The Star: June 27, 2019

THE NEW
508 GT
BY ROSS KIDDIE
Everyone who laid eyes on it said what a beautiful
car – elegant, luxurious and downright classy.
These comments referred to the entire design of
Peugeot’s new 508 GT Fastback, and I could see
by the looks from other motorists it was certainly
capturing interest. I’m not arguing against that, but
you’d expect nothing less from this exciting French
automobile manufacturer.
Yes, the 508 GT has definite appeal, the style is
sleek and the interior is simply gorgeous. However,
it’s not perfect; while Peugeot have created an
upmarket cabin layout, I found some of the
secondary control buttons frustrating, they don’t
have any haptic feel and sometimes you don’t
believe that the button has generated the function
you want, so you push it again and it takes you to
where you don’t want to be.
There is some sound upon activation, but it’s quiet,
which could be problematic for those in theLiving
Life demographic who may suffer from age-related
hearing loss.
This is all very minor, and after almost two weeks
in the test car I grew to understand it and enjoyed
it immensely. Some might suggest the 508’s 1.6-litre
engine isn’t true grand tourer material, but when
the go pedal is given a bit of a nudge the Fastback
certainly scampers along.
For the record, Peugeot rate the turbocharged fourpotter
at 169kW and 300Nm, both outputs realised
where you want them, low in the rev band at
5500rpm and 2500rpm. As a consequence, power
is generally accessible without lag. As a vehicle, the
508 is a big car, but there’s no suggestion the engine
isn’t up to task, it is one of the sweetest engines to
come out of the Peugeot/Citroen factories, and I
simply adore it.
Power is channelled through to the front wheels
through an eight-speed automatic gearbox.
Interestingly, the 508 gets a manual drive mode
that can be selected at will, there are also comfort
and sport modes. Each has its own significance, but
I chose to use normal/comfort mode mostly, only
accessing the others for evaluation purposes.
Certainly, in the sport or manual setting the GT’s
character comes out, it is lively and constantly
eager. For the record, the 508 will lunge to
100km/h from a standstill in 7.3sec, and will make
a highway overtake – 80-120km/h – in 4.6sec.
On the subject of figures, if you aren’t stirring
the engine to work that turbo boost, it is also
surprisingly economical. Peugeot claims a
combined average cycle of 5.7-litres per 100km
(49mpg); during my time in the GT it was
constantly listing around 7.6l/100km (37mpg)
with a 4.7l/100km (63mpg) instantaneous figure at
100km/h (engine speed 1600rpm).
I took the test car through some of the windy
peninsula roads and I knew I wasn’t going to
be disappointed with its handling. For many
years Peugeot has been the champion in terms
of suspension and ride quality versus handling
control. The 508 has a glorious ride, it’s almost
un-GT-like with soft spring and damper rates, but
it also offers the control you would want in a sports
sedan/liftback.
Riding on high quality Michelin rubber (235/40
x 19in), steerage is millimetre precise and turnin
is direct. At just 1.4m the 508 sits low, body
movement is unaffected by gravitational change,
it is kept even by the suspension along with
complete absorption through the four-corner, fully
independent system.
At $55,990 ($57,990 with nappa leather), it also sits
appealingly in the marketplace. It is a car built with
plenty of French flair, pride, passion and panache,
competing well against competition from its
European counterparts.
At these prices it punches well above its weight,
and if you add in build quality and level of kit, it is
one very desirable grand tourer.
Price – Peugeot 508 GT Fastback,
$57,990
Dimensions – Length, 4750mm; width,
1859mm; height, 1404mm
Configuration – Four-cylinder, frontwheel-drive,
1598cc, 169kW, 300Nm,
eight-speed automatic.
Performance – 0-100km/h, 7.3sec
Fuel usage – 5.7l/100km
11
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