Peugeot boss Maxime Picat has confirmed the Peugeot RCZ will not be replaced, which also spells the end for the performance RCZ R version.
The coupe will be a casualty of Peugeot’s model cull, which will reduce the number of vehicles it produces from 26 to 13 by 2022. Other vehicles set to be killed off have not been confirmed, but all are expected to be niche sellers.
“If I tell you that the 13 most important silhouettes that we sell account for 95% of all our sales and more than 100% of all our profits you will understand why this is necessary,” said Picat at the Shanghai motor show. Peugeot made multi-billion pound losses in 2012 and 2013, prior to instigating a streamlining programme that brought it back in to profit last year.
“I love the RCZ, but I want us to focus on making the best of our core models, from Peugeot 108 upwards, and to exploit what we then have to the best of our abilities. For each of those cars we can choose attributes and be the best. Chasing niches is for premium brands; for us it has been a distraction.”
Picat also revealed that the firm is evaluating the possibility of adding a large, D-segment SUV to its line-up before the end of the decade, but stressed that no decisions had been made. “It is something we are definitely looking in to,” he said.
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Best Peugeot for years
Goodbye 508 too?....
Premium?
So much for Peugeot trying to attain premium status then? So did they forget about this aim, or has reality kicked in?
Shame to see the RCZ go though.