Peugeot 108 (2014-2022) review

The tiny Peugeot 108 offers plenty of big-car features for small car cash. Yet it isn’t our favourite choice in the highly competitive city car market. The Skoda Citigo is more refined and the Hyundai i10 provides much more space; both feel more mature and should be better ownership propositions.

Nevertheless, the 108 is still a good contender, especially if you want to inject a sense of style into your motoring, as Peugeot offers a wide range of personalisation options, which will no doubt attract younger buyers. There is a choice between three-door and five-door models, so you can pick between sharp looks and extra practicality if you’re sold on the pint-sized Peugeot, while the opening canvas roof is also a funky addition.

The Peugeot 108 is for sale in the hotly contested city car market. It comes in Access, Active and Allure trims, and is offered with three or five doors, plus the option of an opening roof on Top! models.

In a sector where economies of scale mean joint ventures are the done thing, the Peugeot 108 shares all of its running gear and basic bodyshell with the Citroen C1 and Toyota Aygo, with each car getting a unique look for the nose, tail and interior. As well as these two rivals, the 108 also goes up against the VW up!, Skoda Citigo and SEAT Mii trio, the platform-sharing Hyundai i10 and Kia Picanto, the co-developed Renault Twingo and Smart ForFour, plus small cars such as the Ford Ka+ and Fiats Panda and 500.

When the 108 first went on sale in 2014, it featured either 1.0 or 1.2 three-cylinder petrol engines. Today, the range has been pared back to just the 1.0, which is a bit of a shame, as the 1.2 gave the car a little extra punch that made it an entertaining performer that could cope with the odd longer journey. While that will be tougher with the 1.0, the 72bhp unit is still an eager performer that likes to rev, which gives the 108 a bit of character around town. It's front-wheel drive with a five-speed manual gearbox, while a 2-Tronic auto is available as an option, although this blunts the car's performance even further.

In terms of trim levels, Access is the most basic courtesy car special, as it only comes in the three-door body with plastic wheel trims. You still get a full suite of safety kit, including tyre pressure monitors, six airbags, stability control and a pair of Isofix mounts in the back, while there's also a USB charging socket, electric front windows and LED daytime running lights.

Keeping the Access basic helps the 108 to achieve a sub-£10k starting price, but it's quite a leap of nearly £1,800 to the next model in the range. Active cars add a touchscreen with Apple CarPlay and Android Auto, so you can use your phone maps on the seven-inch screen, plus a DAB radio, Bluetooth, air-con and a split folding rear seat. Move up to Allure, and it really is Allure-ing, with heated electric door mirrors, a rear camera, alloy wheels, auto lights and tinted windows.

All these models come with either three or five-doors, while the latter can be upgraded to Top! spec with the sliding canvas roof for £1,000 extra. In addition, Peugeot offers the occasional 108 special edition. This has included a Roland Garros version to tie in with the French Open tennis championships, while the current 108 Collection adds colour co-ordinated interior and exterior trim, including contrast colours for the roof of the 108 Top!

Engines, performance and drive

The Peugeot 108's predecessor, the 107, was an easy-to-drive city car, but it didn’t score highly in terms of refinement or fun. Since the 108 shares the same basic chassis, you could be forgiven for thinking it’s just got a pretty new body.

However, refinement at speed has been improved, with road and wind noise better isolated than before, although you’ll still notice a distinct hum and some vibration from the engine – but it’s no worse than in the Peugeot’s Toyota and Citroen sister cars. 

Around town, the 108’s tight turning circle, compact dimensions and light controls make driving a breeze, but venture on to more challenging roads and you’ll start to notice its limitations. In fairness, there’s more than enough grip, and the handling is composed enough to be reassuring. It’s just that the Peugeot lacks sparkle. Push on and you’ll notice that the body leans more than in its rivals, while the steering is numb and lacking in feedback, and the gearshift is notchy. 

On the motorway the three-cylinder thrum will soon get tiring, while the lack of pace means the 108 isn't the most enjoyable city car to drive at speed - you're better of with a Hyundai i10 in this regard.

Engines

While 1.0 and 1.2 three-cylinder engines were available from launch, an update in 2018 saw the larger motor dropped in favour of a slightly more powerful 1.0. This is still the same Toyota-designed engine as before, so it's quite advanced for a city car, and is probably all the motor you'll ever need most of the time. However, those who plan on doing a lot of driving at higher speeds and on motorways will miss the more powerful 1.2 PureTech unit, which was Peugeot’s own design.

There’s no diesel available in the 108, but then the petrol engines are pretty efficient, although they're slow with it. There's a 0-62mph time of 13.8 seconds for the 72bhp three-cylinder, while adding the 2 Tronic auto sees that fall by the wayside with a 15.2 second recorded time, although that's faster than the 0.62mph time quoted for the Citroen C1 with the same engine/gearbox set-up (15.7 secs).

There's a familar three-cylinder thrum that adds a sporty edge at city speeds, but it turns into bigger vibratons the faster you go, especially because the five-speed gearbox means you'll be carrying high revs. If you're going to be using the 108 for regular motorway and dual carriageway work, it might be better to seek out a nearly new 1.2 PureTech model, as this will cope a lot better with this kind of driving.

MPG, CO2 and Running Costs

Whether you choose the 1.0 manual or auto, Active Stop & Start is included to help deliver reduced CO2 emissions. However, the 108 isn't quite as efficient as it used to be, but that's because of the new WLTP testing procedure. While the most efficient 108 had an emissions figure of 88g/km and official fuel economy of 74.3mpg, it's not quite as efficient now.

The standard 1.0-litre 108 records emissions of 93g/km with the five-speed manual gearbox and 95g/km with the automated manual transmission, while claimed fuel consumption figures stand at 57.3mpg and 55mpg respectively.

By way of reference, the more powerful 1.2-litre engine claims 99g/km emissions and 65.7mpg fuel economy, but those figures are recorded under the old NEDC test procedure, so aren't comparable with the WLTP figures.

There’s also no emissions or economy penalty for choosing the five-door 108 over the three-door, as the vehicle weights are so similar as to make no noticeable difference.

If you want to run the 108 as a company car, the low CO2 emissions will help matters; the fact that all models are petrol-powered saves on the three per cent diesel surcharge, too. 

Insurance

With such limited performance on offer, it’s no surprise that insuring the 108 is a relatively painless business. The range starts at group six for the 1.0-litre three-door Access and rises to group 11 if you source an older 1.2 litre. Insurance groups are identical for the Citroen C1, although the Toyota Aygo doesn’t make it above group seven.

If you really hate paying insurance premiums, consider that the near-identical Volkswagen up!, Skoda Citigo and SEAT Mii line-ups, as well as the Hyundai i10 range, start at an impossible-to-beat group one and only rise as far as group four – although the more powerful versions don’t offer sprightly performance to match their French rivals.

Depreciation

City cars aren’t quite the gold-plated depreciation bet of a few years back due to increasing sales and competition in the sector, but the Peugeot 108 doesn’t fare badly. With anticipated three-year residual values of around 47 per cent for the entry-level Access, and the low entry price when new, you shouldn’t be hit too hard in the wallet come resale time. More expensive versions don’t perform quite so well: our experts suggest a top-of-the-range 108 Feline will retain only 44 per cent of its new price over three years.

To get an accurate valuation on a specific model check out our free car valuation tool...

Interior, design and technology

As with the old 107, the 108 is built alongside the Toyota Aygo and Citroen C1 in the Czech Republic. Although all three cars share the same platform and underpinnings, Peugeot has managed to give its version a unique style.

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The ‘floating’ chrome grille and narrow headlights are designed to look upmarket, and take inspiration from the newest products in the Peugeot line-up, while the cheap-looking external boot hinges of the 107 are now hidden by a spoiler. 

There’s even a set of ‘claw print’ lights at the back to mimic the claws of the Peugeot lion badge, and if you want to add a bit of individuality and character to the looks, the company offers two-tone paint schemes and a host of funky sticker packs.

As you’d expect, the cabin is a big step up from the 107’s as well. The build quality and design aren’t on the same level as those of the Skoda Citigo, but there’s been a definite improvement. Some models have porcelain-coloured dash inserts, and while there are a few areas of hard plastic, fit and finish is better than in budget rivals such as the MG3. The switchgear feels robust and the dash is easy to get on with. 

As with the exterior, you can personalise the cabin, with dash decals to add a touch of colour, while higher spec cars come with a leather trimmed steering wheel and gearlever.

Sat-nav, stereo and infotainment

The 108’s basic cabin architecture is carried over from the outgoing 107, but the car’s interior design is centred around a seven-inch colour touchscreen which provides a youthful, hi-tech feel. It’s a comprehensive interface, offering USB, aux-in and Bluetooth connectivity for audio devices and your smartphone. 

You also get a DAB radio and a multifunction leather steering wheel, and on top of this there’s a MirrorLink function for use with Android mobile devices. The touchscreen system is only available on Active models and up. 

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Practicality, comfort and boot space

As one of the smaller packages in the city car market, you shouldn’t be surprised to learn that the Peugeot 108 doesn’t offer masses of interior space. Neither do its Citroen C1 and Toyota Aygo cousins. There’s also no chance of seating five people inside, even for short journeys, because unlike the Hyundai i10, the car doesn’t offer a central rear seatbelt.

While certain models feature a height-adjustable driver’s seat, the driving position isn’t as comfortable as in the Volkswagen up!. It feels cramped and confined in comparison.

Inside, the Peugeot now has a glovebox with a lid, but this is smaller than that of the Skoda Citigo, as are the door pockets. But if you’ve just moved up from a scooter, you probably won’t be complaining.

Dimensions and size

The Peugeot 108 is not only less boxy to look at than rivals like the Volkswagen up! and Skoda Citigo, it’s noticeably smaller, too.

While the Peugeot measures just 3,455mm from bumper to bumper, the up! is 3,540mm long and the Hyundai i10 is 3,645mm.

The Peugeot also has a lower roofline than the Hyundai and the VW Group city car trio, and it’s a few centimetres narrower, too.

Leg room, head room & passenger space

The 108 will carry four adults at a pinch, but it could do with more rear legroom. On three-door cars, the front seats have a handy memory function that ensures they return to the same position after being tilted forward to allow passengers to get into the back. You get Isofix mountings for two child seats, too.

Boot space

Do without the optional spare wheel and you get a 196-litre boot; this drops to 180 litres if you specify the space saver. Either way, the Peugeot is nowhere near the best in class in terms of load capacity. 

The 108 has a fabric luggage cover that stays with the tailgate when it’s open, while 50:50 split folding rear seats are standard on all but the entry-level Access version.

Plus, Peugeot has managed to lower the boot lip by 20mm compared with the old car, so it’s a bit easier to load and unload heavy items. 

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Reliability and Safety

Despite the updated styling, many of the 108’s components are carried over from the old 107. As before, the car is produced at PSA/Toyota’s efficient plant in the Czech Republic. While it’s built to a price, most of the parts are robust, reliable and well proven. 

The 1.0-litre engine, in particular, has been used in Peugeot, Citroen and Toyota city cars for years, and we’ve heard of very few problems from owners of the old model. 

We’re also pleased to report that Peugeot has been performing well of late in the Auto Express Driver Power satisfaction survey. In 2014, the brand came 17th out of 33 manufacturers – winning ‘most improved’ plaudits – while in 2015 Peugeot repeated the trick with another climb up the chart, to 10th overall. That put it ahead of Audi, BMW and Mercedes, among many others.

For reliability, owners ranked Peugeot (as a manufacturer) 12th, but build quality was only rated 17th overall. Hopefully, as one of its newer models, the 108 should help lift those scores in future; we’ll wait and see.

One area where the city car has improved significantly over its predecessor is on safety. The 107 scored three stars in Euro NCAP crash tests, but when the new model was put through its paces in 2014, it scored four stars overall, achieving a decent 80 per cent rating for both adult and child protection. However, this is still below the best in the class – for comparison, the Skoda Citigo gets a full five-star rating.

Nevertheless, with six airbags and stability control as standard, the 108 should offer peace of mind from a safety perspective. Plus, on more expensive Allure and Feline models, buyers have the option to specify lane-departure warning and City Braking systems.

Warranty

Peugeot offers a three-year/60,000-mile warranty on the 108, which would have seemed reasonable a few years back. However, it now looks uncompetitive against packages from rivals like Kia, Hyundai and Toyota. The Kia Picanto benefits from a seven-year/100,000-mile deal, the Hyundai i10 has a five-year/unlimited-mileage warranty and the Toyota Aygo is supplied with five years and 100,000 miles of cover.

Servicing

Peugeot 108s fitted with the Toyota-designed 1.0-litre engine require maintenance every 16,000 miles or 12 months, with the annual intervals sure to come sooner for most drivers. In comparison, the older 1.2 PureTech models need a service every year or 10,000 miles.