Peugeot 4007 becomes company's first 4x4

Peugeot Le Taxi

26 October 2006 11:17 GMT / By Jonathan Goddard

Just when the world seems to be going cold (or should be hot?) on 4x4s, Peugeot has decided to produce its first ever SUV.

The 4007 is the result of co-operation between PSA Peugeot-Citroen and Mitsubishi, and it will be on sale sometime next year. Styled at Peugeot’s design centre in France, the "feline design" as the company calls it, sees the 4007 get tapered headlights and a quite hideous open front grille that’s even worse than the one on the 307 and 407.

A ribbed roof, translucent jewel-shaped rear lights, and fat wheel arches complete the key exterior features. Under the bonnet, the 4007 will come only with a rather puny-sounding 2.2-litre HDi diesel. For a car that’s more than 4.6m long, the 156bhp - capable without modifications of using a cleaner, greener 30% mix of biofuel - doesn’t sound like much.

The engine is at least mated to a six-speed manual ’box to make the best use of the fairly generous amounts of low-down pulling power, while the 4x4 system ggets electronic management control.

While its looks are horrid and performance likely to be rather soft, it is at least likely to handle well and be good value.