New Peugeot 208 officially revealed

After an embarrassing leak the wraps have officially been whipped off the all-new Peugeot 208, which is under consideration for the Australian market.

Bigger, smarter and safer than before, the redesigned 2020 Peugeot 208 will make its world premiere at the 2019 Geneva motor show in Switzerland next month and will be offered with petrol, diesel and all-electric powertrains.

Incorporating Peugeot's striking new design philosophy, boasting bold fang-like LED daytime running lights that plunge deep into the front bumper, the new model will be launched in Europe from around December 2019.

If it does get the green-light for Australia, it would be a 2020 arrival at the earliest.

Peugeot Australia's national PR and corporate affairs manager, Tyson Bowen, said "It's still a little early to confirm model line-ups and timing and prices."

Inside, the Peugeot 208 takes a leaf out of bigger sibling 308's book, with elegant finishes and materials while incorporating a large digital instrument cluster on top-shelf models.

Prospective owners can expect a 10-inch or 7.0-inch touch-screen infotainment system depending on the model grade, along with upgraded seats and a septet of satin chrome toggle switches.

The French car-maker has dubbed the digital interior design 'i-Cockpit' which is supposed to reduce the number of buttons and dials and declutter the cabin, while also lowering the small, squared-off steering wheel and raising the instrument cluster.

Apple CarPlay and Android Auto are built in, as is digital radio and satellite navigation.

Although Bowen officially confirm the new Peugeot 208 for Australia, he hinted that the offering may change and the upmarket French runabout could reflect the new Mazda3 strategy where prices have gone by more than 20 per cent.

"The runaway success of SUVs changes things. An entry-level model is less important for us; it's more about making sure the car represents what the customer is demanding. It's more about the value equation than the price tag.

"It's not a no, it's more about making sure we do our due diligence first. It's not going into Europe for another 10 months."

The petrol engine variants are all but certain to be offered in Australia but the EV could also be on the cards.

"If the market wants it we'll ask for it," observed Bowen.

Currently the Peugeot 208 is priced between $21,990 and $31,490 in Australia but that entry-level price could rise significantly.

Sales volumes of the Peugeot 208 has slipped off a cliff in the past few years, almost halving from 385 units in 2017 to 195 cars sold in 2018.

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The headlight clusters have a more angular motif and there's strong visual links with the new Peugeot 508, while the rear-end has a solid horizontal element that stretches from shoulder to shoulder, bookended by fancy-looking tri-core LED tail-lights.

Top-shelf models get 17-inch alloy wheels and Acantara sports seats.

All engines are compliant with Euro 6 emissions regulations and consist of a 1.2-litre turbo-petrol three-cylinder outputting 56, 75 and 97kW. There's also a 1.5-litre turbo-diesel four-cylinder engine that bangs out 75kW.

The diesel is offered only with a six-speed manual while the petrol pumpers can be paired with a five-speed manual or six and eight-speed autos.

Based on the CMP or common modular platform used by Peugeot and Citroen, the new 208 is said to be up to 30kg lighter than its predecessor.

The new platform enables new technology such as adaptive cruise control with slow speed stop-and-go traffic control, lane positioning assist which steers the car on well-marked highways.

There's also active lane keep assist, automatic parking assist, autonomous emergency braking, automatic high beam dipping, advanced speed limit and traffic sign recognition, active blind spot monitoring and an electric park brake.

The CMP also allows for a full electric vehicle or EV model-grade, which has been dubbed the Peugeot e-208.

Fitted with a 50kWh battery that should give the Pug enough juice to travel 340km (WLTP cycle), the e-208's lithium-ion battery pack can be topped up on 100kW fast-charge outlet. This is enough charge power for an 80 per cent fill in 30 minutes, according to Peugeot.