Flair, you can’t measure it you can’t analyse it, it is a thought, a perception, a spark of imagination like the Peugeot 208. Its a supermini they say, available in 3 or 5 door guise with sub 100 g/km engines and trim grade’s/options aimed at the many and the one percent.

The 208 XY is Peugeot’s attempt to give customers a more upmarket, bespoke experience. Think of it as a special edition model that sits above the top spec Allure and below the GTi. Its available with either the 1.6 litre, 4-cylinder, 156bhp petrol engine, or the 4-cylinder, 1.6 e-HDI diesel with either the 115bhp or 95bhp power derivatives. Prices range from around £17k – £18k.

The Peugeot 208 XY is a 3 door only affair, its designed to have a cosmopolitan appeal rather than being gender specific as the XY moniker may suggest. But  just as XY, in scientific terms identifies the male chromosome, those 17 inch alloys reaffirm this as being a man-car, for men who like wearing purple lipstick perhaps. However you may be forgiven for thinking the XY is aimed at the female market, after all it comes in that lustrous and vivid purple paint job, research suggests that women prefer these vivid color schemes when buying cars.

“Whoever buys the 208 will be getting a stylish little supermini and XY trim goes that little bit extra, the purple color fest extends to the exterior badges which sit proudly on either side of the rear windows encased in aluminium trim. Even the door sill lettering is inscribed in a shade of purple.”

Whomever buys the 208 will be getting a stylish little supermini,  XY trim goes that little bit extra. The purple color fest extends to the exterior, ‘XY’ badges sit proudly on either side of the rear windows encased in aluminum trim. Even the door sill lettering is inscribed in a shade of purple. On the inside the 208 goes for a bespoke feel, purple stitching throughout on the dash and sports seats and the flat-bottom, leather trimmed steering wheel, which on its own feels luxurious to hold.

Standard kit includes a panoramic glass sunroof, aluminium sport pedals, Dab Radio, Sat Nav a 7 inch touch screen display and Park Assist. There are also nice little details like the white LED lights on the instrument surrounds.

The interior is still a mix of soft and hard plastics, the latter being the more prevalent, but it doesn’t detract too much from the overall ambiance and the XY feels more mature than the Mini hatch and that is regarded as a premium product.

But its the driving experience that counts and the 208 XY delivers an agile ethos when called for, it can go from darting around country lanes to a reasonably comfortable cruiser. Like all Peugeot’s the chassis prefers smooth roads, the 208 feels caught out on uneven and rough road surfaces and can feel a little jittery, take a corner slightly too fast and you will fall into the clutches of understeer.

On heavy braking into corners the rear end can dart around with a quick lateral shuffle as the front tyres grip and give more purchase than the rears, but its predictable and adds an element of enjoyment to the driving experience.

The Peugeot 208 XY on test came with the 1.6 litre petrol engine,  its spritely 156bhp power gave plenty of pull and the six speed transmission slotted each gear into the next with an accurate heft. Fuel consumption? it doesn’t matter when you factor in the fun, its 42mpg if you really must know.

Supermini’s are never going to yield acres of space, but the 208 is accommodating, and can just about snuggle an average sized adult into the back passenger seats and the boot space is good enough for the weekly shopping or that weekend getaway. Consider the 208 XY as a toned-down version of the 208 GTi, it shares the same DNA but the XY isn’t as gender-specific as the marketing experts wanted it to be.