2026 Peugeot 308: Update swaps fangs for claws, improves EV range

A mid-life update of the third-generation Peugeot 308 has broken cover in Europe, with changes focussed primarily on the car’s face and drivetrains.

The front-end has been completely redesigned with the current car’s vertical driving light ‘fangs’ replaced a set of three LED ‘claws’ on each side.

These are linked by a strip of ‘luminous strands’ that flow into the grille that’s made up of body colour islands that grow in size as they radiate out from the Peugeot badge. On higher trim levels, the badge is illuminated, a first for the brand.

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Hidden in the side air intakes are the 308’s LED main and high beams, with matrix LED headlights standard on some models. There are also new diamond-cut 17- and 18-inch alloy wheels, as well as two new colours: Lagoa Blue for the hatch, and Ingaro Blue for the wagon.

Telling pre- and post-facelift models apart from the back might be difficult unless the 308 is your topic of choice on Mastermind.

Peugeot has eliminated chrome on the 308’s exterior, with gloss black exhaust frames replacing the old chrome ones, while the three claw LED tail-light treatment is now standard on all trim levels.

Interior changes are limited to new 3D graphics for the instrumentation display. The rest of the i-Cockpit layout, including the 10.0-inch infotainment touchscreen, customisable shortcut buttons, and 10.0-inch instrumentation screen are carried over.

Peugeot has tweaked some of the 308’s drivetrains. The e-308 continues to feature a 115kW/270Nm driving the front wheels, but the battery pack has grown 4kWh to 58kWh, increasing the WLTP range rating from 415km to 452km.

There’s also a 143kW 1.6-litre plug-in hybrid (PHEV) system offering a 17.2kWh battery pack good for 85km of EV driving. Other drivetrains available at launch include a 108kW hybrid system comprising a 1.2-litre three-cylinder petrol engine, and a 95kW 1.5-litre four-cylinder turbo-diesel.

The revised 308 goes on sale in Europe during the northern autumn. Both the hatch and wagon will continue to be built at the company’s factory in Mulhouse, right near the border with Switzerland.

In Australia, there’s only one variant of the 308 on offer – the mild-hybrid GT hatchback, priced at $48,990 before on-road costs. Last year, Peugeot axed the top-spec GT Premium trim and the wagon body style.

This followed the removal of PHEV variants across the local Peugeot lineup, including the 308.Separately, Peugeot announced it would bring 14 examples of the E-308 electric hatch to Australia as part of a ‘Peugeot Preview Program’, which the French brand called “an exclusive customer evaluation program”.

Locally, Peugeot has sold just 57 examples of the 308 to July this year (down almost 37 per cent on the same period in 2024), and we’ve asked Peugeot Australia about its plans for the facelift.

MORE: Explore Peugeot 308 showroom