As we all know very well Santa Claus is a marvellous man who makes dreams come through for the young and also for the ‘young at heart.’
While he might surprise a few adults with the keys to a shiny new motor this Christmas somehow, I don’t think the great man has yet moved on to electric cars. As usual he will be travelling from the North Pole and will be passing through Norway and Sweden where there are plenty of electric cars.
Those Scandinavian countries are well served by a plentiful supply of charge points and no doubt Santa is aware that our little island on the most western part of Europe is still lacking behind our mainland Europe neighbours when it comes to charging stations.
That’s all by way of introducing the revamped Peugeot E-2008. The car, which was launched in 2019, just before the arrival of Covid, had had a mild make-over or refresh, call it what you like.
There are a few changes to the exterior. The daytime running lights, which had a single blade of LEDs running down the outer edge of the front bumper, have been replaced by a pair of three angled LED lights on each side, which are very attractive.
With most electric cars, they tend to be bland at the front, but Peugeot has a proper grille, topped off with their new shield logo. And just to make sure that everybody knows that it’s an electric car there are now stylish ‘E’ badges on the front wheel arches.
My test car came in Selenium Grey which was very attractive. I took some pictures of it on my mobile phone in the early morning sunshine and there was a shine off the car.
At the back, the rear lights get a different lighting signature and the name Peugeot is spelt out across the black strip connecting the rear lights. Overall, it’s a very attractive-looking, well designed motor.
The e-2008 is full of technology such as the 3D instrumentation, the i-Cockpit, carbon-effect dashboard and panel finishes. You will love the neat flat-bottom steering wheel, which includes slave controls.
Inside, the seats are very comfortable and in the GT version I drove the grey seats had lime green stitching which brightened the décor. The controls on the dash are tilted slightly towards the driver. The lower dash area would remind you of a piano with seven buttons, all for different controls.
There is enough room in the back seat for three adults, but maybe it would be more comfortable with just two adults, or three teenagers.
People are always asking me how much it costs to charge an electric car. Well, at an ESB fast charger last week, the cost was €15.87 for 30 minutes which got me very close to 200km. That’s approximately eight cent per kilometre.
When fully charged the official range is 320km, but you would need perfect weather conditions to reach that figure. In the cold and wet of winter that figure will definitely drop. It’s very nimble car and you will get best results in urban driving and there should be no range anxiety if you are shopping or doing school runs.
Peugeot are now producing some excellent cars and the e-2008 continues that tradition.
Santa has been known to sometimes forget batteries for a small toy, but if he does happen to be bringing an electric car, there are no worries as batteries are included.
Prices start at €35,700. Road tax is €120.
