Peugeot 307 SW (2002-) Review

Overview

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It was Renault that kicked off the trend for small MPVs with the Scenic, closely followed by Vauxhall, Citroen and Nissan with the Zafira, Picasso and Tino, and now we have Peugeot's offering, although it's not an MPV as we know it. Instead, it's a rework of the seven-seater estate that Peugeot did much to popularise in the '70s and '80s with the bigger 504 and 505.The 307 SW, however, takes the idea much further. Those wondering why the 307 hatchback has an almost unnecessarily high roof now have the answer: it's there to suit the SW, whose theatre-like rising rows of seats require extra headroom at the rear. The SW comes with five individual seats as standard, and the folding rear trio (and the optional pair in the third row) can be uprooted and redistributed around the back half of the car or removed altogether. Another novelty is the SW's roof, two-thirds of which is reflective, non-removable glass. It's standard and does much to brighten occupants' lives. The 307 SW is available with 110 bhp 1.6 and 138 bhp 2.0 petrol engines, and 2.0 90 bhp and 110 bhp HDi turbodiesels, with five-speed or automatic transmissions, and two trim levels, labelled S and SE.

SW doesn't stand for Station Wagon, incidentally; instead, it's meant to imply something posher and more flexible. There will also be a conventional 307 estate, called, er, 307 estate.