Next Peugeot 208 hot hatch to tap 205 GTI spirit

Peugeot is set to channel the spirit of the legendary 205 GTI hot hatch with the range-topping performance version of the next 208.

The French manufacturer has already revived the GTI performance sub-brand for a hot new version of its e-208 electric supermini - and now CEO Alain Favey has told Autocar that it will add more GTi models as it moves to put "great driving sensations" at the core of its brand positioning, which is likely to apply to the next iteration of the 208 hatch, due in 2028.

The e-208 GTI is the latest entrant into the growing field of electric hot hatchbacks and will take on the Alpine A290, Cupra Born VZ and incoming Volkswagen ID Polo GTI with 278bhp, a 5.7sec 0-62mph time and a mechanical limited-slip differential.

It is the first GTi hot hatch that Peugeot has launched since the previous-generation 308 range-topper arrived in 2015. Favey said: "We would not do it if we didn't think that we want the GTI badge to continue existing in future. So definitely we will make sure that there is a future for GTi which goes beyond just that one."

Favey stopped short of giving any details about the form that these future hot hatchbacks will take but said: "The important thing is to make sure that wherever there is a GTi badge, you get an experience that is one of a kind and absolutely the top in the category."

Peugeot revealed the e-208 GTi in June at the Le Mans 24 Hours and will begin taking orders at the 2026 race before starting deliveries by the year's end, so there will be almost 18 months between the unveiling and customer deliveries a lengthy lead time that, said Favey, is testament to Peugeot's lofty ambitions for the GTI.

"That's just the time it takes to get the car ready," he said. "We want the car to be really top in its category and really a credible hot hatch, and that's as long as it takes."

Acknowledging Alpine's Renault 5-based A290 as the primary benchmark for Peugeot's engineers, Favey said the e-208 GTi "will definitely be better than its similarly conceived compatriot - at least, that's what we hope to be".

"No, but seriously, one of our reference points is to be better than this car, and we think we will be," he added, calling to mind the fierce historic hot hatch rivalry between the two firms, with the original 205 GTI serving as the closest rival for the Renault 5 GT Turbo and later the two going toe to toe with the 206 GTI and Clio RS 172.

He added that GTi is an important element of Peugeot's heritage and is being resurrected as part of a drive to "position the brand, to say very clearly that Peugeot stands for great driving sensations. That's part of what we are."

Peugeot's desire to emphasise its heritage is evident in the various references made to the hugely popular 205 in the new Polygon concept, which previews the next 208.

A performance version - which Favey suggests is likely - would no doubt double down on that retro appeal by reinterpreting some of the 205 GTI's defining cues, including pepperpot wheels, red pinstriping and prominent GTi badges.

The next generation of the larger 308, due in around 2028, would also seem a likely candidate for a GTI version, given that model name has recent performance heritage to leverage.

That would enable Peugeot once again to offer a rival to the likes of the VW Golf GTI and Cupra Leon.

However the GTi range is expanded, Favey said the badge will not be used again for a petrol hot hatch, because CO2 emissions penalties in Peugeot's home market would make it too expensive to be viable.

He said: "France is a big market for us and unfortunately the rules are such that there are extremely heavy CO₂ penalties up to €70,000 [£61,400] - so it would make it just impossible to buy.

"So we would have a nice car everybody would love, but it would be just impossible to own and that would make it completely impossible. And if we don't have the French market, it's difficult for us to justify developing a car like that."