It’s been more than two decades since Peugeot left the U.S. market, but now, the French carmaker is planning its grand return. The brand, ubiquitous throughout Europe, hasn’t been seen on U.S. highways for quite some time, but thanks to an ambitious plan that involves electrification options on the entirety of the Peugeot fleet, that could soon change. As Reuters reported, the company is tapping a few former Opel engineers, who were acquired after GM divested the unit, to help develop cars for the American market.
At the Automotive News World Congress in Detroit, PSA Peugeot Citroen CEO Carlos Tavares debuted his strategy for catapulting the carmaker to the forefront of the industry. In 2017, Peugeot acquired GM’s European Opel and Vauxhall operations, and these business moves may catalyze a broader global expansion.
By 2025, Tavares said, “the PSA Group will be 100 percent electrified.” While it’s unclear whether this means all electric or all hybrid, the executive did later clarify that electrification will become an option on all Peugeot cars in the next seven years. This comes as little surprise, given that almost all carmakers are barreling toward an electric future. After all, many major markets, with China at the helm, have announced plans to phase out traditional fossil fuel and combustion engines within the next few years. That means that in order to stay competitive, companies will need to begin offering alternatives.
Peugeot, however, isn’t focused exclusively on electrification. The CEO also noted that by 2030, 80 percent of the company’s fleet will have limited autonomous capabilities, while 10 percent will be capable of true autonomy.
“Mobility … is at the heart of our strategic plan,” Tavares said. And already, the company is offering certain mobility options within the U.S. For example, Peugeot offers ride services by way of its Free2Move brand, though it doesn’t use Peugeot cars to provide these services. But Tavares is expecting to introduce company cars for these rides soon, and as a final step, begin selling Peugeot vehicles in the U.S. once again.
Tavares noted that the company has “people working on cars now” for the American market, and Opel engineers will be tasked with ensuring “the future products for this market will be fully U.S. compliant.” So if you’ve been missing that lion logo, you may not have to pine for much longer.
