In this week's round-up of automotive gossip, Peugeot works to save the A-segment, we hear why individuality is important to BMW and more.
Peugeot's city car safeguard
Peugeot will work on making electric cars cheaper to preserve the city car segment and ultimately create a Peugeot 108 replacement. Current city cars can’t meet stricter CO2 laws without costly electrification. “The A-segment will exist, but we will try our best to make EVs more affordable,” said boss Jean-Philippe Imparato.
BMW's indy aim
BMW aims to give each of its models a more individual look. “Customers don’t want to feel like they’re driving a scaled-down BMW X5 when they drive an BMW X3, and the 4 Series shouldn’t feel like a small 8 Series,” said design boss Domagoj Dukec. “Else the 4 would feel like it were for people who couldn’t afford an 8. We have customers who could afford a Rolls-Royce yet buy a 1 Series.”
Afternoon delight
4pm is the most popular time to buy a Tesla online in Europe, during a 3-6pm ‘rush hour’. Three-quarters of Teslas are sold online. The busiest day is Tuesday, just ahead of Wednesday. In the Netherlands and Germany, more than 50% of people buy without a test drive.
Ami could come to the UK
The quirky Citroen Ami two-seat electric car has been industrialised for left-hand-drive only, CEO Vincent Cobée has revealed, but it may still come to the UK. “There’s no reason why this structure couldn’t exist in right-hand-drive in rapid-development mode,” he said. “If the UK team believes there’s a business case, we will gladly consider it.”
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