Peugeot, Citroën Owner to Begin Return to U.S. With Car-Sharing Service
CARS.COM — French automaker Groupe PSA, which also owns the Peugeot, Citroën and DS automotive brands, has announced it will return to the U.S. market. Carlos Tavares, chairman of the managing board of PSA, said earlier today that the company, the second-largest automaker in Europe behind Volkswagen, plans to return to the U.S. market in a measured rollout over the next 10 years.
It won’t be a rapid return, Tavares said, but will be a careful expansion to bring PSA back to North America after a nearly 25-year absence for any of its brands. The plan will be a three-step process that will start with a car-sharing partnership.
Related: More Industry News
One partner the automaker is exploring is Bolloré Group, a French conglomerate with involvement in electric vehicles and car sharing. In the U.S., it operates an electric car-sharing service in Indianapolis under the name BlueIndy. The city and company have partnered to install nearly 100 charging stations throughout the city, with plans for up to 200 stations and 500 cars in the service.
After PSA gets a feel for the U.S. market through its car-sharing service partnership, it would then introduce its own vehicles into the service. The company did not specify what type of vehicles (gas or electric) or which of its three brands would be used.
Should this prove popular, PSA then would offer its cars for sale through dedicated dealerships. These vehicles would be “locally sourced,” according to Tavares, meaning production would be in North America.
