Peugeot plans new flagship

Newswheel staff :: 20 May 2005 :: Filed under Saloon, Peugeot, Peugeot 708, Europe & UK

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Will the 708 have what it takes?

Peugeot is once again gearing up to take on Audi, BMW and Mercedes-Benz in the tough-to-crack executive car market. Accordingly to UK rag AutoExpress, the new 708 is due out 2008 and will be based on the front-drive platform which debuted on the Citroen C6 in March. Power is expected come from a pair of unspectacular-sounding petrol and diesel V6s (215bhp and 207bhp, respectively).  

Of course, Peugeot doesn’t have an impressive track record in this segment. Unless the French outfit can produce numbers to the contrary, we’d suggest the existing 607 has been a flop everywhere outside of La France. There’s two reasons for that. For starters, competition in the executive car market is extremely fierce: the Germans and Japanese knock out some painfully impressive motors. And the 607 isn’t awfully good: it simply can’t compete. Indeed, you have to go back to the early 80s and the 505 to find a genuinely plausible executive barge from Peugeot. 

Linkage:
AutoExpress story (no pics)