Road Test: Peugeot 407 HDi Coupé

By Feann Torr - 27/Feb/2007

History will record that only a handful of years ago the idea of performance diesel car in Australia would have been met with haughty laughter: "Yeah mate, and Ford's gonna import the European Mondeo too," they'd say. 

But as European and Japanese automakers pour more investment dollars into diesel cars, more and more of these interesting vehicles are making their way to Australia.

The diesel sales charts would suggest that Australian new car buyers are embracing the increasing range of diesel passenger cars, but the performance diesel? Well, it's still a bit of unknown in this country.

One such example of the new breed of performance oil-burners is the Peugeot 407 HDi Coupé, which is underpinned by a strong 2.7-litre twin turbo V6 diesel engine, and together with a sports chassis and an array of sporty features, this is the kind of car that's really going to impress the unconverted.

Though it's price may be a bitter pill for some buyers to swallow, bear with me for a moment. For a start, this is one of the sexiest French cars ever built. The photos don't do this European grand tourer justice - seeing the car in action is another thing entirely. Forgetting for a moment that beneath its long sculpted bonnet rests an engine that churns out 440Nm of torque (which is more than the Audi RS 4's wild 4.2-litre V8), it's clear that Peugeot wanted to make a statement with this car.

Few of the models that make up Peugeot's current 2007 range could be accused of being thoughtless or boring designs, and the 407 Coupé takes the French automaker's design philosophy to another level altogether, with sleek and sporty lines that will do for the motor company in Australia what Anna Kournikova did for tennis patronage across the globe.

But almost $73,000 is a fair wad of cash to be handing over for something with only 2-doors, 4-seats and diesel engine... Or is it? Let's find out:

There's something about the way that this French car looks that just works. It's got a tremendously appealing design, with a long bonnet, 2-door coupe bodystyle and attractive 18-inch wheels. It has the essence of Australia's home-grown hero, the Holden Monaro, albeit with a stronger European flavour.

And judging from the attention this thing attracted wherever it went, a lot of other humans thought the same thing.

This ensures that it's a very satisfying vehicle to drive, as everyone wants to see what it is, and of course who is driving it. But beyond the ego-massaging abilities of this European coupe, it's a very nice car to drive.

The front-wheel drive 407 Coupé on test was fitted with a twin turbocharged diesel engine which gives it effortless acceleration - you barely need to rev the engine to extract decent performance - the likes of which is far smoother than a conventional petrol engine. And then there's the fact that these things are still quite rare vehicles in Australia, and that gives the Pug an increased level of intrigue: we encountered more than a few interested people who asked what it was and how much it cost.

The low roofline gives the car a sporty profile, which is accompanied by the long bonnet, steeply raked windscreen and short rear end. The proportions are of the traditional sports coupe mould and they work very well: long front end, squat rear end - it's very suave.

Even with its long overhangs it presents a sumptuous image.

Peugeot talks about a 'feline' look, which is fair enough because they built it, but I don't think it's overly cattish, just rather slinky and sporty with some nice aerodynamic influences. I also like the triple strakes fore of the front wheels that create a touch of fascination at the front, attracting the eye.

But even with its low roofline, the 407 Coupé is remarkable roomy inside. Almost as large as the Holden Monaro (or 2006 Pontiac GTO if your an American reader), there's plenty of room for four adults and their luggage, and there's a sense of opulence too. Along with the high quality leather upholstery and purposefully sporty front seats, there's a premium 6-stacker CD stereo system and tasteful brushed aluminium accents along the doors, dash, and gear shifter.

Rear seat passengers also benefit from their own air vents and some rather funky grab handles in the rear. Overall, it's a very impressively equipped cabin. 

Being a coupe, the long doors are a inherently unwieldy, but on the upside the electric seats are fairly quick at rolling aft on their rails to allow rear seat access, and this allows easy egress and ingress for rear seat passengers.

The steering is quite chunky with some serious contours which make for a slightly more involving drive, and there's separate cruise control and audio stalks behind the steering wheel spokes so you rarely need move your hands from the wheel - though these auxiliary stalks do take a little getting used to. 

The instrument dials that provide the driver with all the necessary information, such as road and engine speeds, are clear cut and easy to read, and the J-gate gear shifter works, but isn't the most intuitive of units with a sometimes confusing journey from park into reverse.

The build quality is pretty good on the whole, and I didn't detect any rattles or shakes in the interior (and that's with more than 10,000kms on the odometer), plus the exterior panel fittings were very flush fitting which imparts a sense of high quality. It's not quite as exacting as top tier German car, but if you want a 2-door German coupe with similar performance and features you'd be paying a lot more.

This is strictly a 4-seater vehicle, with two bucket seats up front and another pair in the rear, all of which are heavily bolstered and nicely contoured to provide snug seating for all, and they fare well over longer distances too. If you're after a grand tourer that can do almost a thousand kilometres per tank, this car would certainly fit the bill.

As well as the comfortable seats the car has a smooth and comfy ride, and though the 407 Coupé may not be marketed as a luxury car it ticks almost all the boxes that Mercedes and BMW drivers would look for.

Front and rear proximity parking sensors are standard features and will improve your chances at keeping the body work scratch free, plus there's plenty of airbags, 8-way electrically adjustable front seats and a 6-speed automatic gearbox with tiptronic shift, plus the a range of other standard features usually found on luxury vehicles:

engine immobiliser
central locking
electric windows and mirrors
cruise control
dual climate-control air-conditioning
leather bound steering wheel
monochromatic rear view mirror
rain sensing auto windscreen wipers
xenon headlights (with adaptive cornering system)
two-stage adjustable suspension (normal/sport)

That last feature, the twin-stage suspension, is a real winner in my book, giving the car two distinct personalities that ensure the car can adapt to varying road conditions at the touch of a button.

In normal mode the car exhibits a fairly supple ride, one which is well suited to urban driving, daily commuting and other monotonous duties. In this normal mode the damping rates are quite soft and manage to soak up the majority of irregularities in the road, which was quite impressive given that the car rides on sporty 18-inch rims shod with even sportier Pirelli P Zero tyres.

Interestingly, the adaptive damping system is always adjusting the rebound and compression rates in normal mode, to counter the effects of "uneven roads, high speed, obstacles, loaded vehicle" and so forth. In Peugeot's words, the adaptive damping system "means that progression to firmer patterns occurs very rapidly to achieve more energetic control of pitch, bounce and roll movements under all driving conditions." In the real world, you get a fairly smooth ride for the most part that will rarely surprise you with big knocks or dips, but it's not quite as silky smooth as some luxury cars.

Hit the sport button the shock absorbers change over to their firmest settings, which helps reduce body roll and pitch and also makes thing a touch more responsive to steering input, and generally speaking it makes cornering a much more stable and predictable affair.

When pushed hard in sports mode, the 407 Coupé won't wilt, and feels sportier to than the 407 sedan and wagon variants. With a number of aluminium suspension components, the car is fairly light on its feet, and for a front-wheel drive vehicle it manages to involve the pilot quite nicely, with decent feedback through the steering wheel, plenty of grip through corners and enough torque to fire it out of bends with a bit of zeal. Because it's a front-wheel drive vehicle, it's not the most rewarding vehicle to drive hard on twisty sections of road, but if you're not used to driving large engined V8s or nut-bag Audi RS 4s I reckon you'll find a lot to like here.

While the suspension is quite stiff in sports mode, and is well suited to hard driving, for mine the 18-inch wheels shod with Pirelli P Zeros (our test car fitted with 245/40 R18 aspect ratio tyres) are the key to this cars dynamic abilities. They supply the car with a good amounts of grip, and even though it's pulling instead of pushing it feels quite tight through a corner, and though it's obese mass will incite understeer at times it's far from chronic, and rarely ruins the fun.

It's not as planted and as eager to accelerate through corners as the Monaro, but thanks to the Pirellis cornering grip is very good and it never felt like the road was running out or it was pushing on its front outside wheel too much.However, it tips into corners a little ponderously if you go in with too much bravado, (thank the long front overhang for that) but it's not terminal even under duress, just a minor niggle, and once it has its line set the car can be pushed harder.

The brakes felt a bit spongy at first, but to put it simply there's too much travel in the brake pedal. At the end of the day, the brakes are not terrible - and not small either, with 330mm ventilated discs up front and 290mm vented discs at the rear - and do a decent job of washing off speed, but I wouldn't go as far to call them confidence inspiring.

And then there's the diesel engine with its twin turbochargers. It generates a potent 440Nm of torque, which gives the car its heart. At first, I drove the car like a petrol model: the lights go green and naturally my foot went to the floor, to rev out the engine. And you know what? I was disappointed. It felt somewhat flat and the about three hundred of the 440 Newton metres felt like they were in hibernation.

Over the course of a couple of days I began to understand the nuances of the twin turbo diesel a lot better, and rather than revving the engine out to 4500rpm, the trick to rapid acceleration was to use part throttle applications, keeping the revs below 3000rpm, where all the torque is generated; peak torque hits @ 1900rpm after all.

Driven like this, the 407 Coupe is immensely capable, and feels incredibly strong. It really suits the car's luxury personality too. And like all turbo diesel engines it has a far more more subtle and smooth power delivery than a petrol engine, the latter of which usually relies on top end power. And the best part? That's when you get home after a morning sprinting through the hills and the fuel gauge still reads three quarters full - it's bloody frugal! We used three quarters of a tank and covered more than 500km, and large portion of that was on winding roads at full throttle (which is actually half throttle in diesel terms).

Peugeot claims a 0-100km/h time of 8.5 seconds which isn't lightning quick, but is far from slow.

The 6-speed automatic transmission is different than the unit that BMW, Ford, Audi et al use, sourced from Japan instead of Germany. The Aisin 6-speeder isn't quite as intelligent nor are the shifts as quick and precise as the ZF gearbox used by the mentioned marques, but that doesn't mean it's a pile of crap. It gets the job done and and deals with the twin turbo diesel engine's high levels of torque quite well, and is seldom left searching for gears when you floor the throttle, deciding on one and running with it.

On the road it's an easy car to pilot, with truck loads of torque down low, a 6-speed auto and relaxed steering. The long dashboard can be disconcerting at first, and the A-pillars can obstruct your view of the road, particularly when turning/looking right, but these things are not deal breakers, and only leave a slight blemish on the cars overall ease of use.

Generally speaking, this is one of the most relaxed and easy cars to drive in everyday situations. To the shops, to work, to mums place - it's all so easy. The engine has huge reserves of power (even small throttle inputs result in big torque) and the car is easy to steer, and there's a palpable sense of comfort that runs through almost every facet of the car, from its ride, to its seats and standard features. It's massively sloped windscreens means it cuts through the air quite easily as well, and is rather quiet when highway cruising, not to mention ludicrously frugal.

Overall: 4/5

If you like the look of Peugeot's 407, but don't have a family or any need for utility, this car will certainly pique your interest. It's the kind of vehicle that instantly attracts attention, and for pure pose value you are getting very good bang for your buck with this one.

Seventy-two-thousand, five-hundred dollars is a fair wad of cash to lay on the table for a diesel-powered car, but a diesel-powered sports car with looks that would draw envy from a top fashion model? 

Though the jury may still be out among the masses, I reckon the idea of a diesel sports car is a great one, and the more time I spent getting to know this vehicle, the more I grew to enjoy it. Taking 8.5 seconds to accelerate from standstill to 100km/h may not be considered sports car quick, but it looks the part, and handles very nicely for something so heavy.

The engine is pretty good, with heaps of power and a good 6-speed auto gearbox, and though some drivers may find the prospect of a diesel-powered sports car hard to swallow, the fact of the matter is that it does a very good job, particularly with its adaptive damping/suspension control. And of course the fuel consumption is a very good reason to give diesel a go.

Though the price-tag may be a sticking point, I think it is justified for this built-in-France car. With adaptive suspension, an immaculate leather cabin, a good selection of luxury features, not to mention a comfy and roomy interior, there's a lot to like here. And have you seen this French sportster in flesh? It looks a lot more exotic than it is, which is something you can't easily put a price on.