Autoblog

BMW and PSA teamed up to produce the 1.6-liter four-cylinder currently found in the R56 MINI Cooper, but according to an interview with BMW CEO Norbert Reithofer, the four-pot will also find its way into the BMW 1-series. The pre-release of his interview in the Frankfurter Allegemeine Zeitung didn't divulge which models would benefit from the four-cylinder engine, whether it will be available in both naturally aspirated or turbocharged guise or what markets in which it will be sold.

Reithofer also mentioned that the next generation 7-series, due to be released later this year, would be equipped with a new hybrid drivetrain. No timeframe was outlined as to when the hybrid 7 would be released, but when it is (likely next year), it's expected to be the mild-hybrid, co-developed with Daimler, originally shown on the X5 Vision EfficientDynamics concept.

[Source: Forbes]

Click above for high-res gallery of the Peugeot 308 RC Z Coupe Concept

Originally expected to be announced a while back at the Geneva Motor Show, Peugeot has finally officially announced today at the Lisbon Motor Show that the attractive RC Z concept will go into production. Using styling cues from the Audi TT and the classic Karmann Ghia, we think that Peugeot could have a winner on its hands with its new sporty coupe. While Peugeot has not yet announced details on what will be offered underhood of the production machine, the concept used a version of the Mini's 1.6 liter turbo four. We'll be getting all of the details within time, as the official production version will be unveiled in 2009 at the Frankfurt Motor Show. European buyers will have first crack at the RC Z when it goes on sale in the sprint of 2010.


[Source: Peugeot]

Click above to view the 1,000,000th Peugeot 207 in high resolution

It has only been two years since Peugeot introduced the 207, and already the French automaker has produced over 1 million examples of the new car. The car hit the market in April 2006 with the three- and five-door hatchbacks, and has since rolled out in convertible, wagon and several sport models.

Last year alone Peugeot sold half a million new 207s, which are manufactured at three plants across Europe – in France, Slovakia and Spain – with a combined rate of 2,500 vehicles per day. In a segment crowded with over 70 different models, the 207 has emerged as the market leader. Its "win on Sunday, sell on Monday" success has been driven in part by the double Intercontinental Rally Challenge titles that the 207 Super 2000 took last year, mirroring its big brother 908 HDi's success in Le Mans racing.

[Source: Peugeot]

With six employee suicides in the past 18 months, PSA/Peugeot-Citroen thinks it may have a stress problem. While experts have found no direct link between the suicides and work stress, one in five PSA employees has reported feeling extreme pressure at work, and many feel that there isn't enough time in the day to get their work done.

To ease some of the stress on its 114,000 employees, PSA has implemented several initiatives to help workers get relief from tension. It's is trying everything from reducing the size of manufacturing teams and keeping managers on a particular job longer to establishing a 24-hour hotline for employee counseling. PSA has taken the issue so seriously that the French automaker is going to the extraordinary step of hiring an additional 500 workers to help ease the heavy workload. With 26 new models launching in the next year, PSA workers will need all the stress management they can get. Hopefully that Citroen grille goes away with the new models, that thing stresses us out and we don't even work there.

[Source: Automotive News - subs. req'd]

As we mentioned yesterday, Audi and Peugeot have been locked in a battle of lap times all week at Sebring Raceway in preparation for the 12 Hours of Sebring endurance race on Saturday. In yesterday's practice sessions, Audi turned in a very fast lap of 1:43.195s that would eventually earn it the pole position. Peugeot answered Audi's effort later in the day, however, during the actual qualifying session for the race that would determine the starting grid. The 908 HDi driven by Stephane Sarrazin crushed Audi's top lap in practice with a time of 1:43:117s, which effectively secured Peugeot the pole position.

Unfortunately for Peugeot, fate stepped in and bitch slapped the French automaker's racing team. Welcome to America, guys. Just nine minutes after the qualifying session began and after the 908 HDi had recorded its fast lap, the No. 8 Mazda was involved in an accident bad enough to cancel the session entirely. ALMS rules state that a minimum of ten minutes must be run in a qualifying session for it to count. Therefore, Peugeot's fastest lap time was thrown out. Since the nine-minute long qualifying session couldn't be counted, organizers used lap times from earlier in the day during practice sessions in which Audi set the fastest lap time mentioned above.

Thus, your starting grid for the 2008 12 Hours of Sebring will be Audi and Peugeot on the front row, with another Audi in the first spot of the second row. Both teams obviously view what transpired yesterday very differently. Read the press releases from both Audi and Peugeot after the jump to see how they really feel about each other.

[Source: ALMS]

Click above for high-res gallery from this week's 12 Hours of Sebring practice

An epic battle is shaping up for this weekend's running of the 12 Hours of Sebring. Audi versus Peugeot. The R10 TDI versus the 908 HDi. Diesel versus diesel. This will be the first and perhaps only time that these two teams race on American soil, though the contest will be repeated many times in the European Le Mans Series this season. Since Monday, Audi and Peugeot have been battling for the best lap times during practice sessions in preparation for this weekend's endurance race at Sebring Raceway, and Peugeot got the upper hand on both Monday and Tuesday. Audi, which is fielding two cars to Peugeot's one, finally fought back today posting the fastest lap time of the week thanks to driver Dindo Capello, who ran a 1:45.491, just 0.017 seconds faster than Stephane Sarrazin in the Peugeot 908.

But Audi and Peugeot in the LMP1 class should be wary of focusing too much on each other, as there are other entrants that could spoil their fun. Marco Andretti, for instance has been blisteringly fast in his Andretti Green Racing Acura ARX-01b, setting the second fastest lap time overall on Tuesday. As we learned from watching the LMP2 class beat up on Audi last year, Le Mans racing is anyone's game. The nature of endurance racing, however, favors fuel economy, and therefore the diesel-powered R10 TDI and 908 HDi should have the advantage. There will be plenty of great racing in the GT1 and GT2 classes as well, with Aston Martin squaring off against the Corvette Racing Team and Porsche taking on Ferrari, respectively. Stay tuned for race results probably late Saturday or early Sunday, and check out some spectacular images from this week's testing in the gallery below.


[Source: ALMS]

Click the pic above to see a hi-res gallery of the Peugeot 308 GT THP 175

If you want a MINI, but you'd rather it looked and felt like a Peugeot 308, then this is the car for you. It's got the same engine that Peugeot makes for BMW's kleine Wunder-brand, but it's got all that chunky Peugeot goodness that MINI couldn't wouldn't ever replicate. And not only will you get 175-HP, a Scrabble-icious combination of letters and numbers, and mirrors with a Dumbo-esque flavor, but 37.1-MPG frugality is yours for the taking. Check out the hi-res gallery below for a closer look at the swifty, thrifty Pug.

Click the image above for hi-res shots of the Peugeot 308SW

The Peugeot 308SW (for SportWagon), on the show floor, does not look like a big car. It certainly doesn't look big enough to swallow seven full-sized people. On the rotating podium, however, the car looked almost monstrous. Get inside, and the car appears to be even larger. If you sit in the driver's seat in Geneva, the rear hatch lies somewhere around Lichtenstein. It's that capacious. As with so many French things, the pics don't do it justice, but have a look at the gallery of hi-res photos to see if you can see what we see.

click the picture to view a Google translated version of the source

PSA is putting its very attractive 308 RC-Z into series production, and will make a formal announcement at the upcoming Geneva Motor Show. When we saw this curvaceous coupe in in Frankfurt last year, German flooded our imagination. As has been previously pointed out, there's a lot of Audi TT in the roofline, and the side elevation evokes the Karmann Ghia. We can give Peugeot a pass on that, since the car's designer is German, and there are worse fates than aping two very stylish coupes.

The design hides easter eggs for alert viewers, too. The roof and backlight are formed from polycarbonate and use a double bubble shape to increase headroom for occupants, while at the same time evoking racers by Zagato. The upkick in the doors where they meet the rear quarter windows also offers visual amusement, too. Underhood is a direct-injected, 218-horsepower 1.6L four-cylinder that's shared with the MINI. With less than 2,700 pounds to haul around and Peugeot's storied suspension prowess, the grin might never leave your face.

The 308 RC-Z would be a great vehicle to lead Peugeot's return to the North American market. Many may remember unreliable chariots of woe when they think of Peugeot, but we can't shake our affection for the 405 Mi16. With small cars and coupes showing signs of life, now could be the time, and we think this car would sell better than useless crap on eBay. Thanks for the tip, vlatko!


[Source: AutoBild]

It's more than a little unusual to see the French mounting an assault on anything, but reports indicate that French automakers are attacking the crossover sport-utility market with a vengeance. In Geneva, Renault will unveil the production version of the Koleos crossover, which follows the Citroen C-Crosser and Peugeot 4008 as the first SUVs from the land of fashion and crepes. Now Peugeot is preparing its second wave in the form of the 3008 crossover.

Targeting the likes of the Nissan Qashqai and Volkswagen Tiguan, the 3008 is expected to hit European markets in 2010. Power will reportedly come from 1.6-liter turbocharged fours burning either gas or oil and driving either two wheels or four. Inside, flexible seating configurations are expected to be on offer in both five- and seven-seat formats. The styling is anticipated to follow closely along Peugeot's design language, with a big mouth and a prominent badge on the hood. And since where there's smoke there's an overturned car on fire, Citroen is expected to get its own version, as well.

[Source: Auto Express]