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Peugeot 308 GTI by PeugeotSport: 100% Effective
PEUGEOT 308 GTI
100% EFFECTIVE
Words by Richi Mackie
Photos by Daniél Rikkard
When it comes to hot hatches, one of the very first names that come to mind is without any doubt that of the French lion. Its glorious 205 GTI has left an incredible mark in the hearts of fans and still knows how to entertain, but we’ll talk about this in a few months, on the occasion of our test with its real heir, the Peugeot 208 GTI. Today I travel on even more exciting grounds, like those of the bigger sister 308 GTI, available with two power figures: 250 or 270 horses (which for the most fussy are actually 272). Parked in front of our office we had the most performing version, prepared by the Peugeot Sport department, which continues to feed our thirst for adrenaline, bringing numerous and substantial improvements to the models targeted by the sports division.
Updated mainly on an aesthetic level in november 2017, the 308 GTI is one of those cars that does not shout loud what it is able to do, but prefers facts rather than promises and I can tell you that the numbers and the smile drawn on your face, for example after a drive on some mountain road, will tell the story. Today we have at our disposal a strip of asphalt of about ten kilometers, entirely closed to traffic and with a variety of corners to envy a handful of world rally special stages. The ground is perfect and there is even a straight stretch, long enough to allow the GTI to ground its power, without necessarily keeping it harnessed or exploited only in a relative revs range. I do not know much about the area and the last time I drove here there was a delicate layer of snow covering the tarmac, so any comparison or input acquired would be completely useless.
It is here that I realize how the 308 GTI is an incredible car, it allows you to go fast and do it right away, without even the need to get a bit of confidence. The engine, a 4-cylinder 1.6cc turbocharged, delivers 272 horses and a torque of 300Nm available when the needle of the tachometer not yet touching 2,000 rpm (at 1,900 rpm): this means that you’ll have fun using heel-toe and holding the engine revving for a constant push forward, even when the road becomes very tortuous. Then, there is a mechanical self-locking differential – available on the most powerful version – which intervenes to ensure a better use of power, when traction on the front axle seems to start asking for help for unleashing all the cavalry. There is also the possibility for completely disable the ESP, which allows us to dare even more, voluntarily expanding the output of the most spirited curves and taking full advantage of the road at our disposal.
In the fastest parts of our private short stretch I managed to reach motorway speeds, this GTI seems to deliver a lot more horsepower than it does on paper, all facilitated by a rigid chassis just enough to steer the wheel with vigorous action, but without be uncomfortable the following day as I come back home after writing down my first driving impressions. There is also a braking system worthy of praise, with front discs measuring 380mm, instead of 330, which allow me to slow the frenetic race towards a series of bends immersed in the green of the Ligurian countryside. Too bad that from the double tailpipe does not come out a music worthy of such fun, with occasional and still too timid crackles downshifting. Yes, the gearbox, a good old manual with 6 speeds and a precise lever combined with an equally impeccable clutch. Something you will never want to miss and that you’ll never get tired of, while the small-sized steering wheel is something that after driving a lot of contemporary Peugeot does not upset me like the first or second time I found it in front of me. What is certain is that if you get off another car to get on the GTI, you will lose a few extra minutes to adjust the position, but once you are in motion you will not notice any kind of defect due to a setting so far prerogative of the transalpine lion.
Being a hatchback, the 308 GTI is proposed as a car able to scratch a curvy road and stay by your side even in the monotony other days of the week. There is in fact a good habitability even for rear occupants and the five doors are in this case a point in favor on its only three doors competitors. The trunk is quite big and the infotainment system is precise, although some may find it impractical, since it is fully touch screen. Then there is the Sport button, placed near the gear lever and the handbrake button (I would have preferred this to be a lever), which tints red the analog instrumentation in front of the driver and sharpens the feedback related to the dynamics of the car – needless to say that it is the driving mode you really have to use. Even the seats are a feature in which Peugeot Sport puts a lot of effort and the result is that you have two (front ones) of the best seats on the market, regardless of the car segment.
I desperately like the two-tone paint, with the blue for the front and the black at the back, a certainly not cheap option (about € 1,600) but that gives that something extra to an already extraordinary car. The overall understated shape is still pleasant and modern thanks to front LED lights, updated bumpers and red details that are taken on the front grille and GTI logos placed on the wheel arches. But what makes the 308 GTI by Peugeot Sport a boiling hatchback perfectly able to make you falling in love as the 205 GTI did with your parents at the time, is the fact that offers amazing performance and unlike the smallest ancestor, without the intention of killing you at the first corner. It takes 6 seconds to shoot from 0 to 100 kph, which might also seem a fairly honest figure, but what is surprising is the constant progression that comes into play and the fact that from there, galloping up to 200 per hour will be a blink. The excellent balance of the chassis and the suspension play a fundamental role in making the 308 GTI agile as a real feline, a bends hunter ready to launch a lethal attack and take home days of fun.
It comes to think if there really is any flaw and to be honest, I find it difficult to identify even one. It costs a minimum of 36 thousand Euros for the version like this under test, but the package is complete and fuel consumption is not at all prohibitive thanks to the approximately 6l/100km declared. Let’s put it this way, with the excuse of finding something wrong in here, I’ll keep driving it!
PEUGEOT 308 GTI by PEUGEOT SPORT (11/2017-)
Layout – front-engined, front wheel drive
Engine – in-line 4 cylinder 1.598cc – turbocharged
Transmission – 6-speed manual gearbox
Power – 272 hp @ 6.000 rpm
330 Nm @ 1.900 rpm
Weight – 1.280 kg
Acceleration – 6 sec.
Top Speed – 250 kph
Price – from €36.220
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