Peugeot


FIAT Electric cars (the ones from the old days)

x-1-23-in-citta-420x386
It is said that Fiat falls behind in programs of models’ innovation, specially about electric and hybrid vehicles. It is said that this is one of the reasons, which led the company – for a long time now known as FCA, the name Fiat only refers to the brand – to the fusion with the PSA group. It’s possible. Fiat has faced tumultuous events since 2000 and the choices taken under...

2020, the list of the most read posts on Automotive Space

Also this year we like to publish the list of most read posts, from begin (about 10 years), of Automotive Space! I chose to publish the 10 most read posts to understand what is more interesting for our readers and give a list of posts, to the readers, that the Community deem worthy of being read. Automotive Space is on line since 10 years (with about 280 posts issued) at this moment we haven’t...

Turin and the art of coachbuilders (1946-1980)

First of all Massimo Porta is an “old” friend: I met him during the army service – 45 year ago more or less – and we did many things together. For this reason, I can talk about his book “Turin and the art of coachbuilders (1946-1980)” without any fear of being biased. Massimo Porta is neither a writer nor a designer and he has never worked in an automotive company. In...

What do I have to expect if I choose an electric car?

evs
We have finally reached the third type of  “alternative” power source, currently offered by OEMs on the market. After the well known sources, that is LPG and CNG, I examined the various type of “hybrid power source“, in three specific posts whose links you will find at the end of this article. In this new post I tried to outline the characteristic elements of power supply in...

Body shop mechanic and car manufacturers, bewitched by boats

mercedes-AMG cigarette
It is nothing new that designers and coachbuilders of the automotive field have focused on boats project, in particular on large yachts. Giugiaro has created partnerships with shipyards as Cranchi and Abbate and has signed a project about a new Baglietto long 48 metres, Antalia, in 2007. Norman Foster (McLaren F1) has signed projects of some futuristic yachts that are been admired – or at least observed-...

Time stays, carmakers go.

carmakers
In Italy, in five years, carmakers have lost more than 1,600 dealers, while the dealers of trucks (550 in 2009), today are only 110. Also in the ultra-efficient US there was a die-off: NADA-data shows that more than 6,500 dealers have disappeared. Whilst of the remaining 17,665 dealerships, 5,000 of them sell less than 10 new cars per month, and 7,000 fewer than 30 per month. These numbers in Europe...

Peugeot and Citroen: It’s nice to win easy!

Aulnay
By at least one semester Peugeot and Citroen started a radical transformation of production, managerial, commercial and communication. Talk about the last aspect: the Communication! Money are invested if there is something to communicate and when there are budgets to bind on. Budgets are allocated if there are invoices. Data about Italy and Europe show that there’s turmoil… to put it mildly. From...

The LPG and CNG help you, such as the electrics

gpl
The plan, which foresees about 3,000 LPG fuel stations and 1,000 CNG ones to the end of 2012, is proceeding at a steady pace toward the goal. Actually Fiat Professional has already monitored 3065 LPG points (+40 closed) and 908 CNG points (+8 closed) regularly active (data September 7, 2012). In spite of this, a subtle and insightful enemy, the electric Lobby, which includes several devices in its...

2014: First quarter Sales for FCA

Lingotto
Waiting the launch of the new business plan FCA by Marchionne about the near future, planned for 6th,May in Detroit and that in addition to confirmations and new directions for the Group’s brands, it should finally clarify the expected developments of “Alfa Romeo”, meanwhile we comment the results referring to car registrations of Chrysler Fiat Group Automobiles in the first quarter of 2014. We...

Old Europe, if you’re there knock once

Europa
Coming back to Italy after a couple of weeks spent in different European continental countries and Northern ones, I realize that during that time I never heard about Marchionne. And this is not because in the rest of the Europe nobody speaks about cars – Fiat as well- about the crisis of the sector, staff redundancies and factory closures…. But perhaps it is a bit less pressing the identification...

Hybrid-Air PSA, the other face of the hybrid car

hybrid-air-sezione
It won’t be the compressed air car but it is the closer step to the utopia that it’s possible today. We used to think about hybrid as the union between heat engine and the electrical one but in the following years “not so far according to the road map written by PSA” we could extend the concept, replacing the electrical component with the air. Avoiding any mistakes, we talk...

The overproduction concerns the whole of Europe, or not?

sovracapacita
Do you remember the article of Marco Saltalamacchia “Move the metal, Jack!” after just one month since our launch? Over time it has become a MUST! A way to tackle the situation “taking the bull by the horns“, reaffirmed about a year later in the interview that was issued by the same author of the post. The subject is the automotive production capacity in Europe. Subject often...

Liberté, Égalité, Fraternité! Vive la France, vive l’Europe!

Liberte
Do you remember the article on car purchases by the Italian State, which has stimulated a heated debate on this blog? With all the related discussion on globalization, market and liberalization? Well brace yourselves because while half of Europe is drifting, the other half knows where is going, and without wanting to be ironic, hats off to their rulers! We start recalling that in the European Community...

Touchè, Peugeot!

Peugeot Onyx
Sometimes, you just do not close those annoying spots, imposed and uninteresting, that show up before the video you have decided to watch on You Tube begins. Sometimes what you do not close is not a commercial but something else, simply amazing. Allow me to introduce to you “Peugeot Motion&Emotion”: style , technology, fashion new claim and innovative commercials. Well, they are more short...

When scale economy compromises quality

Quality
Using the same parts for different models of cars, and for different brands in the case of auto groups, is definitely an intelligent solution for cost containment and the allocation of fixed costs on a larger number of vehicles, besides the reduction of merchandise in stock by adopting a just in time production system. But sometimes this industrial logic was adopted too hastily and without a careful...

Global cars sales outlook – March 2012

March 2012
“2012 started full of uncertain for OEMs in the automotive industry” this was how I started my article last month. At that time reports on January Chinese market performance were not yet available and when they arrived, with an incredible 26% lost year on year, Car OEMs Top Executives become really nervous. Chinese data were affected by the Chinese New Year falls, with fewer working days, but nobody...

Manufacturer Alliances: Good or bad?

manufacturer
The recent announcement by PSA and GM of their intended strategic alliance is one of many such alliances between various manufacturers. But when do these alliances start diluting brand equity? In the past the first tentative alliances were based on purchasing power formats. Then the inevitable creep sets in with manufacturers sharing platforms, major components, engines and indeed entire vehicles. There...

Peugeot South Africa: Go big, or go home.

Peugeot
Peugeot South Africa has announced its intention to grow its sales in South Africa by 40%. The number sounds high, but the brand, like its sibling Citroen, battles to sell even 200 cars a month and therefore has a very low base to start with. When Peugeot re-entered the local market ten years ago, it was a hit with consumers who bought the funky French cars in droves. Many had fond memories of legendary...

Facts and figures unmask the 3 digit growth of the EVs theorem! Only Audi speaks clearly!

EVs
Jato Dynamics presented the data of the EV’s registrations in Europe. Hooray: compared to 2010, the sales grew by 938%! Nine-hundred-thirty-eight percent!! A successful market, despite the controversies. I feel the bad smell of lies. Over 7 million registrations, 5,222 were electric cars, less than 0.001% of the total market. Last year were 507. In Germany 1,020, France 953, Norway 850,...

The Chinese army is attacking from the East

Chery
I would like to talk about an argument “frivolous”, so trivial that nobody was able to see it, at least in Europe. In the last ten days of March it was announced that Chery’s Chineses will supply 15 A3 Sedan and 2 Tiggo (SUV) to the police in Belgrade . The news might not appear so interesting but there is something unrevealed to say. Browsing the company website of Chery we...