The First Electric GTI Is Here And… It Is French
Image Credit: Stellantis.
You have to love the French. While the Germans at Volkswagen have been having committee meetings about having a meeting to discuss the future of the electric GTI badge, Peugeot just went and built one. They didn't even make a big fuss about it. They just casually rolled it out at the Le Mans 24 Hours, a place where things tend to happen rather quickly.
For years, we've been hearing whispers and seeing concepts from VW about an electric future for their legendary "Grand Touring Injection" moniker. It was coming, they promised. Someday. Well, Peugeot, a brand with its own glorious GTI history, clearly got tired of waiting. After a six-year break, they've slapped the three most exciting letters in the hot hatch dictionary onto the back of their little E-208, and just like that, the electric hot hatch war has officially begun. And the first shot was fired with a baguette.
Image Credit: Stellantis.
So, what have they cooked up? The E-208 GTI is built on the same Stellantis group platform as its shouty Italian cousins, the Abarth 600e and Alfa Romeo Junior Veloce. This means it gets the same single electric motor up front, sending a rather silly 276 horsepower to the front wheels. In a car the size of a large shoe, that is what we in the business call "plenty." The torque figure is a healthy 255 lb-ft, available, of course, from the moment you so much as breathe on the accelerator.
The result is a 0-to-62 mph time of just 5.7 seconds. That's really snappy. This little electric lion is the fastest-accelerating GTI Peugeot has ever built. It's quicker than the new electric Mini Cooper JCW, which is no slouch itself. It's the kind of acceleration that will have you giggling like a madman as you zip away from traffic lights. It's pure, silent hooliganism.
Image Credit: Stellantis.
Before you rush off to your nearest Peugeot dealer - oh, wait, you can't, this is America - there are a few electrical realities to discuss. All that zippy power is drawn from a 54 kWh battery. That's not entirely a terrible size for a small car, but Peugeot claims a range of just 217 miles. That's on a good day. With a tailwind. Going downhill and not even looking at the accelerator. I've had sneezes that have traveled further.
This is where my electric enthusiasm gets a bit of a reality check. The rival Mini JCW, with the same size battery, manages to squeeze out up to 250 miles. It seems Peugeot's engineers were so focused on making it fast, they forgot to make it go far. The top speed is also electronically limited to 112 mph, whereas the Mini will carry on to 124 mph. So, while you'll beat the Mini in a drag race, its owner could theoretically wave goodbye as they head off on a slightly longer road trip.
But maybe I'm missing the point. A hot hatch isn't for crossing continents; it's for devouring your favorite backroad before popping to the shops. And on that front, Peugeot seems to have thrown the entire kitchen and the sink at the E-208 GTI. They've dropped the suspension by 1.2 inches and widened the track by a significant 2.2 inches at the front and over an inch at the rear. This gives it a wonderfully aggressive, four-square stance that shouts: "I mean business!"
The inspiration is clear: the legendary 205 GTI from the 1980s. The new car's 18-inch wheels are a direct, beautiful homage to the "pepper pot" alloys on the classic 205 GTI 1.9. The little red GTI badge on the C-pillar looks almost identical. They've even fitted serious Michelin Pilot Sport Cup 2 tires, which are basically track-day rubber with a few grooves carved in to make them legal. Add in four-piston brake calipers clamping down on massive 14-inch rotors, and the message is clear: this car is built to turn and stop, not just go.
The homage to its iconic ancestor continues inside. The interior is a festival of red. You get red ambient lighting, red digital displays, red floor mats, red seatbelts, and red stitching everywhere. The sports seats feature a central red stripe, a nod to the half-leather chairs in the 205 1.9, while the fabric pattern mimics the cloth seats from the 1.6 version. It's a bit much, but subtlety was never the point of a GTI, was it?
Who knew that the first electric GTI would be French? It's fantastically quick, and it looks the absolute business. Peugeot E-208 GTI proves electric cars don't have to be sensible, appliance-like transport pods. They can have soul, character, and a connection to a company's heritage. The estimated price of around $46,000 is steep, but for a car this potent and packed with personality, it might just find its audience. If the French could only find a way to plug in a slightly bigger battery, they might not just have beaten VW to the punch; they might have delivered a knockout.
