Despite growing demand for SUVs around the world, Peugeot’s CEO Maxime Picat says the trend will not last forever. As reported by Autocar UK, the French car maker is already looking for the “next frontier.”
“We are trying to work on that question, and we have some interesting ideas that we can implement while the SUV boom is strong,” Picat said. “We see a significant number of customers who know they don’t want an SUV but who also see saloons and hatches as boring — they want something else, something more beautiful. I am not going to give you the answer today, but it is an area we are exploring with some energy.”
It’s no secret that Peugeot itself is developing two next-gen SUVs of its own, the 3008 and the 5008. However, the CEO believes that the body type isn’t the most efficient of its kind, lacking the potential for diversification of a model’s silhouette. “There are limits of the body style. I can’t see coupe and convertible versions selling in the way they do on saloons. That is why we think the SUV boom will change faster than that of the booms we have seen in the past.”
Picat admitted that while car makers, his own included, rush towards developing new SUVs for the market, the SUV era may not be a long one. The publication noted that SUVs and crossovers accounted for up to 23% of all European car sales in 2015 and up to 35% of all sales in the US. By 2020, analysts claim that SUVs could account for up to 50% of all car sales around the world.
GALLERY: Peugeot 3008 spyshots
GALLERY: Peugeot 5008 spyshots
