2023 Peugeot 508 Revealed With New Styling And Tech

French automaker Peugeot has given its 508 halo saloon and estate model a refresh for the new 2023 model year. Key changes seen in the 2023 Peugeot 508 include fresh new styling inside and out for the sharp, fastback-styled saloon and estate duo, which is accompanied with a bevy of new on-board tech.

Peugeot keenly emphasised the integration of the grille into the “volume” of the bumper, which now sports the Stellantis-owned marque’s new badge as well. The effect almost does away with the entire concept of a front grille. Flanking this new front fascia are Peugeot’s trademark ‘claw’ pattern running down the sides.

Standard-fit across the range are LED lights which, according to Peugeot, were designed “to sport a feline look, sharper than ever before on a Peugeot”. These are single-piece items and complement a fresh new taillight signature comprised of LEDs.

Peugeot also added three new hues (white, blue and ‘titanium’ grey), along with new 18-inch ‘Epherra’ alloy wheels design that feature a diamond pattern. Other changes include the adoption of Peugeot’s latest badge and typography.

For this update, the range has been streamlined with just three trim levels, those being Allure, GT and a sporty Peugeot Sport Engineered (PSE) flagship. Powering the front wheels in entry level offerings are the choices between 1.2-litre petrol 3-cyl PureTech engine with 130 HP on tap, as well as 130 HP 1.5-litre diesel.

Move up the range and the hybrid petrol drivetrains come into view, offering either 150 HP or 180 HP. These, by the way, work in tandem with an 81 kW e-motor and 12.4 kWh battery. These can also be equipped with either a 7.4kW or 3.7kW onboard charger, the former taking just 40 minutes to fully charge said battery.

For the PSE flagship, it sports a 360 HP plug-in hybrid (PHEV) setup primed with the energy management system developed from the 9X8 racecar. It also sits 22 MM wider up front and 12 MM at the rear. New massive 380mm front brake rotors, 20-inch wheels and grippy Michelin Pilot Sport 4S tyres as standard here, as multi-mode variable damping.

On board, the French silver lion marque’s novel and signature i-Cockpit design layout remains, albeit updated with Peugeot’s new crest on the compact steering wheel plus new display modes for the 12-inch digital gauge screen.

Voice recognition, navigation, powered tailgate, two USB sockets, as well as both wireless Apple CarPlay and Android Auto connectivity lead the on-board features list. Next to that comes updated front massage seats that now feature three new modes from a total of eight.

Assistance equipment (ADAS) equipment primed on board include level two semi-autonomous capability, adaptive cruise control, automatic emergency braking, lane assist, parking sensors, a reverse camera, and an automatic high beam. Moreover comes a night vision camera as well that can detect cyclists, animals and pedestrians.

The refreshed 2023 Peugeot 508 range is set to be built in France at Stellantis’s Mulhouse factory and, though no pricing were revealed, this refreshed model is expected to command a slight premium over the outgoing car. This latest design overhaul will help extend the life of the current generation (R83) 508 model, which debuted back in 2018.

Face-lifted Peugeot 508 GT & SW (W23 generation) launched back in 2015 by then distributors Nasim Sdn Bhd (Image source: The Star)

Pre-facelift 2018 Peugeot 508 (R83 generation) that never landed in Malaysia.

Locally, we’re uncertain if new brand guardians Bermaz Auto Alliance will offer this flagship Peugeot saloon and estate here in Malaysia yet – it currently offers just the 2008, 3008, and 5008 crossover SUVs trio. Predecessors Nasim Sdn Bhd last offered the previous-gen and face-lifted W23 508 in both saloon and estate (wagon) forms back in 2015.

Current Peugeot brand guardians Bermaz Auto Alliance only offer Malaysians the 2008 (left) and both the 3008 and 5008 (right) crossover SUVs.

Initially, plans were underway at Nasim to introduce the pre-facelift R83-gen 508 locally circa 2018 and 2019. However, though an overseas press drive for local press to sample the vehicle was organised, the model never made it to Malaysia. Perhaps the change in distributorship from the Naza-owned subsidiary to the new Bermaz-owned entity, which occurred in 2020, added to this.