7 February 2011
Beauty is in the eye of the beholder of course, but surely the swoopy lines of the 407 coupe are among the best produced from the French brand? Certainly the menacing looks are best appreciated from the rear view mirror of a car in front, where the coupe fills that whale shark grill looks like it's about to suck in everything in the way.
Ingress and egress into the Coupe can be a little difficult; the large doors are heavy to swing open if the vehicle is parked on a hill. This will be a hindrance to senior purchasers or the slight of build. The seats hip height is also lower than some may prefer.
The interior's core layout is unchanged, but the dash features attractive stitched leather, where soft touch synthetic compounds would be found on the coupe's conventional 407 stable mates.
A cool blue graphic info display clearly illustrates audio system settings, and the instrumentation is backed with carbon-fibre patterning.
The audio system is excellent, albeit lacking an in dash CD changer, instead opting for a six stack device in the boot.
The seats are plush and generously sized, a long drive is effortless in such supportive recliners, and both front seats are heated and electrically adjustable. A good driving position is possible with a tilting and telescoping steering column.
Legroom for the rear occupants is a little cramped but very useable, four adults could still ride in relative comfort. The rear seats themselves are nicely bucketed to improve legroom and are also very supportive.
Safety features include front, side, curtain and driver's knee airbags, ABS, stability control, directional adaptive headlights and ISOFIX child restraints, the coupe has been awarded five out of five stars in Euro NCAP crash tests.
Front and rear parking sensors help avoid minor dings.
The coupe comes with two engine options, a 3.0 litre V6 petrol, or a 2.7 litre diesel; both power units are mated to a six-speed automatic transmission. Our test vehicle made use of the latter power train, and after driving the petrol option in Peugeot's flagship 607 sedan, our choice would be the diesel every time.
The transmission feels remarkably smoother behind the HDi engine and the torque of the diesel delivers comparable performance and vastly improved fuel economy. The transmission utilises some technology sharing from Porsche, with its Tiptronic manual override.
It is a great match, the twin turbo V6 pumps out 150kW and 440Nm of torque delivering its might with exhilarating response, and under hard acceleration a pleasing growl lets you know the engine is opening up. Despite the performance you can still expect close to Peugeot's claimed fuel economy average of 9.2 litres/100km.
The diesel also incorporates a particulate filtration system which eliminates exhaust particulate emissions by 95%.
The 407 coupe's suspension exhibit's a nice blend of dampening over bumps and sporty handling. Around town the ride is firm but agreeable, on the open road is where the coupe shines though. A wider track gives the coupe increased stability through corners than the rest of the 407 range, and it stays flat and sure footed. You're still aware you're driving a sizable beast, but linking bend after bend isn't too much of a worry. Steering has a nice firm feel, but could've been slightly more accurate in turn in. The braking too was a little over sensitive in traffic.
Boot space isn't huge, but there's enough room to accommodate a family of four's must haves for long weekend away.
Thanks to the fastback styling, the cavity isn't as deep as a sedan's boot but a full-size spare is included.
The level of specification and quality was befitting is hard to match in the sub $100k bracket.