PEUGEOT E-408

Electric version of Peugeot's low-rise crossover hatch is here at last

- ALEX WOLSTENHOLME

When the Peugeot 408 landed in 2022, we were told an electric version of the 4.7m-long liftback-cum-crossover would be just around the corner, but it's taken its sweet time. And three years on, the e-408 we have here doesn't seem very competitive, at least on paper.

In the time taken for the EV to arrive, the closely related Citroën C5 X, with which it shares the EMP2 platform, has been discontinued - which makes you wonder: should Peugeot even have bothered?

The headline stats here are 281 miles of range for £37,060, with a maximum charging speed of 120kW. The e-408 uses a slightly bigger battery than its e-308 sibling, and it benefits from a useful bump in power, from 154bhp to 207bhp.

The e-408 has few direct rivals but, given its amalgamation of bodystyles, a plethora of indirect models to beat: the Mazda 6e and MG IM5 are more traditionally low-slung liftbacks, the Ford Capri and Kia EV6 are more obviously crossovers and the Tesla Model 3 remains a benchmark for most in the D-segment.