Peugeot to Unveil Autonomous Electric Concept

Peugeot will reveal its autonomous and electric e-Legend Concept coupe at this week's Paris auto show.

Peugeot CEO Jean-Phillipe Imparato says the concept is not just a technological manifesto.

“This is the vision of a brand,” he says in a statement. “For Peugeot, autonomous and electric are synonymous with even stronger sensations. Boredom will never be part of our Peugeot DNA.”

Imparato calls the e-Legend a real object of desire that promotes freedom of movement and offers “a never-ending choice of pleasures.”

The concept is powered by 100-kWh batteries that generate 456 hp and 590 lb.-ft. (800 Nm) of torque distributed via 4-wheel drive. It can go from 0-62 mph (0-100 km/h) in less than four seconds and reach a maximum speed of 137 mph (220 km/h).

The e-Legend’s range is 372 miles (600 km), with 311 miles (500 km) accessible in 25 minutes using a fast recharge.

The concept offers four driving modes, two of them autonomous – soft and sharp. Soft favors the occupants’ comfort. Projection on digital material screens and information displays are reduced to a minimum. Sharp provides the maximum connection to digital activities.

In autonomous mode, the e-Legend’s interior configuration (below, left) adapts as well.

The steering wheel retracts under the sound bar to fully clear a 49-in. (124-cm) screen, the front seats recline and the side armrests deploy automatically, freeing up a large storage area and an induction charging area for smartphones.

The main controls remain accessible through a center console integrated into the driver's seat.

The occupants can relax, play an integrated video game or watch a film either on the curved central screen or in each screen built into the sun visors.

Working with artificial-intelligence technology company Soundhound, the e-Legend offers a voice-activated personal assistant suitable for autonomous driving.

With a simple sentence, the driver can change the driving style, listen to a favorite playlist or open or close the vehicle’s electrified doors. The system responds with Peugeot Style Director Gilles Vidal’s digitized voice and it includes 17 languages. A version for production vehicles will be available on Peugeot brand products within two years.

Acoustic architecture by French audio-systems company Focal ensures optimal sound diffusion. The system in the concept offers two sound functions: mapping, in which navigation messages are sent only to the driver while other occupants listen to music; and zoning, which places each passenger in their own sound bubble.

A screen visible from the outside displays a personalized greeting and the battery-charge level to its user before departure. It also warns people outside that the car is driving in autonomous mode.

The interior is trimmed in paldao wood, reminiscent of the furniture of the 1960s, in rosewood or ebony. The wood’s dark veins bring out the turquoise-blue color on the seats and floor.

To complete the immersion and personalization of its interior, a fragrance diffuser scents the e-Legend with two perfumes created for the vehicle by the Parisian perfume house Ex Nihilo.