The arrival of Peugeot’s 208 marks a key moment for the company. “I really believe we have produced a car that is a miracle in terms of architecture,” said Vincent Rambaud, director general of Peugeot Automobiles.
“It is smaller, lighter yet more spacious than the 207 (the car it replaces) giving a new way of driving – it’s a model that has refined the 205 and 206 which were such a success for us,” he said. “The 208 is at our roots.”
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Rambaud said that, although the situation in western Europe is looking bad, Peugeot’s global expansion into Russia, China and South America meant the company was “at the point where we can really take off.”
The alliance with General Motors would help that happen, he said. “We will be stronger together than alone, so if we are stronger we can sell more cars, more profitably.
“Globalisation, moving the brand upmarket and getting our costs lower are our priorities.
“The GM alliance will help fantastically. Suddenly, we have major purchasing power but we are going to be very practical, very matter of fact.”
