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Peugeot Wants the Next 508 to Have Autonomous Driving Capabilities

Rewind the auto industry to a decade or more ago, and you'll see how car manufacturers and clients were getting excited about the possibility of having cars with built-in navigation systems.
Peugeot 508 1 photo
Photo: Catalin Garmacea
These days, the autonomous syndrome has been spreading faster than an airborne virus and ironically, there's a non-auto brand leading the pack. Yes, I'm talking about Google.

Sure, giants like Mercedes-Benz are already experimenting with self-driving technology, Elon Musk wants such a feature in Tesla's cars, but no one expected Peugeot to show this type of ambitions. The French carmaker will debut self-driving features on its next-gen Peugeot 508 mid-sized sedan in an attempt to go upscale in Europe, according to Autonews.

However, the new 508 will initially come with a series of driver assistance features. Consider these a step forward towards fully autonomous driving, which won't happen right away. According to the same source, a PSA spokesman said the Peugeot 508 will pack hands-free steering and braking control in traffic congestion, on the highway or in the city, especially for parking purposes.

For now, that's all we know about Peugeot's attempts to master self-driving technology, but by looking at the bigger picture, some ambitious plans are starting to gain shape. Peugeot-Citroen are planning to launch their first plug-in hybrid vehicles somewhere around 2019, but the car won't stay long on the market as an EV replacement for it will be launched in 2020.

There's still a long way to go, so first we'll have to wait until 2017 for the new Peugeot 508 to make an appearance, underpinned by the same EMP2 platform used for the 308 hatchback.
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