Peugeot Scraps WRX Team Shifting Funds to New EVs
Peugeot is so serious about committing its future to EVs, with a new range of cars from 2020, that it is scrapping its official World Rallycross (WRX) championship whose planned electrification is in doubt.
The decision follows the brand’s unveiling of new generation of plug-in hybrids at the Paris Motor Show 2018 in the shape of the Peugeot 3008 Hybrid4 the 508 sedan and SW Hybrid.
The carmaker whose roots go back 208 years is now pledging to accelerate its electrification program to produce electrified sports versions developed in collaboration with Peugeot sport teams in a bid to reduce CO2 emissions in accordance European regulators’ instructions to the auto industry.
Its move to pull out of the WRX championship came amid the uncertainty surrounding the evolution of the WRX thermal championship towards an electric mode by 2021 especially because Peugeot wants to have a new EV on the road a full year earlier.
Jean-Philippe Imparato, Peugeot brand CEO said in a statement: “Driving pleasure is at the heart of the brand’s history. Electrification is a new opportunity to offer new high-performance versions to our customers looking for low-emission sports sensations. Driving sensations will be amplified by the performance provided by electrification.”
