PSA Chairman Thierry Peugeot keen on merger originally appeared on Autoblog on Fri, 05 Jun 2009 07:58:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Rendered Speculation: Citroen DS5 premium diesel hybrid originally appeared on Autoblog on Tue, 05 May 2009 15:58:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

French unions try a new negotiating tactic: kidnapping originally appeared on Autoblog on Wed, 15 Apr 2009 07:31:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Coup de Grâce: Citroen poaches Mercedes sales chief originally appeared on Autoblog on Fri, 20 Feb 2009 07:33:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Fiat-PSA Merger: In the cards or off the table? originally appeared on Autoblog on Tue, 27 Jan 2009 09:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Rumormill: Peugeot/Citroen to buy Honda F1? originally appeared on Autoblog on Tue, 16 Dec 2008 10:59:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Gallery: Peugeot Prologue Concept

Continue reading Paris Preview: Peugeot Prologue concept

Paris Preview: Peugeot Prologue concept originally appeared on Autoblog on Tue, 16 Sep 2008 15:01:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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]

Coming to America? Peugeot entering new segments, markets originally appeared on Autoblog on Wed, 27 Aug 2008 09:33:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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.

Gallery: Citroën 2CV

[Source: Auto Unleashed]

Paris 2008 Preview: Citroen to bring back the 2CV? originally appeared on Autoblog on Mon, 04 Aug 2008 19:02:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Gallery: Peugeot 308 RC Z

Peugeot to produce pretty 308 RC-Z originally appeared on Autoblog on Sun, 24 Feb 2008 09:02:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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]

Peugeot 3008 crossover to join the charge... forward originally appeared on Autoblog on Thu, 21 Feb 2008 08:27:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Where there's smoke, there's fire. And while most wouldn't think of a miniscule European van as hot, PSA's Peugeot brand has its day in the sun with its new Partner vans, unveiled together with its sister-company Citroen's new Berlingo.

The new Partner is virtually identical to its partner, the Berlingo, but is distinguished by some unique features and sheetmetal. The passenger version is labeled the Partner Tepee and gets a multi-function roof called "Zenith". It's also available with a pseudo-off-road package called the Partner Tepee Outdoor. The outgoing version, on the market since 1996, continues on as the entry-level Partner Origin (like the Berlingo First). And, of course, there's a utilitarian version set up for light commercial use with a 1.8-meter long cargo floor that can be extended to 3 meters by dropping the Multi-Flex passenger seats, which gives the Partner LCV an additional 400 liters (14 cubic feet) of cargo space on top of the 3,300-liter (116 cubic-foot) conventional capacity.

[Source: Peugeot]

Gallery: Peugeot new Partner

Continue reading Peugeot gets new vans to Partner with Citroen Berlingo

Peugeot gets new vans to Partner with Citroen Berlingo originally appeared on Autoblog on Wed, 02 Jan 2008 18:56:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

We waited. We were patient. And this is what Santa's French cousin brought us: a tiny utility van. We were hoping the predictions were wrong and that with its "C-Reveal" new product page, Citroen might give us something a little more exciting, like maybe the C5 Cabrio. But instead we got the Berlingo.

The new Berlingo is available either as a passenger vehicle (or Leisure Activity Vehicle, as Citroen imaginatively calls it) or as a slab-sided Light Commercial Vehicle. Citroen sold over 1.76 million examples of the outgoing Berlingo, which has been on the market since 1996 (with a facelift in 2002) and which will stay on in the meantime as the lower-priced Berlingo First. The new Berlingo uses running gear from the bigger, more civilized C4 Picasso minivan. It also grows in size over the old model and gets one of those new HDi particulate-filter diesels the French are so good at.

If itty-bitty European vans are your thing, you can check out all the juicy details in the press release after the jump, and stay tuned for the Partner version of the Berlingo from PSA sister-company Peugeot.

[Source: Citroen]

Gallery: Citroen New Berlingo

Continue reading Mystery Revealed: new Citroen Berlingo

Mystery Revealed: new Citroen Berlingo originally appeared on Autoblog on Wed, 02 Jan 2008 12:56:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Earlier we brought you a screen shot of Citroen's website that features a countdown meter until the French automaker unveils its latest vehicle. Although we'll have to wait another couple of days to know for certain, the replacement for the Berlingo utility minivan is shaping up as a strong contender for the slot, with an undisguised photo of the new vehicle surfacing on the internet.

The Berlingo, also badged as the Partner by PSA sister-company Peugeot, has been on the market since 1996 and received a facelift in 2002. Competing with the new Renault Kangoo that was unveiled at last September's Frankfurt show, the little vans are a common site overseas where their utility and compact size prove a popular combination.

[Source: World Car Fans]

Spy Shots: Citroen C-something could be Berlingo van replacement originally appeared on Autoblog on Mon, 31 Dec 2007 13:28:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

More news from the advancing front of European carmakers expanding eastwards: PSA, Europe's second largest automaker and the French parent company of Peugeot and Citroën, is considering opening its new plant in Russia to partnerships with rival carmakers.

The new factory is located in Kaluga, some 180 km outside of the capital, Moscow. Russia is considered one of the fastest-growing markets worldwide, alongside India and China, where Western automakers have also been setting up factories, principally through joint ventures with local manufacturers. PSA's Kaluga plant, scheduled to begin production in 2010, will start out building only Peugeots and Citroens, principally mid-size automobiles which PSA says accounts for 60% of the Russian market for new cars.

If PSA did look to partner with another automaker for production at Kaluga, it could go even father east to Japan's Mitsubishi, which recently obtained financial incentives from the Russian government to assemble cars there and with which the French carmaker already partners on its SUVs.

[Source: Automotive News Europe - subscription required]

Mitsubishi could partner with PSA at new Russian plant originally appeared on Autoblog on Sun, 30 Dec 2007 18:08:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Punto with a backpack - 2009 Fiat Fiorino originally appeared on Autoblog on Thu, 29 Nov 2007 13:03:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Autoblog Podcast #77 originally appeared on Autoblog on Thu, 20 Sep 2007 16:32:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

France set to invade Germany originally appeared on Autoblog on Fri, 14 Sep 2007 08:02:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Michelin has created a new tire as part of the development of the Peugeot 308. The Energy Saver uses a specially-developed rubber composite, and Michelin claims the tire reduces rolling resistance by 20% in both 15- and 16-inch sizes. Tire testing was carried out by TÜV SÜD Automotive, which measured the Michelin's performance to that of the top six competitor tires. The Energy Saver is also said to have the same durability as Michelin's other tires.

The tire will come standard on two 308 models, the 90 HDI and the 110 HDI 308s, both high mileage diesels, and Peugeot will be the exclusive maker to use it until February 2008. In addition to the gas savings because of its lower rolling resistance, the tire is also said to lower a car's CO2 emissions by 4g per kilometer. We'll find out soon enough if the claims have real-world merit -- and real world savings -- but we welcome all such efforts where the rubber meets the road.

[Source: Michelin]

Michelin creates Energy Saver gas-conserving tire originally appeared on Autoblog on Fri, 07 Sep 2007 19:01:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Peugeot recalling 240,000 307s originally appeared on Autoblog on Thu, 23 Aug 2007 08:01:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.