along the way.The whole range has appeal with smaller capacity, more efficient engines being adopted across the board - except for the 308 diesel Touring we drove.It's the range topper at $37,490 and gets a 2.0-litre turbo diesel engine with 110kW/370Nm output driving the front wheels through a conventional six-speed auto with paddle shift. The engine in some form or other has been around for a while and can be found in other models (and brands).Competitors are numerous and impressive coming out of Japan, Europe and Korea.But the Pug is latest cab off the rank and as a result, enjoys a serious leg-up on a number of fronts. The Bluetooth phone and audio/multimedia system for example is as good as anything else on the market in terms of voice reproduction and ease of syncing. And it's among the safest new cars available right now.Peugeot was able to slice off 140kg (down to 1420kg) from the latest 308 Touring compared with the previous model through better materials and design.Their green tinge is more than skin deep with exemplary fuel economy from all models, petrol and diesel. This one does 5.0L/100km standing on its head.We actually cracked deep into the 4s at one stage - something you don't see too often.But you still have to unlock the filler cap with the ignition key to fuel it up. That's a pain.And another negative is the difficult removal and replacement of the rear cargo blind. We gave up and left it rolling around in the load space, which is large with the rear seats up as well as down. When down, the load space is large enough to sleep two adults, a reflection of the size of the vehicle.The rears are what Peugeot calls Magic Flat seats which means one touch up or down for the whole kit and kaboodle.It scores plenty of useful kit from a luxury and a safety point of view. There's cruise with speed limiter, electric power steering, hill assist, electric park brake, front and rear parking sensors and reversing camera, 9.7-inch multimedia screen, satnav, multiple wheel controls though some are on annoying satellite wands, dual zone climate control, aircon glove box, pollen filter, heads up display, digital speedo, multi trip computer, alloy roof rails, rain sensing wipers and auto headlights to name a few.Leather is optional but unnecessary as far as we are concerned because the cloth seats are great.We like the style of the new 308 inside and out with the former exhibiting a rather minimalist look dominated by the speedo/tacho pod and similar shaped control panel. And get this, there's a CD player tucked away under the second panel.This is where the new 308 really shines, the diesel Touring in particular. It has excellent performance with a slightly sporty edge - complemented by an impressive ride/handling package that takes Peugeot back to the good old days when they went around corners like a sporty car and yet offered the comfort of a luxury model.The feel comes from a fairly rudimentary strut front and beam axle rear set-up. Must be in the springs/dampers.The 308 Touring has a quality feel missing on the previous model - the one with that awful 'gaping maw' front styling. All touch points are soft and the switches click positively when you use them.It has a clever mix of new technology and tried and true engineering as well as passing stringent Euro 6 emissions regulations.

Sporty new Peugeot 308 and 508 GT models to hit Australian showrooms in 2015.Peugeot has confirmed it will expand its performance-flavoured offerings in March, with the introduction of new GT variants of the 308 hatch and 508 sedan/wagon to the local market.The 308 GT will have tweaked versions of the powerplants available in the existing 308 Allure. The 150kW/285Nm 1.6-litre turbocharged four-cylinder engine is a 40kW/45Nm improvement, while the 131kW/400Nm 2.0-litre four-cylinder turbodiesel delivers 31kW/30Nm more than its Allure counterpart.Both will be attached to a sports-calibrated six-speed torque-converter automatic transmission with paddle shifters.The sporty hatch will also feature sharpened steering and accelerator response, amplified engine note, telemetry read-outs on the multimedia display, unique cabin trim with red instrument illumination, GT badging, and 18-inch alloys.The 308 GT will also be available in a new GT-signature 'Magnetic blue' paint colour.Driving the 508 GT will be the same 150kW/450Nm 2.2-litre four-cylinder turbodiesel from the existing 508 2.2 HDi. It will be complimented by bi-xenon headlights, GT badging and 19-inch alloys.Peugeot Australia says the two GTs will offer a more rounded driving experience than the existing high-performance 208 GTi."The GT Line will give us the ability to offer a vehicle that offers visual and performance upgrades, while still maintaining comfort in day-to-day driving duties," said Dimitri Andreatidis, National Marking Manager for Peugeot Australia.The introduction of the 308 and 508 GTs paves the way for Peugeot to expand its GT range in the future."We will be working with France to investigate a number of opportunities to grow this segment in the future," said Andreatidis.

More than 1.1 million cars have been called back to dealers for rectification work that varies from serious (a brake failure) to silly (windscreen wipers).And although 2014 is likely to be the first big sales dip since the Global Financial Crisis, the number of new car sold is also likely to top 1.1 million.The last time more cars were recalled than sold in a year was 2001.It's been a bad year for recalls globally too.General Motors has recalled 2.59 million cars because of an ignition fault so far linked to at least 30 deaths, as part of a recall of 13.8 million cars this year for other ignition problems or keys slipping out of position.But the biggest of all is the Takata airbag recall which has so far been linked to six deaths after shrapnel fired from the airbags.It's a big problem because Takata supplies 20 per cent of the world's airbags and it has taken in cars made by Honda, Toyota, Mazda, BMW, Nissan, Mercedes-Benz, Lexus, Chrysler, Ford and General Motors.More than 18 million cars around the world have been recalled for the Takata airbag problem including 110,000 in Australia.Meantime the dubious honour of most recalls this year is a dead heat between Holden and Jeep with a record 14 each. Never before has any brand recalled so many cars in one year.Market leader Toyota was next with nine recalls ahead of Mitsubishi 8, Nissan 6, Ford 4, Volkswagen 4, Hyundai 3, Mazda 3, Land Rover 3 and Peugeot with 2.Then again the year isn't quite over yet. There may be more.

Joshua Dowling road tests and reviews the 2014 Peugeot RCZ R, with specs, fuel consumption and verdict.

One is a Continental favourite, the other a perennial top-seller down under.

Ewan Kennedy road tests and reviews the Peugeot 308 with specs, fuel consumption and verdict.

The very French Peugeot 307 is stylish machine, though it retains a fair touch of conservatism in its shape to try and make it a timeless design. That has succeeded, the 307 reached us downunder way back in December 2001 and still looks fashionable enough today. The Europeans frequently use Peugeot 307s as family

Peter Barnwell road tests and reviews the new Peugeot 308 in France.

Honda Accord finally achieves maximum five-star safety rating along with Nissan X-Trail, Honda City, Toyota Prius C and upcoming Peugeot 308.Honda have overcome the shock of last year's four-star safety rating for the Accord sedan, with recent structural tweaks helping it to earn the full five stars from the Australasian New Car Assessment Program (ANCAP).When the 9th generation Accord appeared in May 2013, ANCAP deemed its frontal offset test performance unsatisfactory for a five-star rating, scoring 11.21 out of a possible 16 .Honda has since implemented changes to the frontal structure of the Accord in August 2014 which has raised its score in the frontal offset test to 14.79 in this round testing, pushing it over the line for a maximum five-star rating."This is a great example of a non-regulatory program at work," ANCAP Chairman Lauchlan McIntosh said."Honda has reviewed the ANCAP test results and actively implemented changes to offer consumers a safer car."The same praise was not lavished on the X-Trail mid-size SUV however, with ANCAP critical of Nissan's omission of the Autonomous Emergency Braking (AEB) from Australian-spec models. Despite this the SUV still gained a five star safety rating.ANCAP was similarly critical of the Qashqai small SUV's AEB omission when it was tested earlier this year.Like the Qashqai, AEB is available on European-spec X-Trails, along with several other models on the Australian market. It can prevent collisions by detecting stationary objects and applying braking force before the driver reacts.For the Honda City and Toyota Prius C, all model variants have been given the maximum five stars by ANCAP. Only diesel versions of the new Peugeot 308 have been awarded five stars, leaving petrol versions unrated.