2011 Peugeot HR1

Press release

With the HR1, Peugeot once again reshuffles the pack in terms of the individual car segments. The HR1 is an exclusive and innovative urban concept car that blends together a number of genres (city runaround, coupé, SUV …). It is targeted at active young city dwellers smitten with design and innovation that are in search of a vehicle that matches their profile.

Hyper-connectivity, adaptable and compact the HR1 breaks new ground with new trends in hyperconnectivity, modularity and responsiveness, and offers an entirely new driving experience:

• The original door system facilitates access to a novel passenger compartment which can be totally transformed to offer either two seats and a large load area or four seating positions;
• The interior with its movement recognition interface is simple and intuitive and very innovative;
• A gile, reactive and responsible, the HR1 features HYbrid4 technology, with a new three cylinder 1.2 litre THP petrol engine at the front and a rear electric motor for: reduced CO2 emissions (80 g/km or Zero in electric mode), a maximum power (147 bhp) and four wheel drive.

Style & Concept: innovation & emotion

Peugeot has always explored new motoring territories,proposed new offers in response to the aspirations of customers in search of innovation and emotion, but also pragmatic and efficient solutions. Through a mix of ideas, this inventiveness has given rise to many production vehicles and concept-cars which include a number of genuine commercial and design successes (Coupé/Cabriolet, the 3008… and more recently the BB1 concept-car).

The HR1 is also based on the crossover of several body shapes: city runaround, coupé, SUV… deriving as a result its own identity and new and original advantages. The HR1 is positioned as the ideal vehicle for young city dwellers, individuals and couples, who interact with their world yet are protective of their privacy but, at the same time alert to new living experiences in relation to their leisure activities and their mobility.

An exclusive urban concept

The HR1 is designed to facilitate urban travel. With this vehicle, driving is always a pleasure, even in the busiest or most confined of spaces. It benefits firstly from particularly compact dimensions (length of 3.69 m, very short front and rear overhangs), but also an original system for getting into and out of the vehicle. Based on the Marque’s experience in this field, the HR1 has two electric gull-wing doors to facilitate access under all circumstances (restricted parking, small garage, etc). Finally, its raised ground clearance provides a dominate driving position with key benefits in terms of visibility and manoeuvrability.

An exterior style that expresses the concept

The HR1 carries the genes of the Peugeot Marque, whose changing stylistic design codes were first revealed on the SR1 concept-car. The HR1 has the same expressive headlamps with a finely chiselled design, as well as a single “floating” front grille seemingly detached from the rest of the body.

Here, style is completely at one with the vehicle’s concept: athletic, powerful and dynamic. It is also sensual, with flowing flanks showcasing large wheels and a double bubble on the rear windscreen reminiscent of the curves of the RCZ Coupé. The finesse of the superstructure, the two-tone interplay of polished and chrome materials, every component expresses build quality, a sign of the meticulous attention paid to every detail. This is true also of the headlamps and “full LED” rear lights, finished in the style of hi-tech jewels that give the car a unique signature by day and by night. At the rear, roof bars serve ingeniously as a hinge for opening the one-piece, smoked-glass tailgate. In the final analysis the design of the HR1 suggests agility, control and seduction, offering the promise of safety and environmental efficiency to its users.

The ultra-innovative passenger compartment

In keeping with the trends illustrated on the Marque’s latest vehicles, the interior has a structured design, with a “high-tech coupé” driving position offering enhanced sensations through a combination of style, quality of finish, equipment and ergonomics. The driver and passenger each have a privileged space, separated by a console which adds to the futuristic design and the bright interior ambience (helped by the use of electroluminescent diodes). Light is also transmitted through the two glazed sections of the roof, dedicated to the right and left occupant respectively and specially finished in electro-chrome to diffuse more light on request.

The car’s instrumentation suggests total command of the vehicle by the driver, with ergonomically placed controls, a small steering wheel, and a “Head Up Display” allowing information to be seen without the driver taking their eyes off the road. The passenger compartment of the HR1 has a very “authentic” feel, dynamic, technological and protective, able to shield its occupants from the stress of the outside world.

Intimate hyper-connectivity

The HR1 is equipped with particularly innovative controls which operate what is known as the “manmachine interface”. The concept-car thus has a “movement recognition” system. Simple and intuitive, this allows the driver to scroll through functions and select available settings with a simple movement of the hand. For example by rotating the hand the user can scroll menus, displayed in the manner of a carousel. The driver can also choose to switch control of the menus to the front passenger, with a sweep of the hand from left to right.

The technology controlled by this method includes the audio, satellite navigation and air conditioning systems. The driver can also select, at his discretion, the preferred type of information to be displayed in the instrument panel: rev counter, water and oil temperature during “dynamic driving”, or tourist information when “cruising”. The front passenger meanwhile benefits from a mobile PC tablet which allows data to be shared and exchanged with the driver’s display.

A modular passenger compartment

The ingenuity of the HR1 resides also in its modularity. The HR1 is designed basically for young city dwellers without children in search of a fun vehicle that is fashionable and roomy enough to carry leisure equipment (bicycle, diving equipment, etc) or be loaded up with shopping, etc. Its boot, practical and accommodating thanks to its flat floor and sides, offers a load space of 734 litres. The passenger compartment of the concept-car can also very quickly be configured to accommodate three or four full size seats, according to the particular requirements, thanks to a clever “stowaway seats” system. The rear seat frames fit snugly behind the front seats, making it possible to modulate the interior configuration in the twinkling of an eye. As on the RCZ, the special shape of the rear windscreen with its double bubble allows the rear capacity to be optimised.
When both rear seats are present, the boot capacity is naturally smaller, but remains a substantial 180 litres nonetheless.

An agile and responsive vehicle

One of Peugeot’s priorities is to retain its environmental leadership over the coming years. In this respect, the HR1 concept-car which is most at home in the city, needed to fill the brief of being particularly efficient and innovative. This concept-car incorporates HYbrid4 technology and its associated benefits. With an internal combustion engine at the front and a rear electric motor it can be driven as often as possible in “zero emissions” mode in town at low speed, or with both engines together, offering four-wheel drive capability where challenging surfaces warrant it.

Under the bonnet, the internal combustion engine which drives the front wheels is a new three cylinder petrol unit. This is the 1.2 litre THP 81 kW (110 bhp) petrol engine, one of the future family of three cylinder engines currently under development. Continuing its “downsizing” strategy, the PSA Group has used the most advanced technologies to produce this low capacity engine that combines both a high level of performance with environmental efficiency. Coupled with a 27 kW (37 bhp) electric motor, the car has a potential power of 108 kW (147 bhp) for a combined fuel consumption of only 3.5 litres/100 km and CO2 emissions of only 80 g/km.

The electronically-controlled 6-speed gearbox (with paddles on the steering wheel or gear lever) coupled with this power train is designed to offer maximum precision and responsiveness to the driver, who is also free at any time to opt for sequential or automatic mode.

An efficient vehicle base

The HR1 concept-car benefits from a McPherson type front suspension and a torsion beam rear suspension.

The electric power steering on the HR1 offers excellent handling characteristics at low speed, astonishing agility during manoeuvres and maximum accuracy at higher speeds, for good all-round responsiveness. With its high-performance suspension, efficient steering and new power train, this specification guarantees a unique driving experience for the user of the HR1 combining the emotion of real driving enjoyment with the rigour of genuine environmental efficiency.