Peugeot 308SW

It's been a couple of months since the Peugeot 308 hatchback was launched and now Peugeot New Zealand has launched the larger SW version. As before it's essentially a station wagon version of the hatchback, and as before, Peugeot refuses to confirm whether or not SW means Station Wagon or not.

The name comes from Peugeot head office so it may mean something in French, but no one's really worked it out yet.

The 308 SW comes standard with a panoramic glass roof, which really opens the car up and makes it feel much larger than it really is. The new SW also offers the option of two seats in the boot, although as always they're really only good for children due to the limited leg room. The NZ$45,190 SW comes with seven airbags and ESP, and there's even a wifi system that communicates between the seats to act as seatbelt reminders on the dashboard.

The SW is joined by a high performance 308 hatch using the 207 GTi engine and called the Sport with 128kW on hand. I didn't get a change to drive the NZ$46,490 Sport, but the most relevant model in the entire range is the new 308 ST diesel, especially since Peugeot is pushing a special Michelin tyre to lower emissions and fuel consumption.

The diesel 308 AT uses one of those manual/automatic gearboxes which use actuators to change gear ratios and work the clutch, and since there's no torque converter as in an automatic, the setup is more fuel efficient.

These sorts of gearboxes have had a chequered past, taking a long time to change gear and jerk into new ratios abruptly, but this one isn't too bad.

You still have to pull your foot off the throttle while the six speed gearbox changes gear to really smooth the transition out, but even if you don't there's not too much of a bump when the car changes gear.

The engine used in the 308 AT is the 1.6 litre high pressure direct injection diesel engine, producing 80kW and 240Nm of torque. That's enough to push the 308 AT along quite nicely. The other model of the 308 AT is the 308 AT-e, which adds special Michelin low rolling resistance tyres to reduce fuel consumption by around 0.2L/100km and reduce carbon dioxide output by around four grams per kilometre.

You do have to pay an extra $1000 for the privilege over the base price of the 308 AT at NZ$36,990 which means it's going to take some time to work off the extra cash through fuel savings, but if you want to be kinder to the planet putting down an extra NZ$1000 may give you some peace of mind.

So now the 308 range is pretty much complete, and Peugeot reckons the SW is going to boost sales by a substantial amount, but it will be interesting to see if New Zealanders, who often see tyres as merely the things that keep the car off the ground, will go for the eco friendly 308 AT-e.