Peugeot 208 GTI and XY Concepts Revealed Ahead of Geneva

Just yesterday Peugeot teased a new 208 GTI. Now it has revealed everything about the concept. Peugeot will launch its new B-segment 208 at the Geneva Motor Show, and it is showing concepts for the 208 GTI and urban-focused XY.  

The styling of the 208 is much more compact and rounder than the 207 but with a blunt front end with large grill. There is a small LED strip just between the grill and the hood. Lower on the air dam, there are chrome-accented fog lights. Both concepts use full-LED headlights Around back, the 208 has wrap-around, C-shaped tail lights. The GTI adds a lower air dam, side skirts, rear spoiler and a dual-tip rear exhaust. It also has the French Tricolour painted on the the front. To harken back to the 205 GTI, the 208 GTI has GTi badges on the rear quarter panels. 

On the interior, Peugeot made the steering wheel smaller and mounted the instrument cluster higher. It says that this will make the instruments easier to look down at while driving. All 208s except for the base will get a 7in touch screen for infotainment purposes. It integrates Bluetooth, radio, the USB port and optional navigation. The GTI Concept has a flat-bottomed steering wheel with Alcantara covering the dashboard. 

With the base engine, the regular 208 weighs just 975kg. That is thanks to use of “ultra-high strength steel” and aluminum components. Even with the same 1.4 HDi engine from the 207, the 208 weighs 110kg less than the previous model. It also means that a base 208 weighs 50kg less than a base 206. That bodes very well for the GTI.

The GTI is powered by the RCZ THP 200 with 197hp and a six-speed manual. 

Dimensionally, the 208 GTI is larger than the 208, it has a 36mm wider track in the front and rear, and it will use 302mm front and 249mm rear brakes. 

The XY Concept is meant for high-style urban people. It uses the 1.6 e-HDi engine with 115hp with a six-speed manual transmission, but the interior is full leather with lots of technological features. It is painted in Pulsion paint that changes color from purple to red depending on how it is viewed. The interior is trimmed in crimson red leather which includes the dashboard, armrests, steering wheel and seats. It comes with 18in wheels. 

There is no word on whether either of these models will actually go into production, but the GTI seems like a pretty sure bet. Peugeot has made the 208 lighter and smaller than the previous 207, and putting a great, powerful engine in it, will make a fantastic hot hatch. The idea of an efficient car for city-dwellers like the XY makes sense. It is exactly what Toyota is doing with upscale models of the Prius and Prius C.