Coming Soon: updated Peugeot 208 and e-208

Peugeot has revealed a fresh new look for its 208 and e-208, keeping pace with similar changes for the closely related Vauxhall Corsa and Corsa-e, which is built on the same platform and engines. Already a strong package, Peugeot hopes the 208’s freshened up design and new features will help it stand out against supermini rivals like the Volkswagen Polo and recently updated Renault Clio .
• The 208 is Europe’s best-selling model in 2022 • Revised line-up comprises Active, Allure, and GT • Two new exterior colours – Agueda Yellow and Selenium Grey • Improved range for the electric 208 – The E-208 will have a 51kWh battery pack and Peugeot is claims a best-case range of nearly 250 miles • Two new hybrid engine options are offered for the first time – including the 100 horsepower and 136 horsepower options helping to increase fuel consumption • Orders for the new 208 and E-208 will be available from October 2023

Inspiration from Peugeot’s 9X8 Hypercar racer can be seen in the distinctive ‘lion’s claw’ headlights, which have moved further back giving the car a broader stance. While Fiat has grabbed headlines recently for axing ‘lifeless’ grey from its line-up Peugeot is sticking with the UK’s most popular colour and introduced Selenium Grey for the first time, this and Agueda Yellow joining the range of seven body colours. If you want a more premium feel inside you could even have black Alcantara and coloured stitching in the top spec GT models.

The 208 now comes with a 10-inch touch-screen as standard in an upgrade over the previous 7.0-inch unit, while the entry-level Active version’s 3.5-inch digital driver’s cluster goes to a full (and redesigned) 10-inch display on Allure and GT. Standard kit includes adaptive cruise control, automatic emergency braking, extended road sign recognition, active lane departure warning and blind spot monitoring. This facelift brings welcome new tech, including additional USB sockets in the Allure and GT trims, faster wireless phone charging and HD parking cameras.

In addition to regular Puretech-branded pertrol engines the new 208 gets two new hybrid options for the first time, comprising a 100 horsepower or 136 horsepower petrol engine combined with an automatic gearbox and electric motor. The technically-minded will likely assume this is what’s known as a ‘mild’ hybrid but Peugeot says it’s more than that, and closer in fuel-saving performance to the ‘full’ hybrid systems in its Clio and Yaris rivals. If that has your eyes glazing over all you really need to know is that Peugeot reckons ‘up to’ half of your urban driving can be in zero-emissions electric mode, with obvious benefits to emissions and fuel consumption.
Meanwhile the e-208 carries over the improved 156 horsepower motor and 248-mile official range introduced back in September 2022, these building on the 136 horsepower and 225 miles of the previous version.

No official prices have been confirmed yet but, at the moment, the regular 208 range kicks off around £20,000 (or just over £200 per month on finance) while the e-208 starts at over £30,000 with finance closer to £600 per month. Pricing for the new model is to be confirmed, but you can reasonably expect these to go up a bit to reflect the extra kit, while hybrid versions should fall somewhere between the two.

What other cars from Peugeot are due this year?

We’ve just driven the updated e-2008 crossover and 508 while a new version of the popular 3008 mid-size crossover is also coming.