Our long-termer Peugeot 3008 has clicked over the 20 000
km mark and has only another 500 km to go before completion of the test as it arrived
with about 500 km on the clock. I took some leave to undertake a few trips to suss out some
campsites, namely Tweede Tol in Bainskloof and the Montagu caravan park. The Peugeot
will be spared the job of having to tow a caravan as it will soon be returned. For
these last few trips, I removed the Thule roof racks and roof box to see what
fuel consumption I could achieve and this was around 8,4 l/100 km as compared
with the 9,5 l/100 km that I have been getting most of the time with racks
fitted.
One of my favourite roads is the Du Toitskloof pass which
doesn’t have too much traffic apart from a few massive trucks saving tunnel
toll fees. This pass has long sweeping corners, mostly with reasonable
visibility so some speed is possible without the danger of blind corners. This
showed the impressive handling characteristics of the 3008. The manual gearbox
mode is preferred for faster corners as one can choose and hold onto ratios as
the situation dictates. The gearlever is also well positioned, so adding a
touch of sportiness to the family car. Of course the heads-up display also
helps to keep you informed of your speed.
