Peugeot 3008 VS Mitsubishi Pajero Sport
Peugeot 3008
Likes
- Unique, stylish looks
- Great to drive
- Spacious
Dislikes
- Expensive
- Slow to charge
- 60km electric range
Mitsubishi Pajero Sport
Likes
- Very capable 4WD
- Versatile Super Select II 4WD system
- No-nonsense set-up
Dislikes
- Still feels old
- Firm ride
- Quite sluggish
Summary
Peugeot 3008
The great downpour of electric vehicles hasn't hit Australia yet, but vehicles such as Peugeot’s 3008 GT Sport Plug-in Hybrid is one of the big drops signalling that storm is about break. But should you wait until the EV ‘rain’ sets in or be an early adopter?
The range-topping 3008 GT Sport Plug-in Hybrid is Peugeot’s first electric SUV to arrive in Australia. Electric in that it has electric motors, but also a petrol engine, making it a hybrid – the type you plug into a charger to fill the battery back up.
Peugeot gave me a 3008 GT Sport Plug-in Hybrid to test over three days and I quickly discovered what this mid-sized SUV was good at, and where it could be better.
| Safety rating | |
|---|---|
| Engine Type | 1.6L turbo |
| Fuel Type | Hybrid with Premium Unleaded |
| Fuel Efficiency | 1.6L/100km |
| Seating | 5 seats |
Mitsubishi Pajero Sport
The Mitsubishi Pajero Sport GSR is the top-spec wagon in an updated line-up.
The next-gen performance-enhanced Pajero Sport is expected here in 2025 but, in the meantime, Mitsubishi looks determined to squeeze the last bit of sales juice out of the current line-up as the entire range has now undergone a notable refresh including the introduction of 18-inch alloys, design tweaks to the front and rear, as well as new styling inside and new exterior paint choices.
Is this upgraded Pajero Sport a noteworthy rival for the likes of the Ford Everest and Isuzu MU-X and, more importantly, does it represent a solid buy?Â
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Read on.
| Safety rating | |
|---|---|
| Engine Type | 2.4L turbo |
| Fuel Type | Diesel |
| Fuel Efficiency | 8L/100km |
| Seating | 7 seats |
Verdict
Peugeot 30087/10
Technology is supposed to make life better and easier, but I’m afraid this hybrid version of the 3008 falls short on that score due to its slow charging and limited range. Nor does this hybrid version make a great driving, practical and good looking SUV much better.
Then there's the price. A list price of $80K is too much, relative to class rivals and the petrol equivalent 3008.Â
For this money you could buy a Volvo XC40 Recharge Pure Electric, Hyundai Ioniq 5 or Tesla Model 3. All charge at (relatively) lightening-quick rates and deliver about 400km of range. And none of them require petrol, because they are fully electric. Â Â
The 3008 GT Sport Plug-in Hybrid needs charging pretty much every moment it’s not being driven in order to make sure all of that 60km of range doesn’t run dry.
That’s a lot to ask from people in Australia who don’t blink at driving 500km for a family holiday, in a country which has far fewer charging locations than Europe.Â
Mitsubishi Pajero Sport7.5/10
The Pajero Sport is reasonable on-road, more than satisfactory as a daily driver and it’s still a very effective 4WD.
This is a proven touring vehicle and while this update treatment doesn’t add a whole lot to the Pajero Sport package – and nothing in terms of power, torque or performance in general – it’s easily enough to tempt those who aren’t patient enough to wait for the next-generation version to arrive here.
Design
Peugeot 3008
There’s never been a Peugeot that hasn’t been interesting in its design. That’s a big part of their appeal and the 3008 GT Sport Plug-in Hybrid is intriguingly good looking inside and out.
Look at the grille with its chrome studs filling that monstrous grin like glistening teeth. And see how the headlights blend into the jagged design and notice the eyebrow-like ridges above them which extend into the bonnet towards the windscreen.Â
It’s a tough-but-pretty design that’s carried on down the side panels as they curve and crease towards the tailgate with its striking LED tail-lights.
The cabin is stunning with its black leather upholstery, metallic and faux wood trim, and Peugeot oddities such as the small angular steering wheel, the elongated gear shifter and high-placed instrument cluster. Â
Mitsubishi Pajero Sport
Most of the Pajero Sport’s latest round of upgrades is focused on styling refreshes, inside and out.
The upgraded interior in the GSR includes quilted two-tone burgundy and black synthetic leather upholstery.
This adds a welcome touch of understated class to an interior which is otherwise looking and feeling old.
The Pajero Sport now also has a three-spoke leather steering wheel and revised digital instrument display graphics, which may be difficult to discern for those unfamiliar with the previous renderings.
Outside, the GSR retains the distinctive Pajero Sport shape, albeit now with updated upper and lower grilles, front and rear bumper enhancements and black headlamp extensions (those are range-wide inclusions), as well as black door mirrors, door handles and tailgate handle.
Practicality
Peugeot 3008
I think we can all agree leather trousers look tremendous, but aren’t very practical. And there are some SUVs where form is favoured over function, too. But not this one... in most cases.
The 3008 GT Sport Plug-in Hybrid is spacious for a mid-sized SUV with great cabin storage and a big boot.
Up front there are huge door pockets that are more like buckets, a large split opening centre console storage box and two cupholders.
The second row has smaller door pockets and two cupholders in the fold-down armrest.
The 3008 GT Sport Plug-in Hybrid’s boot is big compared to its rivals at 591 litres with the second row up, and 1670 litres with the rear seat folded.
For people space, there’s more than enough room for me at 191cm to sit behind my driving position.Â
For charging there are USB ports and a 12V power outlet.Â
Mitsubishi Pajero Sport
The Pajero Sport cabin is practical, but now, as a result of the upgrade, it has more of a premium look and feel. Sure, it’s still on the wrong side of aged and it’s cramped, but at least it has a layer of gloss to it.
From front to back, it’s a well set-up space. The driver and front passenger seats (both power-adjustable) are very supportive, with a nice wrap-around feel to them. The other seats are also fine.
The reach- and height-adjustable steering wheel has paddle shifters for energetic shifting if you get the urge.
The dash and touchscreen media unit are nicely integrated, but that 8.0-inch screen is too small – and thankfully the likely introduction of a 9.0-inch screen in the 2025 Pajero Sport will sort out that issue.
The cabin’s familiar feel includes the fact that all buttons and dials are easy to locate and operate, even when you're bouncing around off-road.
The second row is comfortable and roomy enough, though the entire cabin tends towards the squeezy end of the spacious spectrum. Having said that, I slotted in behind my driving position and I had plenty of head, knee and foot room.Â
There are three top tether points, two ISOFIX anchors and a fold-down armrest with cupholders in the second row. There are USB charge points and a power socket in the back of the centre console bin.
Third-row seating is a bit of a straight-up-and-down affair with a flat seat base, but passengers back there – god bless ’em – have access to cupholders and air vents.
In terms of packability, the Pajero Sport’s cabin, as mentioned, is quite narrow compared to most of its rivals and there are plenty of other SUVs and 4WD wagons around that offer more room inside for people, gear and dogs.
With the third-row seats in use, boot space is listed as 131L. There are power sockets and tie-down points in that rear cargo area.Â
With the third row stowed away, there’s a claimed 502L of cargo space, which is pretty handy. With the second and third rows stowed, there’s a claimed 1488L.
Price and features
Peugeot 3008
Peugeot offers the plug-in hybrid version of its 3008 exclusively in the top-of-the-range GT Sport grade for a list price of $79,990. That makes it the most expensive Peugeot offered in Australia.
This hybrid is $20,000 more than the petrol version, in the same GT Sport grade, with identical standard features.
Electric cars are currently more costly to produce than their petrol counterparts, but expecting consumers to fork out $20K is hard to justify. Particularly when prestige rivals to the 3008 Plug-in Hybrid cost less. The Volvo XC40 Recharge Plug-in lists for $66,990.
But if you're determined to own the GT Sport Plug-in Hybrid you’ll be treated to the full banquet of 3008 features.
Coming standard is a 10.0-inch media display, a 12.4-inch digital instrument cluster, Apple CarPlay and Android Auto, digital radio, sat nav, a 10-speaker Focal stereo*, dual-zone climate control, power adjustable and heated front seats, and Nappa leather upholstery.Â
*UPDATE: Peugeot advised on 5Â May 2022 that Australian-spec MY22 models will temporarily omit the Focal premium audio system due to a manufacturing irregularity. See your Peugeot dealer to confirm when this feature will return.
There’s also a panoramic sunroof, 19-inch alloy wheels, aluminium roof rails, LED headlights and running lights, adaptive cruise control, front and rear parking sensors, auto parking, proximity key, and tinted rear windows.Â
Mitsubishi Pajero Sport
As mentioned, the test vehicle is a GSR spec Pajero Sport, a seven-seat 4WD wagon with a price-tag of $64,840, before on-road costs.
But this test example has a bunch of accessories onboard – including a towbar kit ($1546), snorkel ($1103), electric brake controller ($710), roof rack/cross bars ($604), carpet mats ($249) and a towball ($42), pushing its price-tag up to the $69,094 mark, excluding on-road costs.
Standard features include an 8.0-inch touchscreen multimedia system (with Apple CarPlay and Android Auto), digital radio, as well as three-zone climate-control, front and rear parking sensors and a power-operated tailgate.
The Pajero Sport packs a whole lot more, of course, and it compares evenly with most other similarly priced seven-seat 4WDs on the market.
Exterior paint choices include 'White Diamond', 'Terra Rossa', 'Graphite Grey' and 'Black Mica', but you can also choose from White Diamond with black roof, Terra Rossa with black roof, and the new Graphite Grey with black roof.Â
Under the bonnet
Peugeot 3008
The all-wheel drive (AWD) 3008 GT Sport Plug-in Hybrid is powered by a 81kW/320Nm electric motor on the front axle, an 83kW/166Nm motor on the rear axle, and a 147kW/300Nm 1.6-litre four-cylinder turbo-petrol engine driving the front wheels.
The total combined output is 222kW/520Nm, which makes it one of the most powerful mid-sized SUVs for the price. Acceleration is impressively quick with 0-100km/h coming in just 5.9 seconds.
Mitsubishi Pajero Sport
The Pajero Sport has a 2.4-litre, four-cylinder, turbo-diesel engine producing 133kW at 3500rpm and 430Nm at 2500rpm – and that’s matched to a eight-speed automatic transmission.
This is a solid but lacklustre combination – it’s agricultural, truck-like and it takes a heavy right foot to punch it off the mark. But overall, I don’t mind the driving experience.
This is a respectable and well-proven combination, more than a bit sluggish and far from dynamic, but it does the job.Â
The GSR has Mitsubishi’s 'Super Select II' 4WD (a full-time 4WD system), selectable off-road modes and a rear diff lock.
The Super Select dial is positioned at the rear of the shifter and enables the driver to switch from '2H' (two-wheel drive), '4H' (4WD high-range), '4HLc' (4WD High Range with locked centre diff)Â and '4LLc' (4WD Low Range with locked centre diff).
The driver is able to safely switch between 2WD (2H) and 4WD (4H, 4HLc) at speeds of up to 100km/h.
The GSR has a button-operated off-road mode system – with 'Gravel', 'Mud/Snow', 'Sand' or 'Rock' settings, each of which tweaks engine output, transmission settings and traction control to best suit the terrain. It also features hill descent control.Â
The 2025 Pajero Sport will have the new Triton’s twin-turbo four-cylinder diesel engine (producing 150kW and 470Nm) and it’ll be paired with an eight-speed auto.
Efficiency
Peugeot 3008
This sounds obvious but plug-in hybrids need to be plugged into a charger. And I mean they need to be charged every time you’ve finished driving for the day.Â
Otherwise, you’ll run out of charge and your fuel use will rocket past that of a petrol-powered 3008 due to the extra weight in batteries and motors you’re lugging around.
The 3008 GT Sport Plug-in Hybrid has an electric range of 60km, although I went through the entire charge in less than 50km. Then I had to hunt down a fast charger and discovered it would take about four hours to stuff the batteries full of power again.
The 3008 GT Sport Plug-in Hybrid is extremely slow to fill up due to a small 3.7kW onboard charger. If the inverter unit was larger (as in BEVs like the Tesla Model X or Hyundai Ioniq 5) charging time would be much faster.
Charging overnight each day you use the 3008 GT Sport Plug-in Hybrid is the scenario you’ll have to adopt if you want to get the most out of this SUV.Â
I found that after starting with a full charge and driving it for a day of mainly urban usage the trip computer was reporting an average consumption of 1.4L/100km.Â
If you plan on adding motorways and open roads into the mix Peugeot says you can expect to use 1.6L/100km.
That’s outstanding fuel economy, but let the charge run out and you’ll start seeing 9.5L/100km, and higher, as I did.Â
In that scenario the petrol engine needs to lug 1.8 tonnes around, a decent chunk of which is heavy batteries and motors, which aren’t doing anything.
If you don’t have access to power at home to charge a car, then you’d be better off with the type of hybrid which charges through the engine and regenerative braking, such as a Toyota RAV4 Hybrid.Â
The 3008 GT Sport Plug-in Hybrid has received such a low score here because of its extremely slow charging time and limited range.Â
A larger inverter would solve this issue. It's possible consumers will end up using a lot more fuel than the pure petrol variant unless they are vigilant in always charging this car (nearly) every time it is not being driven.
Mitsubishi Pajero Sport
The Pajero Sport has an official fuel consumption figure of 8.0L/100km on a combined (urban/extra-urban) cycle.
I recorded 9.8L/100km on this test. I did a lot of high- and low-range 4WDing and the Pajero Sport was never working hard.
The Pajero Sport has a 68L fuel tank, so, going by my on-test fuel-consumption figure, you could reasonably expect a driving range of about 694km from a full tank.Â
Driving
Peugeot 3008
The 3008 GT Sport Plug-in Hybrid is an excellent SUV to drive. The ride is composed, the body feels nicely controlled and the handling is good.Â
Add great acceleration, thanks to the torquey motors, and this SUV is well above average when it comes to the driving experience.
Any downsides? There always are. Visibility is compromised by thick, long A-pillars and the steering wheel’s odd shape and tiny size are a letdown. So too is not charging regularly, causing this SUV to suddenly have to lug its 1.8-tonne weight around under petrol power alone.
Mitsubishi Pajero Sport
There have been no power, torque or driver-assist tech changes to this upgraded Pajero Sport – you’ll have to wait for the next-gen version for those – so no surprises lay in wait when driving.
But that’s okay, because the Pajero Sport in its current guise is a solid daily driver – not spectacular, but far from atrocious.
The Pajero Sport is 4840mm long (with a 2800mm wheelbase), 1815mm wide, 1835mm high and has a kerb weight of 2130kg.
Compared to other similarly-sized 4WD wagons, the Pajero Sport is narrower and has a higher centre of gravity, so it’s nimble – the turning circle is a respectable 11.2m – but it also feels a bit floaty on roads and tracks, but not despicably so.
The Pajero Sport is reasonable on sealed surfaces, although it is sluggish, noisy and there’s quite a lot of body-roll through sharp turns, especially compared to some of its more refined rivals, such as the Ford Everest.
But it is a very capable off-roader, mostly because the driver has access to a raft of technical advantages engineered into the Pajero Sport aimed at making 4WDing a safer challenge.
One of the major points of difference it has with its rivals is Super Select II 4WD. You can switch, via a dial to the rear of the auto shifter, from 2H into 4H (four-wheel drive, high-range), if you're not already driving with 4H engaged, and that gives you the best traction possible in low-grip conditions, which you may face on rough back-roads and dirt tracks peppered with loose rocks and potholes.
There's no risk of transmission wind-up because the centre diff is open when 4H is engaged in the Pajero Sport, so Super Select II 4WD adds an extra element of safety and sure-footedness to your driving experience.
Then turn the dial to 4HLc (four-wheel drive, high-range, locked centre diff) and you're ready to take on more difficult terrain but at lower speeds, because the centre diff is no longer open.
If you want to tackle even harder stuff than high-range territory, turn the dial to 4LLc (four-wheel drive, low-range, locked centre diff) and the Pajero Sport has an opportunity to excel in low-speed, low-range four-wheel driving.
Turn the dial to 4HLc and you're ready to take on more difficult terrain but at lower speeds.
So, along with decent high- and low-range gearing and a centre diff-lock – activated when 4HLc (4WD high-range, locked centre diff) or 4LLc (4WD low-range, locked centre diff) is selected – the Pajero Sport has a rear diff lock, which is engaged/disengaged via a button in front of the shifter and this further help you to easily maintain safe forward momentum.
Hill descent control sustains a controlled low speed of 3.0-4.0km/h all the way down steeper, longer hills.
The GSR also has selectable off-road modes, including Gravel, Sand, Mud/Snow (when in high-range 4WD) and Rock (when in low-range 4WD).
Each of these modes adjusts engine output, transmission settings and braking, the aim being the acquisition of superior traction to suit specific conditions and terrains.Â
The Pajero Sport is riding on Toyo Open Country A32 all-terrains (265/60R18 110H), which are decent tyres, but it would perform even better with more aggressive rubber.
Wheel travel is adequate, ground clearance (218mm) is reasonable, although you still have to mind your driving line through rough terrain and be mindful of this 4WD’s approach (30 degrees), departure (24.2) and ramp-over (23.1) angles. Wading depth is listed as 700mm.
While it’s never been regarded as a tow rig in the same vein as something like the Toyota LandCruiser or the Nissan Patrol, the Pajero Sport offers sensible claimed towing capacities of 750kg (unbraked) and 3100kg (braked).
Payload is listed as 645kg (so about standard for this size 4WD wagon), gross vehicle mass (GVM) is 2775kg and gross combined mass (GCM) is 5565kg.
Safety
Peugeot 3008
The 3008 GT Sport Plug-in Hybrid comes with all the safety tech in the 3008's arsenal.Â
There’s auto emergency braking with pedestrian and cyclist detection, lane keeping technology, blind-spot monitoring, a camera system, and front and rear parking sensors.
There are some gaps though. No rear cross-traffic alert or reverse AEB. These things are now common on new cars.
For child seats there are three top tether anchor points across the second row along with two ISOFIX mounts.
The Peugeot 3008 was given the maximum five-star ANCAP rating in 2017, but in the past five years safety tech has come a long way and this SUV has fallen behind.
Please be aware, too, that the plug-in hybrid version has yet to be given a ANCAP score.Â
Mitsubishi Pajero Sport
The Pajero Sport range did have the maximum five-star ANCAP safety rating, but that expired in January 2023.
As standard it has dual front airbags, driver knee, front-side and curtain airbags, as well as two ISOFIX points and three top tether points for child seats/baby capsules in the second row.
Driver-assist tech includes AEB, blind spot warning, rear cross-traffic alert, lane-departure warning/intervention, hill descent control, trailer stability assist and more.
Ownership
Peugeot 3008
The 3008 GT Sport Plug-in Hybrid is covered by Peugeot’s five-year/unlimited kilometre warranty. The battery is also covered by an eight year warranty.
Servicing is recommended annually or every 20,000km. Service prices are capped, and you can expect to pay $3108 over the course of five years, for an annual average of $622.
Mitsubishi Pajero Sport
The Pajero Sport has a 10-year/200,000km manufacturer’s warranty as long as you get it serviced as per the schedule at an authorised Mitsubishi dealer.
Mitsubishi’s 10-year capped price servicing applies – with prices ranging from $399 to $999 – and servicing is scheduled for every 12 months or 15,000km whichever occurs first. Check with your dealership for up-to-date servicing costs.
All Pajero Sports come with 12-months roadside assistance, but that can be extended to four years if the vehicle is serviced at an authorised Mitsubishi dealer in line with the official service schedule.