Peugeot surprises with a hot hatch hybrid

Peugeot has pulled a fast one on us and shown a car that we were expecting to see (a hot version of the 308 hatch) featuring technology that we just didn't see coming.

The 308 R Hybrid is, essentially, a long-overdue replacement to classic Peugeot hot hatches of old, such as the ugly-but-fun 309 GTI and the close-to-perfection 306 GTI Rallye. Whereas those originals were classic small body, big engine GTIs, this concept (which apparently closely previews a new production hot hatch) uses plugin hybrid technology to some spectacular effect.

The core of the 308 R's drivetrain is the familiar 270hp 1.6-litre turbocharged petrol engine from the RCZ-R coupe. So far, so conventional. To that though, Peugeot Sport, the company's racing and rallying division, has added a pair of 115hp electric motors, one for the front wheels and one for the rear. They're powered by a stack of lithium ion batteries that are mounted below the boot (meaning that for the concept at least, the fuel tank has to live in the boot) which can be fully charged up from a fast charger in just 45mins, according to Peugeot.

Thus charged, the 308 R Hybrid can doddle around on pure electric power in one of its four drive modes; ZEV. In this mode, the front electric motor doesn’t drive the car at all, but acts as a generator to harvest power from coasting and braking.

Move the selector switch in the cockpit to Road and you get something a bit brisker – a car with 300hp and 400Nm of torque. In this mode, the front electric motor doesn’t drive the car at all, but acts as a generator to harvest power from coasting and braking.

You can kick things up a notch to Track – now the car has 400hp, 530Nm of torque and both electric motors are working hard, juggling the power across all four wheels.

The final setting is Hot Lap, but they probably should have just been honest and called it Nutter Mode – now you have 500hp, 750Nm of torque and the 308 R will accelerate from 0-100kmh in just 4.0secs; quicker than the current BMW M3.

On the outside, the car has a wider track, with an extra 80mm between the wheels, accommodated by a chunky, muscular bodykit (the air scoops are fully functional as they feed cooling air to the batteries) set off by one of Peugeot’s non-traditional slashed two-tone colour schemes.

?Inside, there is leather and red highlights, as well as massive bucket seats. There’s also a new way of building the dashboard. Peugeot calls it ‘Digital Weaving’ and it can be used to make a big, soft-touch surface that doesn’t need foam backing to feel good under your fingertips, which saves weight. There are also paddle shifters for the semi-auto six-speed gearbox and two all-important buttons on the centre console. One starts the engine, the other controls the driving mode.

Interestingly, although Peugeot has specced the car up with massive 380mm brake discs, it’s actually the front electric motor that does much of the braking for the car – it’s a more efficient way of getting charge into the batteries when you’re on the move.

“Peugeot Sport’s expertise applies an uncompromising approach to meeting targets. With our experience in hybrid vehicles developed with the Peugeot 908, the high-performance hybrid powertrain fitted to the 308 gives a glimpse of the potential for ultra-sports models in the future,” says Bruno Famin, Director at Peugeot Sport.

“If we were able to reach this kind of performance on a C-segment, it is all down to our passion for a challenge and our desire for excellence. Peugeot 308 R Hybrid is part of a very select club of cars reaching 0-62mph in four seconds” says Jean-Philippe Delaire, PEUGEOT Sport Head of Development, 308 R Hybrid powertrain.

If. If indeed…