It’s been a long time since we last saw Peugeot or Citroen in the US. The French company (formally PSA Peugeot Citroen) left the U.S. in 1991, making it 23 years since either brand was entrenched in the American auto market, but all that could change soon.
Automotive News Europe is reporting that PSA is seriously considering returning to the US market, but it’s not bringing Peugeot or Citroen back. Instead, it is planning is to turn its DS brand, an offshoot of Citroen, into a global premium brand. For that to happen, the US market has to be a big part of it.
DS CEO Yves Bonnefront told Automotive News Europe that the DS brand could be headed to the US early in the next decade as part of PSA’s global strategy for the premium brand. The plan, according to Bonnefront, would be to bring DS vehicles into 200 large cities all over the world after 2020. Of that number 10-percent, or 20 cities, would be in the US.
PSA isn’t planning on doing it anytime soon because none of the five current DS models are compliant with U.S. crash and emissions regulations. Instead, the company will spend the next couple of years determining the feasibility of re-entering the US market before making a decision on its plans. Don’t expect that to happen at least until 2017.
For now, the DS brand will continue to reap the success it has earned since being launched as a Citroen sub-brand in 2010. It already has a strong following in Europe and China, and further establishing itself in those markets should be the company’s immediate concern.
Still, keep a close eye on the horizon for any developments about returning to the U.S. market. The French may soon be invading a showroom near you.
Click past the jump to read more about the Citroen DS brand.
Citroen Plans To Bring The DS Brand In The U.S. By 2020 originally appeared on topspeed.com on Tuesday, 7 October 2014 08:00 EST.
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