PEUGEOT E-208

Time with our French hatch is up. Is it good riddance or au revoir?

- WILL RIMELL

WHY WE RAN IT To get under the skin of a promising hatch, assess its tech in daily use and find out if you can do without a crossover, after all

On the face of it, the days of hatchbacks seem to be coming to an end. More drivers are opting for SUVs and stalwarts such as the Ford Fiesta have been binned for these taller, wider and, crucially, more profitable models.

That may seem like a dramatic statement, especially given it was the demand for superminis that inflated total new car sales across Europe by 12% last year. The year before that, Peugeot's 208 was the continent's best-seller.

But the switch to electric power threatens the hatchback, both because of the need for big underfloor batteries that pushes them into crossover territory and the challenge of making affordable small EVs.

So with all this small car doom and gloom, is the Peugeot e-208 (along with other Stellantis models on the same platform, such as the Vauxhall Corsa) a beacon of hope for electric hatchbacks? I would say so.

Stellantis's e-CMP platform was designed to accommodate either a combustion engine, a hybrid powertrain or an electric motor and big battery pack. What that means, at least in theory, is you won't really know which model you're in until you get moving (unless you cheat and look for exhaust pipes).