Peugeot really is a brand on the move at the moment and no car demonstrates the French firm's shift from family budget motoring to desirable quality better than this, the new 3008.

Launched in January this year, the new 3008 made a significant move away from its MPV roots into more popular SUV territory and stepped up its premium appeal in the process.

Few have a bad word to say about this car; in fact, we think it's the best-looking Peugeot to come off the production line in a long time, plus it was also named the 2017 car of the year at the Geneva motor show in March.

Sporty accessories

You can buy the 3008 in four trims here in the UK - Active, Allure, GT Line and GT. Here, we're testing mid-spec GT Line and the highlights from the standard specification include wireless phone charging, full LED headlights, a reversing camera, satnav, blind-spot monitoring, voice-recognition technology, plus sporty design extras exclusive to this trim like 18in alloy wheels, a twin exhaust, a special chequered radiator grille design and a black diamond effect roof. That's a lot of kit for the sub-£30,000 price tag.

GT Line cars also come with the firm's new interior called i-Cockpit as standard, which incorporates a large customisable 12in screen offering excellent resolution and a new advanced uncluttered dashboard. Interior refinement is excellent and easily brings the Peugeot in line with rivals from Volkswagen and Mazda, and is far superior to the likes of the Nissan Qashqai and Kia Sportage; the fabric inserts are particularly nice, while the seats are large and comfortable too; we also really liked the piano-style switches that house the controls for the infotainment screen, although the small steering wheel takes some getting used to.

For those looking for that added dose of luxury, the i-Cockpit also includes a choice of two interior ambiences, which include specific fragrances and lighting to set the mood.

There's a raft of safety kit on offer in our test car too, including lane-departure warning, parking sensors and a distance alert system that are all standard across the line-up. Move up the range and a lane-keeping assist system (which we found a little too intrusive), blind-spot monitoring and adaptive cruise control all become available.