Peugeot E-308 SW Review 2025

In an automotive landscape dominated by electric SUVs, the Peugeot E-308 SW is a breath of fresh air — and it's now more tempting than ever thanks to driving range improvements and price reductions. Before you get ahead of yourself, there are also some drawbacks which we explore in our full Peugeot E-308 SW review. 

Electric estate cars in the mould of the Peugeot E-308 SW are few and far between. If you don't want to spend a decent chunk of money on the Volkswagen ID.7 Tourer or an even larger sum on the Porsche Taycan Sport Turismo, then your options are severely restricted.

In fact, there's only one — the Vauxhall Astra Sports Tourer Electric — which uses the same underpinnings and electric drive set-up as the E-308 SW. Yes, the MG 5 EV was also a rival, but that fell by the wayside in early 2025 only to be replaced by an SUV.

Several other brands sell plug-in hybrid-powered estates of the similar size to the E-308 SW, including Peugeot itself — they also have much lower driving ranges so aren't comparable in that regard to fully electric systems.

Sticking with EV estates, despite sharing a great deal the Vauxhall and Peugeot are surprisingly different, not purely in terms of styling, with further differentiation due to the E-308 receiving a mid-life facelift in 2025.

This has included getting rid of its massive 'lion's claw' daytime-running light elements that used to flank the front bumper. Now there's a 3-Claw arrangemnet in each headlight cluster, with the theme continuing in a panel atop the grille with illuminated elements. Oh, and there's a light-up Peugeot badge. If that's your thing.

There are also changes under the bodywork with a battery chemistry alteration giving a small increase in usable capacity, up from 50.4kWh (but marketed as 54kWh) to 55.4kWh (and sold as 55kWh). Although modest it's enough to give a useful bump in driving range.

There's also now Vehicle-to-Load (V2L) capability, enabling you to use the Peugeot's high-voltage battery to power appliances via a three-pin socket.

Performance on offer with the Peugeot E-308 SW can't be described as scorching, saving you from being tempted to exploit its power and hurt the range in the process. Your only motor option produces all of 156PS.

At its 2023 launch the Peugeot E-308 SW was priced at a hefty premium over its Peugeot 308 SW petrol- and diesel-powered counterparts, but the prices have come down since then, before being cut further when the facelifted models went on sale.

Thanks to its eligibility for the government's Electric Car Grant (ECG), the E-308 SWs are now less expensive than their combustion-engined equivalents.

Peugeot E-308 SW: Range and charging

Pre-facelift versions of the E-308 SW can drive up to 254 miles according to the official WLTP Combined cycle, which isn't great considering you'll realistically be getting more like 200 real-world miles, possibly less at colder times of year.

This isn't a specific criticism of the Peugeot E-308 SW as official range figures are notoriously difficult to replicate. Matters have improved with the 2025 facelift, 

The range improvement of the facelifted versions, increasing range to 275 miles for all barring the GT Premium at 273 miles. A welcome, if not huge, increase. Those numbers represent a four-mile best case scenario defecit to the Peugeot E-308 hatchback. 

Its DC rapid charging rate of 100kW is underwhelming and although the 30 minutes quoted to charge the battery from 20 to 80% sounds fine enough, remember that the battery isn't that big, so such a top-up isn't going to get you massively far.

Meanwhile, Peugeot quotes 4 hours 25 minutes for the same state-of-charge increase from a 7.4kW domestic wallbox — expect to add about three hours from a full charge from flat. 

Although it's 34kg heavier than the hatchback version, the Peugeot E-308 SW feels much the same to drive. That's to say it's comfortable but not at the expense of its handling prowess. 

Granted, it's not in any way sporty, but body lean is well-contained while cornering and there's plenty of grip. There isn't enough power from the electric motor to trouble the front wheels — traction losses simply aren't an issue. 

All E-308 SWs come with 18-inch wheels regardless of trim level, but they're not large enough to cause the car to unduly thump over imperfections in the road surface. 

Refinement is perfectly acceptable, with wind noise kept to low levels. You do get some tyre noise but it's nothing excessive. 

Although the size of the Peugeot E-308 SW's battery capacity increased with its 2025 facelift, its front-mounted electric motor's output remained unchanged.

It still makes 156PS and 270Nm of torque, neither of which is high as far as electric cars go. Yes, it's more than the 308 SW Hybrid 145 produces, but the E-308 SW is 276kg heavier, making it six-tenths of a second slower from 0-62mph. 

It does the deed in 9.9 seconds, which is a tenth of a second down on the 34kg lighter E-308 hatchback. The top speed is electronically limited to 106mph, because even if you do end up taking one of these on the German autobahn, going any faster will see your range evaporate at an alarming rate. 

While the E-308 SW certainly isn't fast, you can — unlike the sometimes thrashy, three-cylinder 308 Hybrid 145 — deploy all of its performance with minimal fuss. It's brisk off the line, but even in Sport mode, there's a frustrating delay between pressing the accelerator and anything happening. 

While Euro NCAP hasn’t specifically tested the Peugeot E-308 SW, it did test the structurally identical petrol-powered version, scoring a slightly disappointing four stars out of five.

These tests have become more stringent over recent years, but the record shows category scores of 76% for adult occupant safety, 84% for child occupants, 68% for vulnerable road users and 65% for its driver-assistance tech.

The Peugeot E-308 SW comes with a decent array of standard safety features including automatic post-collision braking, lane-keeping assist, driver attention warning, speed limit recognition and active safety brake, with both pedestrian and cyclist detection. 

Opt for the E-308 SW GT Premium and the Drive Assist Pack Plus is added. This includes rear cross-traffic alert, long-range blind spot detection and lane-positioning assistance. 

Unfortunately, the Peugeot E-308 SW isn't homologated to tow at all. You can have an optional tow bar fitted for £790 if you wish to use a cycle carrier. 

The Peugeot E-308 SW measures 4636mm long, 2062mm wide (inclusive of the door mirrors) and 1454mm high. That makes it a similar size to the Vauxhall Astra Sports Tourer Electric with the greatest difference being the Peugeot's 6mm reduced length.

Compared with the Peugeot E-308 hatch, the SW's wheelbase is 57mm longer, although this hasn't benefitted rear seat legroom as might be expected. As with the 308 SW, taller adults won't feel as comfortable in the back as they might like. If you’re mainly going to be ferrying kids around, they should be more than happy.

In the front, there’s a decent amount of space and as with other cars in the range, the driving experience is based around Peugeot’s i-Cockpit arrangement.

Put simply, it has a smaller-than-normal steering wheel that sits below the height of the digital instrument display. Jumping behind the wheel of the Peugeot E-308 SW for the first time, you immediately realise you look at the dials over the wheel rather than through it.

That’s fine in principle, but taller drivers might find that some of the bottom of the display will be obscured as they raise the wheel's height to clear their knees. It’s definitely something to be aware of — try before you buy.

There’s also a good amount of storage space dotted around the cabin, with generous door bins and a central sub-armrest cubby, but the glovebox is modest on right-hand drive cars due to it also housing the fuse box.

The Peugeot E-308 SW’s rear seats split 40/20/40 and are easily folded thanks to boot-mounted levers. The boot offers 505 litres of space, which is down 94 litres compared with the best of the combustion-engined alternatives. If you need more space, with the seats collapsed, the capacity increases to 1402 litres. 

With the French brand positioning itself as a more upmarket option than most other Stellantis marques, it's important that the Peugeot E-308 SW's interior doesn’t disappoint in this regard — and it doesn't.

There’s a well-chosen assortment of materials dotted around the cabin, with plenty of soft-touch mouldings, stitched leather-look edges and a fabric panel for the dashboard. Everything feels well put together with no early signs of squeaks or rattles developing. 

All versions of the Peugeot E-308 SW get a 10.0-inch central touchscreen for its multimedia system that’s angled towards the driver. It’s based around capacitive technology that makes it as responsive as using your smartphone, rather than the clunkier resistive touchscreen tech that often requires firmer presses to make changes.

The problem is the software the system runs on isn't swift, so although the touchscreen responds immediately, you're still left waiting while the whole thing has a think about what you've just asked of it.

The navigation system is useable enough, but is also laggy. Many will prefer using a third-party app, such as Google Maps, via the wireless Apple CarPlay and Android Auto compatibility, which was rolled out range-wide when the E-308 SW was facelifted.

The Peugeot E-308 SW also features what its maker calls i-Toggles. A secondary touch-sensitive screen sits below the main interface and in essence works as a customisable set of shortcut keys. You can choose up to six functions for quick access to settings you use regularly.

We can't help but think that space would have been better used with some physical climate control adjusters. As it stands, you have to use the infotainment screen, which is disappointingly normal these days, but the E-308 SW lacks the temperature shortcuts seen in many. Making the main display momentarily disappear because you want to make the cabin cooler or warmer is a a pain.

You do, at least, get an array of physical buttons under the i-Toggles that cover a handful of climate settings, including air recirculation and windscreen demisting. 

Originally, the cheapest Peugeot E-308 SW cost over £41,000 but prices have fallen since its December 2023 launch and were trimmed further when the facelifted version went on sale in 2025. With the government's Electric Car Grant (ECG) factored in, the electric versions are now cheaper than their combustion-engined siblings. 

Like most qualifying EVs, the Peugeot is only eligible for the lower £1500 ECG discount, which means it's £30,695 for the E-308 SW Allure, £32,695 for the GT and £34,495 for the GT Premium.

The E-308 SW also undercuts the closely related Vauxhall Astra Sports Tourer Electric by more than £4000. The Peugeot would have been our preference anyway thanks to its plusher interior and smoother ride, but with that price gap it's a no-brainer. 

It will cost around £15 to fully charge the Peugeot E-308 SW from flat, which is reasonable enough considering that will get you at least 200 miles of running. But you can slash those electricity costs further by getting yourself onto an EV-friendly tariff which offer massively reduced rates in off-peak hours, potentially lowering a full charge cost to £4.

That should take the sting out of having to pay VED car tax at £195 a year, with the EV exemption ending back in April 2025. EVs are also now liable for the Expensive Car Supplement, but the E-308 SW's price reductions mean it's nowhere near the revised £50,000 threshold for electric cars. 

Many will get the keys to their E-308 SWs via a company car scheme. Like all EVs, the Peugeot enjoys a 3% Benefit-in-Kind (BiK) rate, making for very low monthly costs.

Peugeot often lurks near the bottom of our HonestJohn.co.uk Satisfaction Index, but we'd be less worried about the E-308 SW. Because EVs have fewer moving parts than a petrol- or diesel-powered car, there's less to go wrong. 

The standard warranty is underwhelming, lasting for three years or 60,000 miles, albeit with unlimited mileage in the first two years. You can extend it to up to eight years or 100,000 miles, but only if you return to Peugeot main dealers for servicing.

As is required for EVs, the high-voltage battery has separate coverage also lasting eight years or 100,000 miles.

The original trim line-up for the Peugeot E-308 SW was made up of Allure and GT specifications, with GT Premium sitting at the top of the range from the 2025 facelift. 

Equipment levels are much the same as the petrol- and diesel-powered 308 SW, with a larger standard wheel size for the Allure being the main point of difference.

Standard features for the Peugeot E-308 SW Allure include:

• 18-inch Seattle diamond-cut alloy wheels
• Full LED headlights
• Peugeot signature 3-Claw daytime-running lights
• Dark-tinted rear windows
• Rear parking sensors
• 180-degree reversing camera
• Leather-wrapped steering wheel 
• 10.0-inch digital instrument cluster
• 10.0-inch touchscreen infotainment system
• Keyless start

Adding to that for the Peugeot E-308 SW GT are:

• Matrix LED headlights
• Illuminated grille and badge
• Keyless entry and starting
• Front and rear parking sensors
• Eight-colour interior ambient lighting

Choose the range-topping Peugeot E-308 SW GT Premium to add:

• 360-degree four-parking camera system
• Heated steering wheel 
• Drive Assist Pack Plus additional driver aids