It's buddy-up time in the European auto industry, and French automaker PSA/Peugeot-Citroen does not want to be left all by itself. With Fiat gobbling up automakers large and small, and General Motors poised to sell off its European assets, the Peugeot family, which owns a controlling interest in parent company PSA, wants to pursue a merger. And towards that end, the family has stated its willingness to dilute its own interest in Europe's second-largest automaker.

Currently, the Peugeot family – headed by the normally reclusive Thierry Peugeot (above, right), chairman of the company's supervisory board – holds 30% of PSA's shares, and controls 45% of its voting rights. The Peugeots would be willing to give up some of its shares, as long as it remained the largest shareholder. The announcement came the day before the company's annual shareholders meeting, at which Philippe Varin (above, left) was presented as PSA's new chief executive to replace the ousted Christian Streiff.

[Source: Automotive News Europe – Sub. Req.]

Last week, French automaker PSA-Peugeot-Citroen announced the development of the world's first hybrid diesel powertrain. Called HYbrid4, the propulsion system is earmarked for initial implementation on the Peugeot 3008 crossover. But after that, its sister-company Citroen will use the system in an all-new vehicle: the DS5.

Following on the heels of the Citroen DS3 premium hatchback displayed at this year's Geneva Motor Show, the DS5 will be the second vehicle in the company's revived premium line. Styling, as this initial rendering suggests, should follow along the same line, but in a sleeker, more elongated form. But the real party trick will be under the hood, with the option of serial or parallel hybrid propulsion through the front, rear or all four wheels, all the while reducing complicated moving parts in the process. Sources suggest the use of the HYbrid4 system would add less than $3,000 to the car's list price, while returning significant improvement in fuel economy and emitting 35% less CO2 than even its particulate-filtering conventional counterparts. The Citroen DS5 could be on the road as early as 2011.

[Source: Auto Express]

Parts suppliers are experiencing just as much trouble as the automakers they supply. Employees at one company, though, have taken a tip from Somali pirates and upped the anger stakes. When Faurecia felt it had been wronged by Chrysler, it took Chrysler to court. When Faurecia's employees in France felt they had been wronged by the company they work for, they kidnapped three managers for five hours.

Faurecia announced plant shutdowns and restructuring in December, and some militant union members didn't appreciate the cut employees were getting, so they locked up the execs. In the immediate aftermath the union didn't receive anything additional. But last week Faurecia received €1.63 billion from banks and majority owner Peugeot, and union negotiations are scheduled to begin again later this month.

Faurecia isn't the only victim of the new tactic -- French execs at Sony, 3M, Caterpillar, and Scapa have also been "sequestered" for varying lengths of time. And they probably won't be last: surveys show that 45% of the French population find the tactic acceptable.

[Source: Edmunds]

French automaker PSA/Peugeot-Citroen is serious about breathing new air into its chevron-badged division. After partnering with Polyphony's Gran Turismo racing simulator franchise for the GTbyCitroen concept and announcing the revival of the DS nameplate with an upcoming show car at the Geneva Motor Show, the Franco auto group has managed to poach Mercedes-Benz sales chief Jean-Marc Gales to be Citroen's new chief executive.

Born in Luxembourg, 46-year-old Gales held a variety of positions at Volkswagen, BMW and Opel before moving to Mercedes-Benz. In his new job, he'll be replacing Gilles Michel, who departed Citroen – now celebrating its 90th anniversary – for a government position last December. Gales will join PSA's five-member top executive committee in a couple of months from now.

[Source: Automotive News Europe – subs. req'd]

Everybody remembers the first two rules of Fight Club. But what about the rest of them? Like the fourth rule: "Only two guys to a fight," and the fifth rule: "One fight at a time, fellas." In mergers and acquisitions terms, only two parties to a merger, and one merger at a time. Well it looks like the fellas over at Fiat might want to watch the movie read the book over again, because they appear to have forgotten the rules.

Since parting ways with General Motors, Fiat has been looking for a new partner in which to form an alliance. Before the alliance with Chrysler surfaced, there were reported talks with French auto group PSA, parent company to both Peugeot and Citroen. It got to the point where even Italian and French government leaders were discussing how they could facilitate the deal. But once the Chrysler tie-up emerged, everyone assumed the PSA deal was dead in the water. Apparently not everybody, because even with the Chrysler deal inked, the latest reports suggest that certain elements within Fiat – namely the Agnelli family, its biggest shareholder – are still interested in merging with the French automaker. Fiat denies the possibility, while PSA had no comment. Even without taking Chrysler into account, the merger between PSA (Europe's second largest automaker) and Fiat (Europe's third largest) would put it in contention with Volkswagen for the largest in Europe and third largest in the world. Adding Chrysler's output to the equation could put the mega group within striking distance of Toyota and General Motors for the title of the world's largest automaker.

[Source: Detroit News]

Back when Alain Prost ran an F1 team, after jettisoning engines supplied by Mugen-Honda, it was Peugeot that left Jordan to sign up with Prost. Things didn't go well, and Peugeot jumped ship three years later. But it's possible that Peugeot feels it has some unfinished business in F1. Rumor has it that among the folks snooping around Honda's F1 operations is PSA, the parent company of Peugeot/Citroen. Supposedly not as hurt by the downturn as its rivals, and with F1 cost cutting in extra strength mode, PSA thinks now is the time to buy Honda's operations, benefit from Honda's promised assistance, and go head-to-head with its French rival Renault. Were such a thing to pass, speculation is that Peugeot would put Sebastien Bourdais and Jenson Button in the cockpits.

[Source: F1-Live]

Peugeot's new, Paris-bound hybrid concept car is called the Prologue, and based on how Peugeot describes it in the press release that accompanied these three photos, it shows us where the French automaker is headed stylistically and technologically. The Prologue is a perfectly normal-looking 5-door hatchback with a new, less-horrific take on the gaping-maw look with which the Peugeot range has been saddled in recent years. Now it just looks angry, instead of like a boxer about to spit out his mouth guard. The Prologue's hybrid powertrain is apparently good for 200 horsepower and emits 109 g/km of CO2 per kilometer. We'll have the final word on the Prologue -- an epilogue, so to speak -- from the Paris Motor Show next month.


[Source: Peugeot]

Peugeot is a long way off from its ambitious target of selling 4 million units annually by the end of the decade. This year its sales projects put it at 2 million, but chief executive Jean-Philippe Collin has a plan in place to reach the targets set out by parent company PSA.

The plan involves expansion on two fronts. Firstly, Peugeot plans on developing new models to compete in segments where it currently does not compete. Collin figures the French automaker currently competes in 72% of market segments, but wants to get that figure up to 90%. Despite Peugeot's sportscar racing program, the company is not prepared to build a pure sportscar any more hardcore than the upcoming 308 RC Z sports-coupe. It is pursuing government funding to develop a diesel-hybrid drivetrain, however, which might be key to its expansion.

Peugeot is also planning on pursuing new markets, namely in China, Russia and South America. However, while a return to the North American market is being considered, especially in light of the weak American dollar, Collin maintains that such a move would still be several years off.

[Source: Automotive News Europe – subs. req'd]

Click above for a hi-res gallery of the Citroen 2CV

Resurrecting the cars that put automakers on the map seems to be all the rage in the industry these days. Volkswagen brought back the Beetle a few years back and, more recently, Fiat resurrected the 500. Porsche... well, the 911 never really went away. But you get the idea. One iconic turning-point of an automobile that has yet to be awakened is the Citroen 2CV.

Launched after the end of WWII in 1949, the Citroen 2CV (so named because of its two-steam-horsepower equivalent rating) grew extremely popular due to its low cost and versatility. It could go anywhere, consumed little gas, and was extremely simple both to build and to maintain. By the time the last one rolled off the production line in 1990 – now that's one heck of a run – over 3.8 million units were built, and the 2CV gained iconic status and a cult following. Next year Citroen will celebrate the 60th anniversary of the 2CV. Given the momentous occasion, the coincidence of the show's alternate location in Paris this year and how poised the current economic climate would be for such a vehicle, it would seem an ideal time for PSA to give us a new 2CV that could put the French automaker back on the map with a low-cost vehicle to rival the Tata Nano, only with more character. Whether Citroen actually has any such plans is of course pure speculation at this point, so we'll just have to sit back and wait until October to find out.

[Source: Auto Unleashed]

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]