Our platform better than VW's, says Peugeot

PSA Peugeot-Citroen's new EMP2 global modular platform is more sophisticated than the Volkswagen Group’s problematic MQB platform, according to a chief engineer at Peugeot.

Speaking at the launch of the new 308 in Peugeot's home town of Sochaux, Yves Bouvier, the New Platform 2 executive project manager at PSA R&D, said EMP2 was lighter and more flexible than MQB.

”The EMP2 has much more modularity than the MQB platform. More lightweight materials are used in EMP2, so the MQB is 50-60kg heavier in total. EMP2 follows the philosophy of Audi rather than Volkswagen — better use of components and alloys — but with a balance of cost effectiveness," he said.

As we reported last week, Volkswagen has had ongoing issues with the MQB platform, including cost blow-outs and a re-working of the Golf hybrid chassis to improve US crash tests results.

Bouvier said EMP2 was a completely new development to be cast wide over the PSA Group's products.

"The coming 508 will be launched on this platform, the coming 3008 and 5008 will also be launched on this platform. So that's the SUVs and the D-segment sedan for the European or Chinese market."

The EMP2 is not related to any prior PSA platform, Bouvier said. "We built this from scratch." The development, reportedly costing 60 million Euros, is already used for Citroen C4 Picasso and Peugeot 308 and will continue in use "for the next 12 to 15 years", said Bouvier.

The China market-only Peugeot 408 sedan has also just been released using the EMP2 platform.

There will be no 308 CC convertible as the market has declined for this type of car, said Bouvier, adding that there would be no 308 seven-seat wagon either, as Peugeot "chose to go back to the roots of this car".

Peugeot believes the 5008 seven-seater will satisfy those needing extra seats.

The front of the platform to the firewall is identical for all applications, but there are two driving position heights, two HVAC positions for different centre console designs, four different track widths and five different wheelbases, extending from the 308's 2.62 metres to the C4 Picasso's 2.84 metres.

There are also two rear suspension designs: the trailing arm torsion beam used for C4 Picasso and 308 and a multi-link coil-spring design. Multi-link could have been used on C4 Picasso and 308, but Bouvier said it was "better for the D-segment. There is a 30-40kg weight-saving when using multi-link, but cost is higher."

The platform is 70kg lighter than the previous PF2 platform, which was first used in the 2001 307. "It's a big reduction in weight. We do a little bit more with less materials and weight."

Safety has been improved by relying more on the platform to absorb the impact. The PF2 platform absorbed 50 per cent of crash forces while the EMP2 absorbs 80 per cent. This, according to Bouvier, allows more flexibility for the various bodyshell 'top-hats' and permits the A-pillar to be lighter.

Crash repair costs should be cheaper too. While the 308's aluminium front and rear bumper reinforcement bars were twice the price of other materials, Bouvier said "It is more about the number of parts than the cost of each part. For example, the radiator and condenser have one to two centimetres of movement back on bushing mounts, reducing the number of parts damaged."

Bouvier said manufacturing tolerances were more accurate, citing the example of the front suspension towers that can be moved 5mm, so that total variance was between 3 to 5mm.

As a result of this and other measures, the Peugeot engineer said his team succeeded with an ambitious goal. "We wanted the car to be new after three years or 60,000km [in terms of body gaps and overall performance], which we achieved."

EMP2 can take wheels of up to 720mm in diameter Bouvier said, noting that this was much more than Volkswagen's MQB.