The Peugeot e-208 is one of the most popular electric vehicles in France, but is it enough to cut the road on long trips? This is what we will see in this dossier, which will examine the duration and costs of our reference journeys.
Daily life in an electric vehicle is no problem for those who have a home charging solution. However, the latter are not spared the difficulties associated with long trips, and this is precisely what we are going to focus on in this dossier. We’re going to put the Peugeot e-208, which is frequently one of the most popular electric cars in France, to the test.
We resume the usual rules of this exercise, namely: the start will be at 100% battery, the finish at 20% and the vehicle will have to drive at the limit speeds. We are going to come back to the technical characteristics of the Peugeot e-208, before confronting them with the reality of long journeys.
In this way, by comparing it with other cars that have already been reviewed by us, you will be able to determine which one will allow you to arrive safely at your destination at the lowest cost, and as quickly as possible. Without further ado, let’s take a look at how long journeys in the Peugeot e-208 are like.
The characteristics of the Peugeot e-208
Recently, the Peugeot e-208 saw its WLTP range increase to 400 kilometers, thanks to a new battery with a useful capacity of 48 kWh. On paper, it therefore seems quite capable of carving out the road, even if it means accepting to recharge at a fast charging station. To this end, the Peugeot e-208 is equipped with a Combo CCS port which ensures that it can recharge on all the different networks on the route: Ionity, Fastned, Totalenergies or Tesla Superchargers open to all.
Of course, the WLTP standard is unattainable under the conditions that we impose here: we must therefore expect to have less autonomy, and to have to recharge several times for each long journey. Peugeot announces about 30 minutes of recharging to reach 80% battery, which is in the average of current electric vehicles.
However, with a relatively small battery compared to other electric cars we have already considered, it is very likely that the Peugeot e-208 will be at the bottom of the table.
As usual, A Better Route Planner will be used to plan journeys, with the default reference fuel consumption for the Peugeot e-208.
Route planning
To put all vehicles on an equal footing, we start trips at 100% battery, considering that you have to pay for this filling at the average price per kWh in France, currently at 0.17 euros. The 48 kWh then represent €8.20 : we will take this cost into account when taking stock of each long journey.
The first big trip will simulate a summer vacation from Orleans to Arcachon (530 kilometers). The winter route, meanwhile, will start in Caen and end in Chamonix-Mont-Blanc (850 kilometers).
For the summer route, the parameters indicated in A Better Route Planner are as follows: 25 degrees Celsius outside temperature, no wind, arrival at a charging station with 10% battery remaining, and arrival at destination at 20% . For the winter trip, it’s essentially the same, apart from the weather, where we chose a temperature of 0 degrees Celsius.
The balance sheet of the different routes
More than one hour of charging to travel 500 kilometers
If the density of fast chargers between Orléans and Arcachon allows most electric cars to make this journey without difficulty, it is still necessary to stop four times in a Peugeot e-208 to comply with the instructions imposed by A Better Route Planner.
In total, one hour and thirteen minutes are spent chargingwhich uses both the Ionity network and a public charging station located near Futuroscope.
These four charges cost 65 euros at the current Ionity rate (0.69 euros per kilowatt hour). By adding the cost of the departure home charge, we arrive at a total of 73 euros for this summer trip.
In terms of average consumption, it is estimated at 229 Wh/km, which corresponds to a range of 209 kilometers with the entire battery, i.e. almost half the WLTP autonomy. In effect, the Peugeot e-208 is rather inefficient at high speedswhich penalizes it a lot here.
20 to 30 minutes of charging every 100 kilometers in winter
In winter, it is even worse, since the stops are located approximately every 100 kilometers. In total, seven refills seem necessary to reach our objective in Haute-Savoiewith an outside temperature of 0 degrees.
The various charging networks available along the route are well used during this trip, since in addition to Ionity and Tesla, we find Electra and Allego to allow us to reach our destination.
In total it is almost three hours of charging that it takes for this journey, with a duration between 20 and 30 minutes for each charge. The cost of fast charging this time is around 160 euros at the current rate. Including the starting home load, this gives a total of 168 euros for this winter trip.
Finally, the estimated consumption soars to 264 Wh/km, which would give a maximum autonomy of 180 kilometers for the Peugeot e-208. The outside temperature combined with the elevation gain and the high cruising speed will get the better of the Peugeot e-208’s autonomy, which melts like snow in the sun.
Consumption, cost of recharging and range
We summarize the costs and charging times (including home charging at 8.20 euros) in the table below. As we go through our examples, you will be able to see where the vehicle you are interested in is positioned in relation to the others on a similar journey.
| Vehicle | Summer ride cost | Summer ride charging time | Total summer journey time |
|---|---|---|---|
| Tesla Model 3 Drive | 36 – 49 € | 31 mins | 5 h 09 min |
| Tesla Model 3 Long Autonomy | 31 – 45 € | 13 – 25 mins | 4 hrs 56 mins |
| Kia EV6 58kWh | 52 – 60 € | 38 – 43 mins | 5 hrs 30 mins |
| BMW i4 | 48 – 58 € | 22 – 37 mins | 5 hrs 11 mins |
| Hyundai Ioniq 5 | 72 € | 36 mins | 5 hrs 16 mins |
| Mercedes-Benz EQS | 44 € | 14 mins | 4 hrs 48 mins |
| Tesla Model Y Propulsion | 46 € | 34 mins | 5 hrs 30 mins |
| MG MG4 64 kWh | 66 € | 49 mins | 5h 39min |
| Renault Megane e-tech EV60 | 67 € | 56 mins | 5h 40 mins |
| Kia EV6 77kWh | 56 € | 26 mins | 5 h 07 min |
| Hyundai Kona 64kWh | 61 € | 58 mins | 5 hrs 47 mins |
| Peugeot e-208 | 73 € | 1 hr 13 mins | 6 h 09 min |
| Vehicle | Winter trip cost | Winter ride charging time | Total winter journey time |
|---|---|---|---|
| Tesla Model 3 Drive | 102 € | 1 hr 42 mins | 9:16 a.m. |
| Tesla Model 3 Long Autonomy | 101.3 € | 1 hr 02 mins | 8:27 a.m. |
| Kia EV6 58kWh | 120 € | 1hr 54mins | 9 h 59 min |
| BMW i4 | 147 € | 1 hr 32 mins | 9 h 08 min |
| Hyundai Ioniq 5 | 145 € | 1 hr 29 mins | 9:14 a.m. |
| Mercedes-Benz EQS | 115 € | 50 mins | 8 h 03 min |
| Tesla Model Y Propulsion | 120 € | 1 hr 46 mins | 9 h 42 min |
| MG MG4 | 109 – 141 € | 2 hrs 23 mins | 10 h 02 min |
| Renault Megane e-tech EV60 | 104 – 139 € | 2 hrs 12 mins | 9 h 49 min |
| Kia EV6 77kWh | 143 € | 1 hr 14 mins | 8 hrs 54 mins |
| Hyundai Kona 64kWh | 98 – 132 € | 2 hrs 24 mins | 10 h 01 min |
| Peugeot e-208 | 168 € | 2 hrs 49 mins | 10 h 59 min |
Traveling in a Peugeot e-208 is not impossible, but you really have to want it
We would not go so far as to say that these journeys would be torture in a Peugeot e-208, but it is clear that the French does not shine in this exercise, far from it. However, it is necessary to keep in mind that its small battery compared to other vehicles is a handicap on long trips, more than its relative high consumption on the highway.
Thereby, during the summer trip, the cost per 100 kilometers reaches 13.80 euros, which is currently a record among the various models that have taken part in the exercise. The cost of fast charging being very high, the more a vehicle has to charge on the road, the more the cost will rise: the Peugeot e-208 is therefore not at all economical on long journeys.
And if the summer trip does not convince you that the Peugeot e-208 is not suitable for long trips, no doubt the long trip in winter conditions will.
With a cost per 100 kilometers of 19.80 euros, crossing France in a Peugeot e-208 in these conditions becomes almost nonsense. For comparison, this is 65% higher than the Tesla Model 3, or even 40% higher than the Kia EV6 58 kWh.
It is then necessary to reflect on the interest of making such a trip in Peugeot e-208. A few avenues for optimization do exist (slow down your cruising speed, or favor less expensive charging stations), but the best thing to do is undoubtedly to avoid the motorway, even if it means cutting the journey in half with a night’s rest.
Indeed, there are many hotels offering overnight charging, which can lower the cost of the trip in the end if it avoids several quick charges. Finally, we recall that this series of long journeys aims to compare the different vehicles on this exercise only, which highlights the strengths and weaknesses of each.
The Peugeot e-208 has found its audience in France, and as a daily vehicle, it remains very economical with a cost per 100 kilometers of less than three euros. On the other hand, be careful on long journeys, where the bill can be very high.
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