New Peugeot 301 compact saloon revealed

New four-door Peugeot 301 is aimed at emerging markets, so won't be sold in the UK following its Paris motor show launch in September

New Peugeot 301 is aimed at emerging market

This is the new Peugeot 301, a new compact four-door saloon aimed at emerging markets. It also ushers in a new naming strategy for future Peugeot cars.

The 4440mm-long Peugeot 301 will not be sold in the UK, but is still expected to become one of its best-selling cars worldwide after the car's debut at the Paris motor show in September.

The French firm hopes to achieve this by competing in the budget segment with one of the most stylish cars available, which also offers a class-leading 506 litres of boot capacity and cabin space, thanks to its 2650mm wheelbase. An extensive list of safety equipment is also offered, including ESP, ABS, four airbags and an emergency brake-assist system.

Peugeot claims the car has undergone extensive development in a number of countries and climates around the world to ensure it can have a comfortable ride quality on the likely broken surfaces of the roads of countries it’s set to be sold in.

 

A modern engine line-up also features in the Peugeot 301. The 301 will be the second car after the 208 to get Peugeot’s new three-cylinder 1.2-litre VTi petrol engine. In the 301, it is offered with 70bhp and can be equipped to either a manual or automated manual gearbox.

Two 1.6-litre engines complete the line-up, a 1.6 HDi diesel with 91bhp and a 1.6 VTi petrol with 114bhp. The diesel’s sole transmission choice is a manual; the petrol comes with either a manual or an automatic.

 

Despite being a budget car, a series of more premium features will be offered for the interior. MP3, Bluetooth and USB connections are all offered alongside automatic air-con, a hands-free phone kit, automatic boot opening and rear parking assistance systems.

The new 301 will be built at Peugeot’s Vigo manufacturing plant in Spain. It will go on sale on 1 November initially in Turkey, before sales start in Central and Eastern Europe, Russia, the Middle East, Latin America and Africa.