Peugeot 208 Allure

The Peugeot 208 Allure is placed towards the higher end of the standard 208's trim options. In Allure spec, the 208 features manual air conditioning, automatic headlights and windscreen wipers, rear parking sensors and a DAB radio. That's some handy bonuses compared to the mid-spec Active trim, but the Ford Fiesta Titanium offers more luxuries for a similar amount of money.

One of the 208's party tricks is its efficient engine range. From September 2015, the 74bhp 1.6-litre BlueHDi diesel engine with start/stop tech can return a claimed 94.2mpg, while CO2 emissions of just 79 grams per kilometre means that road tax is free too. Even the more powerful 99bhp and 118bhp diesel models are still under the tax-free bracket, and are capable of 83.1 and 78.5mpg respectively. The PureTech petrol engines do well too, with the most efficient being the 81bhp 1.2-litre version with the five-speed semi-automatic gearbox; it can return up to a claimed 67.3mpg and has emissions of just 97g/km. The other petrol engines have emission ratings of around 104g/km, so they're still only £20 to tax.

Since the 208's facelift in the summer of 2015, Peugeot has introduced a range of personalisation options. The 208 is the first hatchback that can be specified with 'textured paint', while the Menthol White and Lime Green colour packs add a dash of colour both inside and out.

The 208 is designed to be an easy car to live with. The introduction of a smaller steering wheel may polarise opinion, but the 208's comfortable ride and uncluttered dashboard makes for an unintrusive driving experience. It's just a shame that the clunky touchscreen system stifles that a little.

Good points

The 208 is comfortable and quiet inside. It's a hatchback that's designed to be easy to live with and comfortable on the road, so it's perfect for buyers who want little fuss from their car.If you choose either a BlueHDi diesel or a PureTech petrol engine, the 208 returns great economy figures. A decent portion of those engines are tax-free, while the rest are only £20 per year to tax.There's a good amount of personalisation choices for the 208. Along with Lime Green and Menthol White colour packs, Peugeot offer a quite a wide range of alloy wheel designs. You can even specify 'textured paint' which gives the hatch a matte-like finish.

Bad points

The use of a touchscreen to control most of the car's interior functions may mean it's less cluttered inside, but it's an awkward and slow system to use.Storage spaces inside are below par for the hatchback class. The glovebox is particularly small, because a large portion of the potential space is taken up by the fuse box.The Allure trim is one of the more well equipped options in the 208 range, but compared to the similarly priced Ford Fiesta Titanium, dual zone climate control, a CD player and even an alarm are all optional extras that come as standard on the Fiesta. The Volkswagen Polo SE is around £1,000 cheaper than the Peugeot 208 Allure, but has a more robust interior and is almost as economical.

What you get

• Alloy wheels
• Folding rear seats
• Rear parking sensors
• Tyre pressure sensors
• Passenger & Driver airbag
• Front side airbags
• Curtain airbags
• Front fog lights
• Manual air conditioning
• Leather steering wheel
• Height adjustable driver's seat
• Front electric windows
• AUX stereo input
• DAB Radio
• Cruise control
• Automatic wipers
• Bluetooth

Recommended optional extras

• Automatic dual-zone air conditioning
• Alarm

Our choice

The 208's 1.6-litre BlueHDi 75 diesel offers an impressive claimed fuel economy of 94.2mpg. It may not be quick, taking 13.3 seconds to reach 62mph, but the engine is designed to provide impressive efficiency and free road tax.