Peugeot’s subsidiary Citroën has offered a number of vans with enhanced traction devices for some years. Now Peugeot is getting in on the act. The company launched both Bipper ATV and Partner ATV vans at last year’s CV Show, and will this year add an Expert ATV to the line-up.
All three vans feature the company’s Grip Control technology, which combines an electronic traction control system with the ABS braking system to improve traction when the going gets slippery. Rather than simply providing a differential lock though, Grip Control has a four-mode dial on the dash that allows the driver to choose between dry roads, mud, sand and snow, with the system delivering differing levels of grip depending on the available traction.
While that might sound rather gimmicky, it does seem to work, and our test van appeared to be able to tell the difference between wet and muddy conditions in a quarry, and lighter country lane work. We didn’t go looking to get stuck, but the Partner was capable of handling some pretty rutted muddy tracks.
The All-Terrain Vehicle pack adds 10mm in ride height, which helps with ground clearance off-road. It also brings 195/70R15 mud and snow tyres as standard, which go some way to improving off-road traction on their own. The Partner ATV has an under engine protection tray and a different set of wheel trims to prevent damage.
It’s a subtle change that few will spot on the road, though we think it improves the look of the mid-weight Peugeot. The Partner remains a comfortable compact van in which to cover the miles even on longer distances.
Grip Control doesn’t play a noticeable role in terms of handling or road-holding in the dry, though no doubt there is some assistance in the wet. Indeed the driver will be hard pressed to notice a difference in normal use.
But for those fleet users that do need to occasionally travel off-road, on farms, construction sites or along a forestry access road, the system provides that bit of additional traction. The system automatically deactivates once the van has reached higher speeds too, so there is no risk of drivers leaving the dial in the wrong setting. The driver is also notified of the mode setting in the central dash readout.
The Partner ATV is available in S, SE and Professional trims, but only with the shorter L1 body. You are also limited to the more powerful 92hp version of the 1.6-litre HDi engine.
Interestingly, unlike a full all-wheel drive set-up, the ATV system has no effect on the van’s weight or the load space, so the Partner retains the same 850kg payload and the standard van’s 3.3m3 load volume. There is also no adverse effect on the van’s claimed 53.3mpg average fuel consumption or the 138g/km of CO2 emissions.
The ATV van will set you back £720 more than a standard Partner L1 with the same engine. While that might seem like quite a lot for some trick electronics and a set of mud and snow tyres, a full on 4×4 would be considerably more.
The ATV won’t appeal to everyone but companies working in parts of the country that are more frequently hit by winter weather may consider the ATV option more desirable than a set of winter tyres.
Verdict
Added traction isn’t just for farmers and construction workers. Nor does it require full four-wheel drive these days, as electronics provide increased traction without the fuel penalty.
Specification
MODEL Peugeot Partner S L1 HDi 92 ATV
BASIC PRICE £13,775
ENGINE 4-cyl/1,560cc
FUEL INJECTION Common-rail
POWER 92hp @ 4,000rpm
TORQUE 158Nm @ 1,750rpm
GVW 2,170kg
KERB WEIGHT 1,305kg
PAYLOAD 850kg
MAX TRAILER WEIGHT 950kg
Dimensions
LOAD SPACE LENGTH 1,800mm
LOAD SPACE WIDTH 1,500mm
LOAD SPACE HEIGHT 1,250mm
LOAD HEIGHT (unladen) 609mm
LOAD VOLUME 3.3m3
Cost considerations
FUEL TANK CAPACITY 60 litres
COMBINED MPG 53.3mpg
CO2 138g/km
OIL CHANGE 2 yr/12,500 miles
WARRANTY 3 yr/100,000 miles