Stellantis is a big car company that makes many different brands of cars, like Peugeot and Chrysler. It was created when two companies joined together.
BEV means Battery Electric Vehicle, which is a car that runs only on electricity and doesn't use gas or diesel. These cars are becoming more popular because they are better for the environment.
ZEV mandates are rules that require car companies to make a certain number of cars that don't produce any pollution. This helps protect the environment.
Electric mobility means using cars that run on electricity instead of gasoline or diesel. This helps reduce pollution and is better for the environment.
Decarbonized mobility means finding ways to move people and goods without creating carbon pollution. This often involves using electric cars or other clean energy sources.
A concept car is a special type of vehicle that car companies create to show off new designs and features they might use in future cars. They're not usually for sale and help companies see what people think about their ideas.
The Peugeot 208 GTI is a faster, sportier version of the regular Peugeot 208. It has a more powerful engine and is designed for better handling, making it fun to drive.
HyperSquare is a new car design or concept from Peugeot that has received a lot of attention. It's meant to show off exciting new features and ideas for future cars.
The Polygon concept is another new car idea from Peugeot that is very advanced and has a unique design. It's meant to show what the future of cars could look like.
The GTI is a sporty version of the Volkswagen Golf, which is a popular compact car. It’s known for being fun to drive and has a powerful engine that makes it faster than regular Golfs.
I-Cockpit is a special design for the inside of Peugeot cars. It includes a small steering wheel and a dashboard that is easy to see, making it feel more sporty when you drive.
700 horsepower is a measure of how powerful an engine is. Cars with this much power can go really fast and are often considered high-performance vehicles.
A multi-energy strategy means a car company makes cars that can run on different types of fuel, like electricity or gasoline, so they can meet different needs and rules.
The Renault 5 is a small car made by the French company Renault, popular in the 1970s and 1980s. It's known for its unique look and is considered a classic today.
Entry-level cars are the most affordable cars available, meant for people who are buying their first car or who want something inexpensive. They usually have fewer features than more expensive models.
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Ya volví con las compras.
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Fui a Fred Meyer.
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En Fred Meyer consigues tus productos de calidad para las recetas familiares de estas fiestas
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And now is the podcast.
Hello and welcome to a very special episode of the AutoCarMeets podcast.
I'm Felix Page.
I'm the deputy editor of AutoCar and I'm up in Coventry today at the Stellantis
headquarters where I'm joined by none other than Alain Flavet, who is the CEO of Peugeot.
Alain, thank you so much for being with us.
How are you?
Well, thank you very much for having me.
I'm very fine.
Thank you.
Very, very glad to have you.
Can you tell us a little bit about why you're in the UK?
I know you didn't come for the fine Coventry traffic that I've just experienced on my
way up here.
What brings you here?
Well, you know the UK for Peugeot is a very, very important country.
So it's very important for me to come regularly and meet the team and spend some time in devising
our plans for the next few months.
So obviously the year is coming to an end now, so we have a lot to do still until the
year end.
But more importantly, we need to start working on the first quarter of next year and define
the road to success for Peugeot and the success this year has been quite positive.
So we just want to keep on rolling.
We'll take a look at what that road to success looks like shortly.
But you mentioned that the UK is a particularly important market for Peugeot.
Why is that?
Well, because we sell more than 100,000 cars here and definitely that's one of the
biggest markets for us.
And also the UK is clearly for us a kind of test bed for a lot of things that
we're trying to do.
And especially in the BEV market to be here compliant with the ZEV mandates is clearly
one of our targets.
And we're very happy to see that this year we found really the recipe to achieve that.
So it's a best proof for us that our strategy of having a multi-energy strategy, as you
know, and offering BEVs on every model we have in the range, both cars and vans, is a
fruitful strategy, especially here in the UK.
I thought we'd get a little bit later into the recording before I mentioned it, but you
brought it up the ZEV mandate.
We're speaking the day after Chancellor Rachel Reeves unwrapped the budget for the UK
in which was detailed a new tax on electric vehicles, which some people in the industry
have said is the wrong measure at the wrong time.
I don't know how closely you've been following it, but do you think it's the right time to
bring EVs up to parity in taxation terms?
You know, usually we don't really comment on whatever the decisions are from the different
governments where Pujo is active.
Obviously that's true in the UK as well.
As I understand, there's no immediate tax effect on BEVs, but only from 2028 onwards.
And again, this is a rule that will be valid for everybody, for all competitors.
So in that case, we just have to take it for granted that it will be the same handicap
if it is one for all competitors, so it's not really impacting on our performance.
The reason I bring it up is you described the UK as sort of a good testbed for what
Pujo, for what Stellantis maybe in general is doing with electric vehicles.
Why do you think the UK has been quite receptive to electric vehicles?
Is that the perception that you have?
Well I think it's just the whole concept of bringing the industry to think about solutions
to have a quicker transition towards electric mobility, I think is a concept that we like
basically.
Because as you know, Pujo is committed to a future that is 100% electric, that is decarbonized.
We want clearly to be a contributor to a decarbonized mobility because we believe
that this is an important contribution to the environment and against global warming
in future.
So that's why we have this range of electric cars available on all of our vehicles.
And therefore when a country like the UK is taking concrete steps to push the whole
industry into that direction, we think that's really useful because then you get a positive
evolution which is accompanied by the government support.
So I think that is very helpful.
We see in every country where that happens the transition towards electric cars is a bit
quicker than when nothing at all happens.
The Pujo's electrification goals were obviously fundamental to the future strategy as was
outlined a few years ago.
We've seen a number of really exciting concept cars and we've had glimpses of what is to come
and how many there were and all that sort of thing.
You joined nine months ago, I think.
Very busy time for the company, very busy time for the market.
What sort of company did you join and what sort of company is it today?
Has it changed in those nine months?
Oh, I think it has.
I think it has.
I think in the last nine months we really set some signals for the future.
For example, with the concept car that we just introduced, which is called Polygon, which
is kind of pre-empting what a compact future, compact Pujo could be.
Developing a concept car is a good way for any brand like Pujo to kind of articulate
the way we see the future and what future cars will stand for.
So I think to launch this concept car is a good way for us to give that indication about
the future.
I think there is a lot in this concept car that is very exciting about the future.
So I think, yes, in the last nine months we made this future orientation, this future,
what the future holds for Pujo a bit more concrete and a bit clearer maybe to the
public.
It strikes me that you've had quite a fun few months, really.
You joined and it was 208 GTI and we've recently had HyperSquare, which has had huge coverage.
I've seen it was on a very big TV show in the UK, have I got news for you last week.
And the Polygon concept itself is sort of internet breaking in its caliber.
Is it now down to business?
Have you had all the pizzazz, all the jazzy things?
No, no, no.
It's not over.
There is much more to come.
And as you can imagine next year, for us, it's going to be a very important year.
The new 208 will be launched in 2027.
So definitely between now and that launch, there's a lot of things we want to do.
Polygon was the kind of first step towards this.
There will be more to come next year.
I don't need to tell you there is a Paris Motor Show.
We definitely want Peugeot to be a striking force at the Paris Motor Show next year.
And so until then, a lot will happen.
And for example, on the GTI, we've presented the car in the last Le Mans.
And in the next Le Mans next year, we will actually open the orders and properly launch
the car for sale.
So yeah, so we're very, very excited about that as well.
The next Le Mans, by the way, will be the 100th anniversary of our first Le Mans race.
We're definitely the only brand still racing in Le Mans that was already here 100 years
ago.
So another opportunity for us to celebrate, which we won't miss.
Well, I'll try and tease some details about that out of you later.
But what strikes me as interesting is that these concepts, these new products all arrive
at a time where brand positioning is so important, right?
Not just within the Stellantis portfolio, but in the context of the market in general,
lots of new companies coming to the market, playing in a lot of the same spaces as Peugeot.
Is that part of your mission, is to cement the brand of Peugeot?
What is the brand of Peugeot?
Well, basically, that's my only role.
That's what I'm here for as a CEO, is to really make sure that this brand is stronger
in 10 years or in 20 years than it is today.
So it starts clearly with the positioning of the brand.
And as you say, to make sure that the brand stands out from the competition, and the competition
is always, you know, is every day a bit wider, a bit more tough than it was before.
So having a heritage like we do is a big help, because clearly you can rely on things like
the GTI, which is clearly part of our heritage, part of our DNA, and you can use it to
position the brand.
For example, with the GTI, to say very clearly that Peugeot stands for great driving sensations.
That's part of what we are.
That's part of what we've always tried to put forward.
For example, also with the I-Cockpit, you know, where we develop this particular seating
position at the wheel with a very small steering wheel, I mean, that's the I-Cockpit.
We introduced it 13 years ago.
We've developed it step by step.
And that gives also a certain specific driving sensations that only Peugeot has.
And that's what we express with the GTI.
But Peugeot stands also for quality, for what we call designed to last.
So we really want a Peugeot to be something that has quality, quality of product, quality
of service.
And Peugeot stands for a design that stands out.
And that's what we call the French charisma.
We are French brands, you know, nobody's perfect.
But definitely we want to use that part of what we are to demonstrate that we have a different
type of styling, both in exterior and in the interior of our cars.
And that allows us to stand out.
And we believe that nobody else has this combination of specific driving sensations,
safety level, and the driving sensations behind the wheel and the specific styling.
Nobody has that together other than Peugeot.
So that helps us to position the brand and to stand out from the competition.
Strikes me that being individualistic and having those very bespoke attributes is difficult
when you're using shared group architecture.
This is not a problem unique to Peugeot.
So it's all the Stalantis brands, the VW group brands, in America you've got General Motors,
lots of companies using the same fundamental architecture.
So how do you balance that need to produce cars cost effectively, develop cars quickly
using modular architecture, but also making them bespoke, making them recognizably Peugeot
to drive, to look at, to use?
Yeah, I mean, you know, it's a great question.
And actually it's a big luck that we have to be part of a group like Stalantis.
We have access to resources, to, you know, affordable technologies through the size and
the scale that the group has.
It's like a menu, you know, and you go to a restaurant with your friends and nobody
is going to take the same meal.
So everybody will have a different type of meal, but at the same time you will have
a good time.
And the menu allows you to choose what technology we want to use and then to adapt it to the
brand.
So to have, you know, common platforms is not a problem on the contrary.
It's a great help to have affordability of our cars and at the same time to choose
the technologies that are suitable for Peugeot.
And obviously you mentioned some of the things that are coming up, some of these
headline features that will define the next generation of Peugeot.
It doesn't feel like long since I was being told that the inception concept was the future
of Peugeot.
Is that still the case or should we adjust our frame of reference?
Well, the inception concept is already a few years back.
So of course, you know, I think every concept that we bring is showing first the point
we are at in the thinking of our future plans.
So that evolves, you know, every month we come up with new ideas, new decisions, new orientations
which we might change our mind as well in some cases.
But definitely in the inception you had, for example, already the hypersquare, you
know, steering wheel that we have further developed and that we are now committed
to launch on the new 208 in two years time.
So yes, the inception was actually already pre-empting a technology and something that
is going to find its way into the future of Peugeot.
So there are, like in every concept car, elements that will find their way into the future production
and some others that will be just ideas that you keep working on.
Every day the prospect of me being able to buy a 700 horsepower big luxury Peugeot
could pay.
Ah!
Always by the way side.
If you ask that maybe you should think about it.
But you know, it was an interesting prospect not just in technology terms and design terms
but also what it represented in terms of how far Peugeot could experiment.
Do you think there is room for Peugeot to branch out from what it's been known for
in the past few years which is, you know, small SUVs, mid-side SUVs and hatchbacks
fundamentally.
Can you explore?
Yes, of course.
We explore.
I think, again, like everybody at the moment, you're thinking about what's next.
So everybody as you described, us included, brings into the market very nice SUVs of all
shapes and forms.
You feel that something else has to come in the future.
And what is this something else?
I think all of us, every manufacturer is thinking about it and having plans about
that and for sure we make no exception.
And we keep thinking about what are the interiors that will be attractive in the future.
That's where, you know, what you see on our current concept car, Polygon, for example,
with both the Hyper Square steering wheel which is very, very new and very innovative
but at the same time what we call the space release which is the kind of pushing back
the boundaries of the instrument panel to create more space for the drivers
and the passenger.
All this is creating new interiors, new atmospheres when you're in the car that will probably
be what we want in the future.
So cars that are at the same time compact in the exterior because more and more people
live in urban areas but the widest possible space in the interior, the most spacious
possible.
Obviously, change in the automotive industry is never universally welcomed.
It can be quite difficult to introduce new technologies on a mass production basis.
Hyper Square is one of the more radical changes that we could see in production.
Do you think people are ready for that?
Do you think people will be ready for that?
Do you think people know that they have the problem that it solves?
That's a very, very good question.
We believe that it's really an innovation that will bring about curiosity, definitely,
for all the good reasons that you just said.
And we believe that the technology as it will be completely refined will be so striking
in terms of the pleasure it brings in driving the car that people will just want
it, absolutely.
And we believe that it's our role as a mainstream leading brand in Europe to bring that kind
of innovation into the market because if we don't do it, then who will?
And that is definitely to bring about new innovative technologies that will improve the
way you drive cars in the future.
What could be more exciting than that?
And that definitely is the role that Peugeot is trying to play.
Do you think the rise of new brands coming to Europe has exacerbated the need for experimentation
like that?
You have to bring these new technologies in to stay ahead, to show that you're innovating.
Do you think...
I think why I'm asking is it a good thing they're here because we get brilliant new
tech like that?
No, you're absolutely right.
I think as ever in the auto industry, just as in any other industry, competition
is a driver of innovation for exactly the reason that you're saying, because you feel
the need to be innovative, to stay ahead of your competitors.
And that is happening in the automotive industry today because of our Chinese competitors.
But 20 years ago, it was Japanese competitors or Korean competitors.
You have competitors that bring you forward, and that's good.
And we hope that we bring them forward as well.
We've talked about new interior technologies, but you also mentioned something really interesting,
which is that it's your responsibility as a mainstream company to bring these new technologies
to the market.
We're often told in very angry Twitter comments and Facebook comments that people
just want a car.
They just want to get from A to B, four wheels, a steering wheel, and a few seats
if they're lucky.
Do you challenge that notion?
Do you think that people do need more from a car these days?
I think, I don't know about people.
What I know is that our target is to reach 7% market share.
So even if 93% of the market thinks something different, I'm fine with it.
We're not trying to please 100%.
And that, I think, is very, very important.
Again, what we want is to stand out from the competitors.
If you want to stand out, of course you're not going to please everybody, and of course
you'll have people who want something completely different.
Some will want the luxury, some others will want the basic low-cost mobility, whatever.
It's all fine.
Everything is fine, and I think there are enough brands in the market today to answer
the needs of all of these customers.
The Peugeot target group is a target group of customers who will want more than just
the basic mobility.
For sure, they will want a car that has a certain styling, a certain attractive
design that is different from the rest, and they will want the promise of a brand that
is a quality brand and that has specific driving sensations that maybe not everybody
loves or will love, but that's fine.
Again, as long as we find 7% who love it, that's okay.
Yeah, 7% market share is huge, obviously.
That's above Renault, I think, as it stands at the moment.
Just, I think it's very slightly above Renault at the moment.
How do you balance the volume ambition with the need to be profitable?
How will you be more low volume, or will you increase the margins on all the cars you sell?
No, for us, both go together.
We are a mainstream brand, and yes, we want to be upper mainstream, but we are a mainstream
brand, which means we want to sell cars to everybody.
We want to appeal to everybody from the B&C segment, basically, which is the core of our
market and of our range.
Yes, volume is part of our business model, so we need volume to achieve the profitability
that we're looking for.
We represent 40% of the Stellantis volume in Europe, so we're definitely a significant
brand and clearly the biggest brand for Stellantis in Europe, and we're not a 7% yet, but we're
5.6% as we speak, so we're not that far away from the target that we talk about for 2030.
Obviously more brands in the market day by day, and increasing market footprint is probably
going to be contingent on your multi-energy strategy, which means that people who don't
want to go electric can have petrol.
But you will need to be, in Europe at least, all electric in less than 10 years now.
Will you be ready?
It's quite hard to know which Stellantis brand is achieving which EV mix, because the figures
aren't broken out necessarily individually, but are you confident that you can get in
less than 10 years?
Yeah, I'm confident.
Again, I think the success we're having in the UK this year is a very good proof
of that, the fact that we're able to get to the targets that are set for the EV mix, and
our EV mix is growing every year and will continue to grow.
Now when we reach the 100%, I don't know, but again as you said with the multi-energy
strategy we're actually very, very flexible to answer whatever the market we want.
We've only got a couple of minutes but I still have a couple of fairly big questions for you.
You mentioned the need to stand out, the need to lean in your heritage.
We've seen other manufacturers do this very successfully in recent years.
The Renault 5 perhaps being the best example of a design that brings to mind the heritage
of a brand in a very successful way.
Previously under your previous CEO, I was always told that retro wasn't a play
for Peugeot.
Is that still the case?
Can you explore your heritage without being retro?
Absolutely, and that's really what we want to do.
Our heritage is a good inspiration for us.
I took the example of the GTI before.
I could take the example now of the new light signature that we just introduced on our new
concept car Polygon, a horizontal light signature that is at the same time extremely modern
and I think very future looking, future proof, but at the same time a kind of hint
to the horizontal lines you could find on a 205 for example in the past.
So I think that's a good example of how we get inspiration from our past and from our
iconic cars we sold in the past decades, but at the same time we don't feel the need
to recreate them because they've been icons as such and I don't think that's the best
way to move into the future trying to recreate what was a success in the past.
But I do believe that you have to be looking at your heritage to find the recipe for the
future success and that's what we're trying to do.
Another thing that was always shut down in my previous interviews with your predecessor
was any prospect of a 108 successor.
I was told that that market is so difficult to make money on very small cars these
days.
Since then the EU has hinted that there are plans for a new small car category which
potentially paves the way for manufacturers to profitably build small cars again.
Does that hold appeal for you?
Absolutely.
So you know as you say there was a 108, there was a 107, there was a 106 in the
past we've sold I think more than a million cars in the A segment in the
not so long past future, past, sorry.
So yeah, so definitely if there is this new category, if there is this new
obligation that allows us to produce smaller cars at a profit then obviously
there will be a space for pleasure in that area as there was in the past.
But as long as there isn't I would confirm to whatever my predecessor was
saying which is no, there is no space for a segment car today as basically
everybody is exiting that segment for the same reason which is that there is
no way to make such a car at such a low price profitable as long as you have to
put so much equipment on it.
This has basically come about because manufacturers have told the EU Commission
that there are so many rules imposed on small cars that they just simply
cannot be made with any margin.
Do you think there are too many rules imposed on cars?
For these small cars, yes.
I mean too many rules I don't know.
You can't fit the rules and every rule makes sense.
You know, it makes sense when the safety features, driving assistance systems,
of course they all make sense but you need to be clear that people need to pay
for them so as long as people are ready to pay for them it's fine but then
nobody should wonder why the European market is three million lower than it
was before the Covid time if you have to keep putting equipment that
increase the price of cars.
This comes to the point when the cars become just too expensive,
new cars become too expensive for people to buy and that's when you should
really ask yourselves does that all make sense or is there not another way
where for a specific part of the market like the entry accessible cars
you create a different kind of conditions to allow for better price.
Final thought, can you offer cars at the affordable end of the spectrum
in all segments while being upper mainstream?
You know, I know that you've got a 208 at the moment that's one of the more
affordable petrol cars on the market with a manual gearbox, steel wheels,
my favourite sort of car.
How do you balance those sorts of products with your upper mainstream ambitions?
Well, we are mainstream before before being upper we are mainstream
so and I think that is clearly and has always been part of what Peugeot stands for
and that will continue to be.
So yes, we have affordable cars that allow access into the brand
but then of course we also have very well equipped cars and the UK team here
makes a great job this year in reaching a 5% market share
which shows that we appeal to a wide part of the market
and we're number six now here in the UK market
but at the same time we have a mix of GT equipment for example
equipment level which is the biggest in all Europe
so we manage at the same time to attract people to the brand
with affordable prices and to sell very well specced cars
that shows the appeal of being upper mainstream.
Fantastic, well I could talk to you all afternoon
but I know that you've got to get back to Birmingham Airport
and then back to France still this evening
so I won't moan too much about my journey down the M40
and I wish you the best of luck with that.
Thank you so much for joining us.
Thank you, thank you very much.
And thank you for listening.
See you next time.
Thank you, goodbye.
Thank you for joining us
and thanks to our sponsor Anderson,
British designers and makers of excellent EV charges.
Visit Anderson-EV.com for more details.
The My Week in Cars podcast will return on Wednesday.
Hi, this is Joe from Vanta.
In today's digital world,
compliance regulations are changing constantly
and earning customer trust has never mattered more.
Vanta helps companies get compliant fast
and stay secure with the most advanced AI, automation
and continuous monitoring out there.
So whether you're a startup going for your first SOC2
or ISO 27001
or a growing enterprise managing vendor wrist,
Vanta makes it quick, easy and scalable.
And I'm not just saying that because I work here.
Get started at Vanta.com.
This episode is brought to you by Progressive Insurance.
Do you ever think about switching insurance companies
to see if you could save some cash?
Progressive makes it easy to see if you could save
when you bundle your home and auto policies.
Try it at Progressive.com.
Progressive Cagulty Insurance Company and Affiliates
potential savings will vary, not available in all states.
About this episode
Alain Favey, CEO of Peugeot, discusses the brand's strategies and future direction during a visit to the UK. He emphasizes the importance of the UK market for Peugeot, particularly in electric vehicle (EV) adoption and compliance with zero-emission vehicle mandates. Favey shares insights on Peugeot's multi-energy strategy, upcoming concept cars like the Polygon, and the brand's commitment to innovation in driving experiences. He also addresses the challenges of balancing affordability with upper mainstream ambitions amidst increasing competition in the automotive industry.
Peugeot CEO Alain Favey has a bold plan to put style and driving dynamics right back at the heart of the brand's positioning - and he's joined the Autocar podcast to tell us all about it.
Join deputy editor Felix Page at Stellantis's UK headquarters to hear Favey outline why the UK market is so important to Peugeot's EV strategy, how he'll grow its market share in Europe - and how the brand is very literally reinventing the wheel for its next-generation cars.
He also told us how Peugeot will rekindle the spirit of the legendary 205 GTi for a new line of hot hatches, and ensure that all future models 'feel like Peugeots', even if they're closely related to cars from other brands.
