Peugeot hybrid goes hell for leather

The Peugeot 908 HYbrid4 is a step closer to being on racetracks - and hopefully in showrooms - after proving its mettle on a track test at Estoril, Portugal. The test comes after the 908 HYbrid’s unveiling at the Geneva Motor Show in March this year and a shakedown run in September on a private PSA Peugeot Citroen site.

Nicolas Minassian, Stephane Sarrazin and Alexander Wurz put the hybrid car through its paces at Estoril in a test that was not about putting loads of miles on the clock but was about testing all the car’s vital functions to see how it will perform as a viable racecar for Peugeot Sport. The next step will be endurance testing.

The Estoril test is not the first track test for the 908 - it first took to the track at Silverstone in 2008 in a demonstration car form and in the ensuing three years, Peugeot has been working to launch a car that will fit in with the technical regulations announced in 2009.

Peugeot Sport has been working in tandem with Peugeot’s production car business to create a hybrid system that can be carried over into motorsport. As well as the work on a track-worthy 908 hybrid racer, Peugeot’s production car business has been busy with the 3008 HYbrid4 and the 508 RXH, which was launched at the Frankfurt Motor Show. There has been much collaboration between Peugeot and Peugeot Sport with the motorsport business benefiting from the research and development expertise of the production car boffins.

Stay tuned for news of further 908 testing - and hopefully a race debut in the very near future.

www.peugeot.co.uk


By Georgia Lewis

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