Peugeot have certainly pushed out the boat with the launch of the new 3008 SUV which will be with the dealers at the start of the year. Prices start at just short of £22,000.

I say pushed the boat out because this 3008 is quite a large vehicle with bags of space and is certainly prominent on the road and is bigger than its companions in the SUV stakes. The boot alone is 520 litres.

And it is also entering a busy market where there must be more than 100 SUVs on the road as well as more than 60 4x4s too.

There is no 4x4 choice with the 3008 at the moment although there will be one in a couple of years time when a hybrid hits the streets.

But there is no doubt that the 3008 is going to be a winner because already Carbuyer made it their car of the year for 2017, despite the year hadn’t arrived and the car isn’t in the show rooms until January!

Carbuyer also gave it the Best SUV 2017 and Best Medium SUV categories too.

Stuart Milne, the editor at Carbuyer, said: “The 3008 is now a fully-fledged SUV rather than the crossover of old.

“It’s handsome from the outside, but inside is where the game has really moved on. The dashboard is beautifully designed and features extensive use of fabric on the dashboard and door panels to lend a chic feeling.

“The clever i-Cockpit dashboard is a 12.3-inch screen that displays your speed, navigation, phone and audio information and is fitted as standard to every 3008 SUV in the range.

“It has a big boot and plenty of interior space. There’s a wide range of efficient petrol and diesel engines, and the availability of the Peugeot grip control system means the front-wheel-drive car can offer the grip of a four-wheel drive when needed.”

In the Peugeot family the 3008 will sit underneath the new 5008 in a range which just gets better by the year.

I couldn’t disagree with a word that Stuart Milne said. In a two hundred mile test the only thing I didn’t like was the 19 inch wheels on my model which took some getting used to. But these are only available on the top of the range 3008 GT model.

The 3008 has a standard equipment list which is as big as a clown’s boots and even the entry level Active trim has the infotainment suite, a 12.3-inch digital instrument display, as well as an eight-inch touchscreen with built in Apple CarPlay and MirrorLink for Android smartphones.

This is part of the so-called i-Cockpit interior and dual climate control and rear parking sensors also come as standard on the entry-level.

On top of that there is safety equipment like automatic emergency braking, lane departure warning and distance alert, automatic headlights and wipers too.

Next level Allure has front and rear parking sensors, a reversing camera, leather effect interior, power folding mirrors with blind spot indicators and sat nav. Larger 18-inch alloy wheels are standard, a grey scuff plate on the front bumper, and stainless steel doorsills.

The £25,495 GT Line gets sporty design bits including a different grille, a tweaked front bumper, black roof, a twin exhaust effect rear bumper as well as LED headlamps, foglamps and front indicators.

Top of the range is the 3008 GT with a price tag of £33,000 which it gets a 179bhp 2.0-litre BlueHDI diesel engine along with a six speed automatic gearbox. The say 60mpg is possible.

The top of the range has leather seats while the driver’s seat is eight-way adjustable with a multi-point massage function. There are aluminium roof bars, the too big 19-inch alloy wheels and a panoramic glass roof. Additional tech such as keyless entry/go, adaptive cruise control and an electric tailgate are included.

The turbocharged 1.2-litre PureTech 3-cylinder petrol engine is the cheapest engine option on every model with more than 50 miles to the gallon. Then there’s the petrol 163bhp, 1.6-litre unit. On top of that there are two diesel options giving you more than 70 mpg.

The 3008 SUV is another welcome motor in the Peugeot garage.