Photo: S. Baldauf/SB-Medien
Peugeot has said it wants to become "the best high-end mainstream" brand, which means it won't repeat the mistake of its colleague, Citroen, which once had premium ambitions, but would like to differentiate itself from the plebs.
The problem with this positioning on the market is that there aren't that many "plebs" left around. The Korean brands offer pretty high-end stuff on their vehicles, Fords feel very well made, Opel shows signs of a comeback, and Volkswagen is making those who buy Audis look like snobs.
All these brands are fighting more or less over the same market segment, so Peugeot's ambitions mean that it wants to become the brand of choice here. Well, as good as the 2019 Peugeot 508 might be, we can only say "good luck with that."
And the new sedan does seem promising. The current 508 had a rather underwhelming exterior design - when the taillights of a car are its design highlight, you know you're doing it wrong - and that was reflected in its sales figures. The new car can't come a minute too soon, but Peugeot made it clear that the launch won't come before 2018.
The appearance of the new 508 is said to be based on the Instinct concept, but we'd expect it to much more resemble the 5008 SUV. The camouflage won't let any details out, but it does show a very low, well-planted silhouette, which is always a good place to start.
It also reveals a coupe-like shape, something that will undoubtedly help with the sedan's looks, but it might hinder its headroom for those seating on the backseat in the process. The rear of the test car had added cladding to hide its real outline, but we'd be surprised if it didn't reflect the multi-planed ones on the new 3008 and 5008 SUVs.
On the inside, expect to see an adaptation of the i-Cockpit layout from the same two models, which can best be described as a tamed futuristic design. Nice quality materials should be on order, even though Peugeot has been guilty lately of making the interiors of its cars a little too gloomy.
Even though the mid-sized sedan segment sales are feeling the effects of the SUV craze, there are still plenty of people (not to mention fleet operators) interested in this type of vehicles. Citroen might be out, but it looks like PSA will still have a strong presence there with the new Peugeot 508. Expect a preview late this year and sales starting in the first half of 2018.
All these brands are fighting more or less over the same market segment, so Peugeot's ambitions mean that it wants to become the brand of choice here. Well, as good as the 2019 Peugeot 508 might be, we can only say "good luck with that."
And the new sedan does seem promising. The current 508 had a rather underwhelming exterior design - when the taillights of a car are its design highlight, you know you're doing it wrong - and that was reflected in its sales figures. The new car can't come a minute too soon, but Peugeot made it clear that the launch won't come before 2018.
The appearance of the new 508 is said to be based on the Instinct concept, but we'd expect it to much more resemble the 5008 SUV. The camouflage won't let any details out, but it does show a very low, well-planted silhouette, which is always a good place to start.
It also reveals a coupe-like shape, something that will undoubtedly help with the sedan's looks, but it might hinder its headroom for those seating on the backseat in the process. The rear of the test car had added cladding to hide its real outline, but we'd be surprised if it didn't reflect the multi-planed ones on the new 3008 and 5008 SUVs.
On the inside, expect to see an adaptation of the i-Cockpit layout from the same two models, which can best be described as a tamed futuristic design. Nice quality materials should be on order, even though Peugeot has been guilty lately of making the interiors of its cars a little too gloomy.
Even though the mid-sized sedan segment sales are feeling the effects of the SUV craze, there are still plenty of people (not to mention fleet operators) interested in this type of vehicles. Citroen might be out, but it looks like PSA will still have a strong presence there with the new Peugeot 508. Expect a preview late this year and sales starting in the first half of 2018.
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