Peugeot’s India connect goes back to the 90s when the French carmaker’s 309 sedan was amongst the favourites of Indian car buyers. After an attempt earlier this decade, Peugeot had announced its intentions to begin the Indian operation in 2020 and as per the latest reports, it has now been moved to 2021.
Peugeot’s India operations have a two-pronged strategy – building cars for the local market and exports of engines and gearboxes to the global market. While exports are expected to stick to the earlier timeline, Peugeot’s entry as a car seller in India has been delayed.
Peugeot is working with TCS to build a local ancillary base to be able to compete in the cost-sensitive Indian car market. By the time the local product for the Indian market gets ready, Peugeot might start off with high-end Citroen SUVs for an image-building exercise. We still have no inkling as for the cars Peugeot has planned for India but by the look of things, apart from the global models, we can expect bespoke India-specific models as well.
