Peugeot 5008 (2010 – 2017) Review

If you're looking for the newer model, you'll need our Peugeot 5008 review.

The first generation of Peugeot 5008 was very much a family-friendly affair, with practicality taking precedence over excitement and style. The 5008 might have become more of an SUV in recent times, but this version is most definitely a seven-seat MPV, competing with the likes of the Citroen C4 Grand Picasso and Ford S-MAX.

Peugeot might call its 5008 a compact MPV but it’s far from small. With seven seats and a bright, roomy cabin there’s a lot of space on offer for a family. There’s a lot of flexibility, too, with a sliding middle row of seats to give between 758 and 823 litres of carrying capacity, or a huge 2506 litres with everything folded flat.

The rearmost row of seats isn’t exactly spacious, but for small children or occasional use it's fine and access is good thanks to a clever mechanism in the middle row of seats.

Add to that an easy-to-drive character, plus comfortable seats and you get a very family-friendly car. The fact that all three seats in the middle row come fitted with Isofix will be a real selling point for those that have more than the two children that car makers seem to generally cater for. 

Peugeot offered a pair of 1.6-litre petrol engines with 120PS or 156PS in this generation of 5008, with a third 1.2-litre petrol engine joining the range in the latter stage of the car’s on-sale period. Plus three diesel engines with between 115PS and 163PS.

The lower powered 1.6-litre petrol engine might not be the best suited to the 5008, but the rest of the range offers respectable performance, even that diminutive-sounding 1.2-litre version.

Regardless of engine the 5008 is easy to drive and refined. Motorway cruising is relaxed and, despite the car’s large size, it’s easy to park or manoeuvre in town providing parking sensors are specified. It is a heavy car, but unless you press on particularly hard it remains composed even on twisting country roads.

The facelifted model, introduced in 2014, offers better quality and more standard equipment than earlier cars. It’s certainly more attractively styled than the pre-facelift model, but it doesn’t do quite enough to beat the pricier Ford S-MAX for driver enjoyment nor the Citroen C4 Grand Picasso for style and comfort.

There are three trims across the 5008 range, Access, Active and Allure, although the entry-level Access model was dropped towards the end of the car’s life.

It only offered a basic level of equipment, with a leather steering wheel and air conditioning the stand-out kit, but Active brought useful things like parking sensors front and rear and Allure added more desirable kit like satellite navigation and a panoramic glass roof

As you’d expect from a seven-seat MPV, the 5008 is impressively practical. There’s enough space in the middle row for three adults, with ample leg and headroom. Shoulder space is a little tight but for teenagers or children it’s fine.

The rearmost two seats fold up individually out of the boot floor with one tug. Access is easy, thanks to the cleverly thought out sliding seat mechanism in the middle row. There’s enough room for children to sit comfortably, but it’ll get a bit tight for adults on anything but short trips.

With the rearmost row of seats folded down there’s a flat load area with a low load lip. That makes loading and unloading bulky items easy and there is certainly room aplenty. To the level of the loading-bay cover there is 512 litres of space, but if you move that out of the way and slide the middle row of seats forward and you’ll get a huge 2506 litres.

There are a couple of minor problems with the load area though. The tonneau cover isn’t easy to stow when folding the seats, plus the tailgate is large and heavy, which is awkward in tight places like multi-storey car parks. However, on the whole it’s a practical people carrier and offers plenty of useful space

All trims came with cloth seats as standard, but the range-topping Allure was the only one you could get leather on, and only as an option. It’s a shame that you had to get leather trim to also get heated seats, as that means that fewer will have taken up the option.

The top-level model also got upgraded windows, with extra tinting on the side and rear glass and on the panoramic roof.

The infotainment setup in the 5008 is a slightly quirky one, in that the screen folds flat into the top of the dashboard when it isn’t needed or when the engine is turned off.

It wasn’t available on Access, was optional and Active and was standard-fit on the Allure. It sits a long way away from the driver, so it isn’t a touchscreen – instead it is controlled by dials and buttons lower down on the central console.

It predates Apple Carplay and Android Auto, and only the later models came with Bluetooth and USB connectivity so pairing your phone isn’t an option for the majority of 5008 owners.

The system isn’t that intuitive, sadly, with the menus laid out in a confusing manner with things tucked away in places that are not easy accessed.

A 120PS diesel model might have cost around £23,000 when brand new, but at three years old it can be picked up for around £11,000 – a drop of more than 50%. 

Go a little older and a six-year-old version will most likely fit into the £6000 to £7000 while 10-year-old version will set you back around £3000 to £4000. As ever, prices are dictated more by mileage at this age, though.

A lot of the rivals that the 5008 is up against suffer from a similar fate, though, with the Citroen C4 Grand Picasso losing value at a comparable rate. It is also worth bearing in mind that lots of rivals will have had a hard life as a family vehicle, so will also have suffered both in terms of mileage and how much of a battering the cabin has taken.

 The most economical version of the 5008 is the lower powered diesel – the 120PS 1.6-litre engine has an official fuel economy rating of 65.7mpg for both the manual model.

As ever, there are several caveats to this. The official figure is calculated on the old NEDC testing figure, which means that something in the mid to high 40s is a more realistic expectation, especially if you plan on carrying loads of kids and luggage on a regular basis. This figure is also calculated on the smaller, 18-inch wheels – the bigger ones impact it to the tune of around 1.5mpg.

The cheapest model to insure is the newest, 1.2-litre petrol, which sits in group 18E. Most of the models are around the 18-19 group mark, in fact, with the most powerful 2.0-litre diesel model a couple of groups higher in group 23.

Despite the cars large size, it’s easy to park and drive in town traffic thanks to good visibility and large mirrors, although entry-level models do without parking sensors.

There are a few problems though. The clutch pedal can feel a bit too stiffly sprung at first, which makes smooth starts tricky until you get the hang of it. Manual transmissions aren’t the slickest either, although they aren't terrible by any means.

Peugeot has emphasised ride quality over dynamism, so over speed bumps and potholes the cabin typically manages to stay quiet and smooth, particularly on a motorway cruise. That doesn’t hamper handling too much though – the 5008 corners fairly well unless on particularly tight, twisting routes, where its weight causes some body roll.

That’s more or less what you expect from a seven-seat MPV, though – the only rival that manages to deliver genuinely enjoyable handling is the Ford S-MAX. The 5008 is much better suited to a more relaxed pace over A-roads, on motorways and around town.

Peugeot offers a good selection of engines for the 5008, familiar from other models in the Peugeot and Citroen ranges.

Entry level cars get a 120PS 1.6-litre VTi petrol, but most buyers will be better off moving up to the 115PS 1.6-litre HDi diesel, which produces more torque and offers more relaxed driving – the petrol kicks up a fair bit of noise when you rev it hard

It’s also the most frugal engine in the range, with official economy of 65.7mpg and emissions of 113g/km in the most economical Access trim, provided stop/start and the six-speed automated manual transmission are specified. Unfortunately, the automated manual is a slow-witted gearbox, so it’s not recommended unless necessary.

There is also a 156PS 1.6-litre petrol engine, which is ideal for low-mileage or town drivers because it produces plenty of torque low down the rev range. There is also a 150PS 2.0-litre diesel manual and a 163PS diesel automatic, both of which are impressive motorway and long-distance cruisers.

In the latter stage of the 5008’s time on sale it came with a 1.2-litre petrol engine, which replaced the two 1.6-litre petrols. The small size might sound insufficient for such a large car, but it is more than up to the task and is still a better performer than the lower powered of the previous 1.6-litre engine.

The Peugeot 5008 might well have a five-star Euro NCAP rating next to its name, but it is worth remembering that lots has changed in the time since it picked up that score in 2009.

It scored well thanks to its high level of safety kit – six airbags, ESP and cruise control with a speed limiter – but more is needed to get top marks these days. The emergency call system, which alerts the emergency services in the case of a crash, was only offered as an option.

Front and rear parking sensors came on Active and up, while you got a reversing camera on the top trim.

Access trim comes with leather steering wheel, air conditioning, electric front windows, electric parking brake, hill start assist, Peugeot Connect USB with Bluetooth, 16-inch alloy wheels, LED running lights and LED indicators. This trim was dropped to the end of the 5008’s life as Peugeot sought to attract buyers with a higher level of standard kit.

Active trim adds front and rear parking sensors, parking space measurement aid, cruise control, rear electric windows, automatic headlights and wipers, front fog lights, electric folding door mirrors, rear sun blinds, 17-inch alloy wheels, roof rails and a height adjustable driver’s seat. 

Allure gets a panoramic glass roof, tinted rear glass, 18-inch alloy wheels, reversing camera, head-up display and the Peugeot Connect colour navigation system.

Given the dated and clunky sat nav, the glass roof and reversing camera are the main reasons to choose this trim and Active will have enough for those that want practicality first and foremost.