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THE PEUGEOT i-Cockpit® IS 10 YEARS OLD!

December 23, 2022

7 minute read

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A look back at the original and innovative concept that reinvents driving
PEUGEOT i-Cockpit® gave its first cry in 2012, when the PEUGEOT 208 was born. For the first time in the history of the automobile in France, an innovative cockpit, shaking up the codes of traditional automobile design, was to be fitted to production vehicles. The result of a long period of reflection and hard work in research and testing, a journey full of questions and above all successes, PEUGEOT i-Cockpit®, an innovative and original concept, is now celebrating its 10th anniversary. This is an opportunity to look back at the history of a visionary ambition that has become reality.
An innovative vision of the driving position

Bertrand Rapatel, PEUGEOT's Interior Design Director, has been working on the i-Cockpit® since the second generation version in the 308 and 3008. We asked him how he would describe the i-Cockpit® to someone who is not yet familiar with it.

i-Cockpit® is based on several main principles:

 

The driving experience: the small steering wheel is the heart of the i-Cockpit® architecture. It provides a dynamic, sportier driving experience. It is very different from a conventional steering wheel! The compact steering wheel increases the driving sensation tenfold because the amplitudes of movement are less important. This enhances the driver's speed and agility while providing a more relaxed driving position.
Safety: We have moved from a central screen with needles to a head-up display that groups information in line with the driver's gaze so that he or she remains focused on the road ahead.  The architecture is designed to ensure that the driver takes his or her eyes off the road as little as possible when consulting the information. The i-Cockpit® provides a quicker synthesis of attention on the road.
Digital: A large touch screen completes the system. It intuitively groups together all the comfort controls (radio, air conditioning, etc.) and thus allows natural control of all the vehicle's equipment.
The interior design is highly innovative: by enhancing the interior, a real world is created that is part of the PEUGEOT signature. I-Cockpit® is the concrete expression of the PEUGEOT interior of today and tomorrow.
Birth of an identity concept
Jérôme Micheron, now head of PEUGEOT's product management, was actively involved in the creation of the i-Cockpit®. He tells us how this extraordinary project came about.

"For the very first idea of the i-Cockpit®, we asked ourselves the following questions: "How can we provide new sensations on board a PEUGEOT without being on a circuit? How can we find driving sensations in line with customers' expectations and the new safety rules such as speed limits?

It was by looking for answers to these problems and based on various customer studies that the i-Cockpit® gradually took shape."

The arrival of touch in our daily lives was also a determining factor in thinking about the new driver's cab. This corresponds to the launch of the very first iPhone in June 2007. At the time, cars already had screens but they were not touch-sensitive, they were passive. We had reached a point where the dashboards had become too complicated: we needed to simplify and modernise. When we started to think about all these issues, we used to use the expression "hunting for buttons".
'Design drawing for the i-Cockpit®, first generation on the 208
It was also a desire to transform PEUGEOT's relationship with driving. At the time, PEUGEOT was all about exterior design, elegance and above all a relationship to driving linked to the feel of the road, precision and driving sensations. There was a form of sportiness in the cars. We used to say: "at the wheel of a PEUGEOT, you have to feel every grain of the road". It had become almost a caricature!
It was also a desire to transform PEUGEOT's relationship with driving. At the time, PEUGEOT was all about exterior design, elegance and above all a relationship to driving linked to the feel of the road, precision and driving sensations. There was a form of sportiness in the cars. We used to say: "at the wheel of a PEUGEOT, you have to feel every grain of the road". It had become almost a caricature!
Stages of an unusual design

1. An idea comes to life

 

“ So, the engineers and designers started to put their ideas on paper. With the first models, we worked ahead of schedule with a very small team. Quite quickly, the proposal for a smaller steering wheel emerged. Until then, in a car, the steering wheel was very large and the information on the handset was read through the steering wheel.

i-Cockpit® 308 design
Our reasoning was that this positioning of the handset and steering wheel was distracting. We wanted to improve driving safety and avoid distraction. So, we thought that the best position for reading information was at eye level. The information should be mounted at eye level. This new position, together with a smaller steering wheel, created a synthesis that was completely new, with a handset that we called a "head-up handset". A touch screen was added which greatly simplified all the controls and played on connectivity. This was the beginning of touch screens for PEUGEOT. ”
Our reasoning was that this positioning of the handset and steering wheel was distracting. We wanted to improve driving safety and avoid distraction. So, we thought that the best position for reading information was at eye level. The information should be mounted at eye level. This new position, together with a smaller steering wheel, created a synthesis that was completely new, with a handset that we called a "head-up handset". A touch screen was added which greatly simplified all the controls and played on connectivity. This was the beginning of touch screens for PEUGEOT. ”

2. From conviction to realisation

 

“ The stakes were high for the brand, which was taking a major risk by committing to a concept that was as innovative as it was new, since mass production represents large volumes.  We therefore had to prove that our concept was validated by customers. We therefore organised tests on a private circuit by bringing in French and German customers. We had them drive a car with a traditional synthesis, an ordinary steering wheel, a standard dashboard and then we put them in the prototype with this new steering wheel and this new handset.

And then .... Our conviction became reality!  Very quickly, the feedback was excellent, very qualitative, with a perception that could be different according to the customers and their age group. The young people appreciated the sportiness, while the older ones felt the agility, saw a modernity, a break with the past. Everyone took to the little steering wheel with great ease. We were absolutely convinced that we had something exceptional. It was at that moment that we became certain that it was won and that we could go. ”
And then .... Our conviction became reality!  Very quickly, the feedback was excellent, very qualitative, with a perception that could be different according to the customers and their age group. The young people appreciated the sportiness, while the older ones felt the agility, saw a modernity, a break with the past. Everyone took to the little steering wheel with great ease. We were absolutely convinced that we had something exceptional. It was at that moment that we became certain that it was won and that we could go. ”
And tomorrow?
For Bertrand Rapatel: "The i-Cockpit® must always remain intuitive, dynamic and iconic: this is one of our objectives. The kind of interior architecture initiated by the i-Cockpit® will gradually spread and become a standard of automotive interior design. PEUGEOT was the forerunner in this field, so it is up to us to continue to lead the way towards ever greater innovation and inventiveness in order to stay one step ahead and remain iconic. It is a work of perpetual renewal to continue to surprise and stay on top. One thing is certain, the i-Cockpit® has a long way to go!"
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TAGS: Peugeot & Moi