There was certainly nothing unprofessional about Peugeot’s range of vans in the past – but in this world, standing still is moving backwards, so the French maker has upped
the ante and launched a new range called ‘Professional’ which offers fleet buyers several extra goodies for a knockdown price.

 

The 207, Partner, expert and Boxer are all available in this new format and our van, the short wheelbase low roof expert, boasts a full bulkhead, air conditioning and bluetooth capability for £14,330 ex-VAt – that’s £430 more than the base model.

Bearing in mind that air-con alone adds £916 if chosen as an option, that’s not a bad deal.

On the face of it air-con might be an odd thing to add on in a ‘bargain basement’ package but Peugeot has realised that it’s actually a great safety aid.

After all, a cool driver is a safer driver. And what with all the
current hoo-hah surrounding health and safety at work, we can’t do too much to keep our drivers happy.

Under the bonnet our test vehicle featured the lower-powered 1.6-litre HDi engine which pumps out 90bhp at 4,000rpm and 135lb-ft of torque at 1,759rpm.

Buyers can also opt for a 2.0-litre unit with 120bhp or 136bhp.

Behind the wheel

We’re beginning to see a great many of these experts on the roads since launch last year – and what good-looking vans they are.

Anyone expecting car-like ride and handling won’t be disappointed either as this vehicle is actually based on a car – the 807.

ABS brakes come as standard and it’s hats off to Peugeot for recognising the health and safety advantages of
air-con.

Driving around in a stiflingly hot van all day is no joke
believe me – it’s no wonder that we see so many stressed-out van drivers.

The 90bhp engine isn’t exactly a flyer but it certainly does the
job for fleet purposes – unless your business happens to involve lugging sacks of coal up and down the M6 all
day long.

And as the icing on the cake our van actually exceeded the 38.2mpg fuel economy figure during its test week by
1.3mpg.

Fact file

Gross vehicle weight (kg): 2,661
Max power (bhp/rpm): 90/4,000
Max torque (lb-ft/rpm): 135/1,750
Payload (kg): 988
Fuel economy (mpg comb): 38.2
Price (ex VAT): £14,330