GENEVA MOTOR SHOW: Peugeot 508 to premiere

Peugeot's new generation of 508 will make its debut in Geneva less than a month from now, according to a report in industry publication,

The new model is known to be migrating to the modular EMP2 platform that underpins the 5008 SUV recently launched in Australia. Peugeot is anticipated to introduce semi-autonomous technology and other new features – including Peugeot's 'i-Cockpit' driving position – along with markedly different styling to rival Ford Mondeo and Volkswagen Passat in Europe.

While it's a hero car for the Peugeot brand, the 508's significance in Australia may be little more than its presumed basis for the next generation of Opel Insignia, built on a PSA platform. That upcoming generation of Insignia, which is yet to be confirmed or announced, would replace the current model that is the donor for Holden's ZB Commodore.

So there's an outside chance that the new 508 will be the cousin-once-removed for a Commodore replacement. That assumes Holden is still selling the Commodore by the time the next Insignia enters production, and the GM brand stays with PSA Groupe for its Astra and Commodore models after Opel has moved across to PSA platforms.

Otherwise – and short of a massive marketing push by importer PCA – the 508 is unlikely to sell here in large volumes, even measured against other products in the Peugeot range in Australia. The local Peugeot dealer network offloaded just 141 units of the 508 last year, and just 165 the year before, but PCA is committed to bringing the new 508 here in the latter half of 2018.

Asked whether the 508 was even worth introducing to the local market, as large-car sales wane and SUVs become increasingly important to consumers, Tyson Bowen, PCA's National PR & Corporate Communications Manager, left little room for doubt.

"Of course 508 has a place," Bowen told motoring.com.au during the launch of the 5008. "If you go back historically, the '5 Series' Peugeot sedan [the 504 and 505 models] was a mainstay of motoring... the car has a lot of history and a lot of goodwill here.

"I think [508] still has a very important role to play in the lineup, and particularly as the market and the industry here evolves there's an opportunity for us to potentially re-engage with people that may have forgotten we have a large sedan.

"What comes next, obviously we can't say, but that '5 Series' vehicle is always important."