Peugeot 3008

This is another case of car release shortly after the “accidental” exposure of some pictures on the Internet. The new 3008 brings a very similar solution to RCZ’s because the idea is actually the same: apply some minor updates to boost the sales at this second half of their lifecycle, leaving the more expensive changes to their next generations or successors, which can be expected only in four or five years. Meanwhile, Peugeot’s mid-size crossover still excels on what has always distinguished it from all the crossovers of nowadays.

This facelift is signed by the Chinese joint-venture Dongfeng-Peugeot, which will restrict some of the changes to that market. However, it’s highly expected that the other markets will also receive this excellent visual result. Once again, this restyling was successful because it managed to update the car, instead of discharacterizing it with heavy changes in some parts and maintaining others. It’s impressive to notice how the French automaker’s latest visual identity didn’t take much effort to be applied at 3008. The air intake was replaced by a smaller and more horizontal one, with chrome lines and placed between the brand logo and the license plate. The fog lights became visually separated and received a bigger area, with a chrome boomerang-shaped detail that reminds 308’s LEDs row, while the hood received stronger lines. But the biggest compliments go to doing all that without touching the headlights: the updates were so well-made that those parts didn’t need any change: in fact, they fit the new look even with it being based on horizontal elements, while the original one used vertical bigger items. Besides that, there are only new wheels and a roof rack, without any changes to the rear. An unusual restyling went to the third side window, behind the back doors: they received a more elegant design, with bigger size at the lower portion to improve visibility.

However, mentioning that a successful facelift only updates the car means 3008 is still a crossover with “a hint” of minivan, which makes it very different from its SUV-inspired rivals. The cabin has plenty of space for five passengers, with a beautiful central console and lots of the current trends, such as the big touchscreen for the GPS navigation and to control several car functions. The 2013 update brought new color options and external LED daylights, but internally there’s only a new sound system, redesigned steering wheel and the optional parking cameras and ventilated seats. This car will be sold in China always with front traction and automatic six-speed transmission, whether with the 147-hp 2.0 or the 163-hp 1.6 THP. The second option composes the most expensive version, which is imported from France for 240.000 RMB. This car will make its official debut at the next Guangzhou Motor Show.