Peugeot eyeing Nürburgring lap record with 308 R

Besides Renault, fellow French maker, Peugeot is also eyeing the Nürburgring lap record with its own hot hatch. The company is reportedly developing a 308 R, which is set to rival the Seat Leon Cupra – the current title holder of the fastest lap around the Nürburgring in a production front-wheel drive car.

Like the Peugeot RCZ R, the hot hatch will be developed by Peugeot Sport and will herald a new era of hot cars from the brand.

Peugeot Head of Product, Xavier Peugeot, recently told Autocar in the UK that as the brand seeks to establish a more premium image, there will be more opportunities for projects that add halo cars to the ranges, including fast cars.

A super-fast 308 R is seen as one way of elevating the image of the struggling French automaker.

Other manufacturers attempting to snatch the lap record from Seat includes Renault and even Volkswagen, which recently has been spotted testing a prototype of a stripped-out ‘super GTI’ on the Nürburgring.