Over halfway along this long-term test journey, our mid-point verdict is mainly very good but with a few areas for improvement.
On the good side is the excellent ride that is very comfortable, especially over speed bumps and potholes and surprisingly better than another 3008 we tested with smaller 16-inch wheels, grip control and a bigger engine. The gears are easy to find, the steering light but not over-light and gaining a good driving position is straightforward.
One gripe is the seatbelt safety information system. On balance it’s a good thing the seatbelt chimes are now virtually standard on cars to indicate when a seat is occupied but the belt is undone. However, it can cause problems. The other day another tester was slightly freaked out when an alarm sounded in the car while moving but no reason for it could be found. Turned out one of the kids had undone their seatbelt before the car had stopped, but the visual display panel that confirms the reason for the alarm is high up above the central rear view mirror and not easily in view of this shorter driver, who was sat closer to the wheel. Perhaps this info screen would be better placed between the driver’s dials?
|
||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
