The Peugeot 208 is a supermini that actually does very little that’s new or groundbreaking, but it’s significant for a hugely uplifting reason if you’re a car enthusiast. It was the car that put Peugeot right back in the game as a top-drawer manufacturer of fun, classy hatches.

The brand’s Eighties 205 supermini was a champ but its successor, the 206, was a dud that sold in huge numbers. The subsequent 207 was a trier, but was never quite there. With the 208, though, it was a different story. Fun, well-built, sharply-styled and full of interesting features, it was a winner from the word go.

What You Get

The 208 represented a new design direction for Peugeot in this class. Many of the styling cues are directly attributable to the SR1 show car which debuted at the 2010 Geneva Show and while the basic silhouette could be accused of being a little more generic than its predecessors, the detailing is crisp, the surfacing neat and the overall shape is extremely cohesive. The GTi version looks great, with a hat tip to the legendary 205 GTi in the form of a metallic insert on the C-pillar.

What To Look For

The 208 has enjoyed a far better reliability record than its problematic predecessor, but there are a couple of things you should check over when looking at the cars. The first is a fully stamped up service record. Next, examine for flaking of paint on the bumpers and check that the air conditioning works and that the pixels on the centre display are all good. Also check for rear bumper scrapes. Finally check that the Bluetooth pairs reliably with your phone handset.

Overall

As a used buy, a 208 stands up extremely well. Reliability has been better than many had hoped for, residual values have stood up fairly well as a result and the GTI is just a little belter. No, it’s not quite as pin-sharp as a hot Clio on a race track, but we think that makes it a better road car on typical British roads. You could say that of the standard version too. It smacks of Gallic greatness.