Review: Peugeot 5008 7-Seater Compact MPV

Most of my readers know that I have two very young children, aged three and one, but what you might not know is that I also have two older stepchildren. They don't feature as frequently on my blog, being so busy with school and clubs, but our family has grown a lot recently with all four children now living under the same roof, and our five-seater cars are just not cutting it anymore. Whenever we want to go out as a family, we have been having to take both of our cars. Two lots of fuel, two lots of parking, it's just daft. We're a family and we want to travel together! So Ian and I have been looking at compact MPVs, and one that immediately caught our attention was the Peugeot 5008. Peugeot sent us a 5008 Allure BlueHDi so we could see how it suited our blended family needs.

Many of the larger cars on the market at the moment just don't appeal to me, because they look so big and cumbersome. "I don't want to drive a bus", was my brief to Ian. The seven-seater Peugeot 5008 however has recently been restyled with an ultra-modern new look and features. For a start, it isn't much bigger than the BMW 318 that I had, just 6 cm longer which is nothing at all. The front of the car features the floating front grille, chrome trim and redesigned headlamps with the signature strip of LED lights built into the lower portion. The panoramic glass roof makes the car seem even more spacious and airy than it already is, and the dashboard and interior of the car is just as good looking as the exterior. It is a sleek, modern and stylish car, and it's compact size is perfect for people like me who need a spacious car but are scared of driving bigger models!

What really helped me when driving the 5008 is is all the practicalities and on board features that come with it. For a start, the driver sits in an elevated position and the car has a large windscreen, so I had a clear view in every direction. The front and rear parking assistance was amped up further in this model with a reversing camera. There is a screen on the dashboard which is the radio and sat nav, but put the car into reverse and up comes a view of what's behind you. Not only that, but it also indicates an outline of where the car will be positioned which is really useful when trying to work out if you can actually fit into that tight gap or not. Another feature I loved - which Ian also loved too - is the Head-Up display which appears on the dashboard directly in front of the driver. Without taking my eyes off the road I am able to see the speed I'm driving at as well as any turnings I need to take when using the sat nav on the small clear display that sits perfectly in my field of vision.

There are many seven-seater cars available these days, as larger families like ours are becoming more common, but not all of them are really suitable to modern parenthood. One of the things that was really important to us in our search for a new car is the seats on the second row. They need to be full seats and they need to have ISOFIX points. Straight away several of the seven-seater cars were struck off our list for having a 3/4 seat in the middle. If we have another baby, we would need to get two car seats plus a high back booster in the second row, so a 3/4 seat is useless to us. Fortunately the Peugeot 5008 does have three full seats and they all have ISOFIX points. 

There are two seats on the third row and my stepchildren, who are nine and seven, have plenty of room. Adults may find it a bit of a squeeze, but for kids it's ideal. The versatility of this car is a huge selling factor for me. On weekdays I only had the younger children in the car, so the third row of seats were folded flat to create an enormous boot space for a buggy, school bags, swimming gear, groceries and whatever else the children decide they need that day. Then at the weekend when all of us are in the car, I can easily pull the additional seats up. With all of the seats up you do lose out on nearly all of the boot space but this, I guess, is what keeps the 5008 to such a compact size. There underfloor storage on the second row though which helps. And if we ever need to transport something particular long or heavy, all of the seats in the car can be folded flat.

Driving the 5008 was an absolute joy; it is such a smooth and comfortable drive. I had expected the car to feel quite heavy as I was aware that it is bigger than either of our cars, but the steering was light and accurate and the car handles corners well. Parallel parking was an absolute doddle, not just because of the parking assistance which of course gives added confidence and reassurance, but because the car is just so easy to manoeuvre with the lightweight steering and higher seating position.

Of course, it's not the speediest of cars, but I only really noticed that at higher speeds anyway and most of my driving is down through town traffic. Plus, when buying a family car speed is most definitely not of the essence! Driving this car has renewed my love for automatic gearboxes. The gear changes are quick, smooth and seamless every time. 

For all the other boxes on our car-buying list, the Peugeot 5008 is ticking them all. It's got all the space we need, it's one of the most efficient cars in its class, reaching 62.7mpg in the combined cycle, and it's rather gorgeous to look at. What more could we ask for!

What family car do you have?

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With thanks to Peugeot for loaning us the car.