With petrol prices hitting $3 a litre around New Zealand, and with the clean car rebate still available, it’s time to check out new electric vehicles available for Kiwis.

It’s a cheerful bonjour to the French electric hatchback, the Peugeot e208, which brings some style and élégance (that’s elegance in English) to our roads.

Launched in New Zealand at the same time as big brother, the e2008 compact SUV, the hatch is one of the cheaper new EVs on our roads.

How much is the Peugeot e208 in New Zealand? Priced from $61,900, it is eligible for the $8625 clean car rebate, taking the price to $53,275. 

Peugeot’s local importer, Auto Distributors New Zealand, is impressed with the e208’s credentials.

“Peugeot is acknowledged as a leader in new and clean technology in Europe and we aspire to replicate this position here in New Zealand,” said CEO of Auto Distributors New Zealand, Chris Brown.

“We have the credentials to do so as, in 2020, Stellantis average CO2 emissions for Europe was 97g per km – so we are well aware of the change required to achieve the targets the government is setting.”

“We’re incredibly proud to be able to bring these vehicles to market, as New Zealand is one of the few markets outside of Europe to be getting EV’s this year.” 

It is also the first mass-produced electric vehicle by Peugeot as the brand joins the likes of MG, Tesla, Mini, Nissan, Hyundai, and Kia in the global market.

The Peugeot e208 also won a number of awards including being named the Best Small Electric Car in 2021 by car wow and Autocar UK.

The e208 joins the fantastic 208 GT (review soon) in New Zealand and the visual difference between the two is that the grille of the electric version is the same colour as the body, it has different alloys, no exhaust (of course), and two ‘e’ badges on the C-pillar. 

Apart from those aspects, it has the same sculpted bonnet, three-claw and fang LED light designs, and prominent rear piano black trim, giving the 208 (EV and petrol) a head-turning, distinctive look. 

Inside, the e208 gets the new dials that give a three-dimensional effect with information such as energy, range, and charge displayed in front of the driver.

The e208 has a five-year/100,000 km mechanical warranty and the battery is guaranteed for eight-years/160,000 km for 70% of its charge capacity,

The 50kWh battery takes seven hours to charge to 100 percent via a wall box charger to 28 hours via a home plug, while I used a ChargeNet fast charger at my local supermarket that will top it up to 80 percent in 30 minutes.

The 50kWh produces 100kW of power and 260Nm of torque. It goes from 0-100km/h in 8.3seconds, so it’s no Tesla Model 3 with its 3.3seconds. 

While our press car had a range of 346km, there’s good news for Kiwis keen on buying the e208 as models built from this month will get a range of “close to 400km” says Auto Distributors New Zealand.

Is the range of the Peugeot e208 realistic? With the press vehicle, it would probably sit at 320km but you can expect that with the upgraded battery, there are no worries about range anxiety, which I find with EVs that are subscribed to a fast charger service. 

That extended battery range makes it a viable EV for trips, especially as the battery can be “topped up” through regenerative braking or going downhills.

For example, I took the e208 for just a 10km round trip to the supermarket and there was 90km left of battery but by just braking as I normally would, I added 2km to the range.

I also took the advice of Auto Distributors New Zealand and had it in eco mode while driving around the city, but put it in sport mode for when I was on the motorway. But even in sport mode, there was no immediate surge of power like I found in Hyundai’s Ioniq 5 (yip, I have a review coming of that soon).

The steering is accurate and you turn into bends with confidence, but don't expect much in the way of feedback, as this isn’t the petrol 208 GT. 

It’s a small hatchback at 4055mm in length so adult rear passengers will find their knees hitting the front seats. The boot is fine and Peugeot keeps the charging cable in a small bag that velcros to the side of the boot so it doesn’t move around during tight cornering.

What I appreciated about the e208 was that using air condition doesn’t affect range, so with Auckland’s humid spell, I had the air con at 14 degrees with the fan on high (and yes, I may have sat in the car when it was parked beside my house in the middle of the day to cool down).

Who will buy the Peugeot e208? Definitely existing Peugeot owners who want to switch to an EV, while people who want a vehicle that looks “normal” rather than the futuristic Ioniq 5, will also be a fan.

But be quick, as the rebate looks to finish on March 31.