Peugeot wants to make the dramatic e-T16 and RCZ Vision concepts a production reality – and the former could be ready as soon as “next year”, according to CEO Alain Favey.
The e-T16 was unveiled at the Paris motor show as a first look at the next generation of the e-208, hinting at that supermini's general shape and lighting signatures. But with an 805bhp dual-motor powertrain and striking wide-arched bodywork inspired by the 1980s homologation-special 205 T16, it seemed unlikely to be up for production consideration.
Yet Favey told Autocar that “it is technically feasible”, pointing to the concept being underpinned by Stellantis's new STLA One platform as proof of its viability.
Favey said: “We can make it. The car is based on STLA One. We have a lot of elements from the new e-208. We can make it as it is, as you see it here. We can make this car next year. Let's see.
“That’s an easier exercise in a way, to say ‘let’s make a car that makes you dream but at the same time a car that we can make'. It’s at least a car we can make. It's technically feasible.”
Favey pointed to the involvement of motorsport arm Peugeot Sport in the e-T16’s development as proof of its feasibility, adding that its technical specification wasn't just dreamed up for the sake of grabbing headlines.
“[805bhp], this and that and the other, they are real facts,” he said. “If we make this car, we can make it. That’s the performance we can get to.”
A production version of the e-T16 would likely be a low-volume, high-cost halo product for Peugeot, in the same sense as the similarly conceived Renault 5 Turbo 3E.
Favey didn't discuss pricing, but the £140,000-£220,000 figures mooted for the 5 Turbo 3E indicate what Peugeot could charge for the four-wheel-drive “hyper-hatch”.
Together with the new RCZ coupé, it would spearhead Peugeot’s push further upmarket with “sporty”, design-led cars that are crucial to its wider growth aspirations.
Favey said the brand is looking to increase its annual sales volumes from 1.1 million to 1.5 million cars, targeting “profitable growth”.
RCZ could take 'five or six years'
Although Peugeot would like to sell a car like the RCZ coupé, its low-set proportions aren't viable with the brand's existing EV platforms and technology.
The design hinges on the use of thin, energy-dense solid-state batteries that can be recharged in little more time than it takes to refuel an ICE car, and these aren't yet on the market.
Favey said: “That's a wish list. That's what we need, and even if it's five years or six years, that's what we need one day. The e-T16 is a completely different story.”
Favey also ruled out the prospect of building a new entry-level model in the vein of the old 108 city car: “We have no plan to go down [market] to what the other brands do very well, like with the [new] Citroën 2CV. We have no plan for going down in terms of pricing but rather up and offering more value and more design for the future.”
This, he said, will remove Peugeot from competition with the value-led Chinese brands that have already taken significant market share from some of Europe’s biggest players.
Favey explained: “It's a way for us to respond to competitors like the Chinese competition, who play a lot on pricing. We know we're not going to win the war on pricing. That’s clear for millions of reasons. You know very well this is not a war we can win.
"But we are actually winning the commercial war. Being clear on design, on technology, on innovation, that's where we are at home, with sporty cars.
“We have a heritage we need to refer to to remind people: if they want this heritage to continue for the next 200 years, maybe they should buy a car that is contributing to this heritage here in Europe, contributing to the European economy, to the European employment.
“That's a message to say as well. If you want this heritage to be there in 20 years' time, maybe it should be a part of your buying process, to think what brand you’re buying and whether it contributes to the European economy.”