6 AUTOCAR.CO.UK 8 APRIL 2 020
Hot hatch 308 PHEV flagship
will carry PSE branding
dedicated electric versions,
both offered alongside existing
petrol and diesel variants.
The 308 will get a plug-in
hybrid drivetrain, mixing a
1.6-litre petrol engine with an
electric motor to drive the front
wheels in a mainstream variant.
However, it’s a proposed
second plug-in hybrid model
that will interest enthusiasts.
This model would gain an
additional electric motor on
the rear axle – a set-up already
used on the 3008 PHEV – to
give the 308 four-wheel drive
and create a new 300bhp-plus
hot hatch version that would
also receive a host of sporty
chassis and styling upgrades
to challenge the likes of the
Volkswagen Golf R.
This 308 hot hatch would
come under the firm’s new
Peugeot Sport Engineered
(PSE) sub-brand, whose badge
is set to appear first on a range-
topping performance version of
the 508 in the autumn. Should
the 508 PSE be a success,
Peugeot boss Jean-Philippe
Imparato told Autocar the PSE
formula could be applied “on
the 3008 and other cars”, a
comment that alludes to the
desire to extend it to the 308.
New 308 to get VW Golf R rival
FUEL STATIONS AT RISK OF CLOSURE
Many UK fuel stations could soon close due to a
big fall in demand during the pandemic, the Petrol
Retailers Association said. They’re also being hit
because they ordered stock before crude oil prices
collapsed and can’t match supermarket prices.
ID 3 SOFTWARE AN ‘ABSOLUTE DISASTER’
Volkswagen’s ID 3 software problems are now an
“absolute disaster”, according to German media
reports. Examples of the EV have been assembled
without software as VW struggles to hire software
experts. First deliveries are due this summer.
208 will be the only
potential candidate
for a GTi badge
2008 may gain new
308 crossover and
SUV siblings
Hot hatch version of the new 308 will have 300bhp-plus, 4WD and plug-in hybrid tech
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he next generation of
Peugeot models will kick
off with the all-new 308
in 2022 – and the range
is set to include a hybrid hot
hatch under the brand’s new
PSE performance arm.
When it was launched in
2014, the current 308 kick-
started the transformation
of the entire Peugeot range
with a more confident design
approach. The successful,
more daringly styled 3008
followed, along with the
5008, 208 and 2008.The next 308 is set to play
that role again by laying the
groundwork for a new era of
P e u g e o t s w h e n i t g o e s o n s a l e
in just under two years’ time,
most likely after a public debut
towards the end of 2021.
It will be built on an updated
version of the EMP2 platform
that underpins more than a
dozen PSA Group models and
was originally introduced on
today’s 308. This allows an
electrified powertrain to be
brought to the 308 for the
first time.
PSA’s strategy so far has
been for EMP2 models to be
offered with plug-in hybrid
technology and for smaller
CMP models to come with