First teased back in January under a sheet of white cloth, Peugeot's->ke68 Beijing-bound concept vehicle->ke169 has finally had the covers pulled off, revealing a dramatically-styled four-door coupe bearing the name "Exalt". So here it is, ladies and gentlemen: the Peugeot Exalt Concept.

Back when it was first teased, Peugeot boldly announced that this concept would serve as a follow up to the incredible Onyx Concept we saw at the 2012 Paris Auto Show->ke227. If anything, the Exalt has some pretty enormous shoes to fill, considering how bonkers the Onyx turned out to be with its insane 680-horsepower and 1,061-pound-feet output.

Peugeot is presenting the Exalt Concept with a Hybrid4 powertrain that combines with a gasoline engine and an electric motor, producing a combined output of around 340 horsepower. It's not on the level of the Onyx, but really, there aren't a lot of cars out there that are on the level of the Onyx.

Updated 09/04/2014: Peugeot will bring a new version of the Exalt concept to the 2014 Paris Auto Show. The new version will feature a new combination of colors: grey covering the majority of the exterior combined with a ‘Shark Skin’ rear end and ‘Newspaper Wood’ finish for the interior.

Click past the jump to read more about the Peugeot Exalt Concept.

2014 Peugeot Exalt Concept

Specifications
  • Make: Array
  • Model: 2014 Peugeot Exalt Concept
  • Engine/Motor: inline-4
  • Horsepower: 340
  • [do not use] Vehicle Model: Array
Pros
Cons

Exterior

The Exalt's exterior is an interesting interpretation of what Peugeot describes as an homage to the 20s and 30s French cars with exposed steel bodies hand-beaten into shape. The wicked exterior styling does conjure up an industrial look mixed in a sleek shape and modern styling. The "crude steel" finish of the Exalt is a sight to behold, even if its unlikely to hit production anytime soon.

Add that to the aggressively styled front section with the long hood and the unique twin headlamps that was actually set in the bumper and you have the makings of a really unique-looking Peugeot concept.

But the hood and the headlamps are just the first two pieces of the puzzle. There's also a distinct grille that proudly serves as nice backdrop to the Peugeot lion, which is made even more symbolic given how revered the animal is in Chinese culture.

The rest of the sedan is right around the shape of what you'd expect, but once you get a chance to look at the rear section, you're going to notice the other distinct characteristic of the Exalt's exterior. Peugeot calls it the "Shark Skin" textile and according to the company, it serves more than just an aesthetic purpose. Apart from its visual appearance, the textile's technical grain structure allows it to help improve the concept's aerodynamic performance.

Exterior Dimensions

Length

185.03 Inches

Height

51.57 Inches

Weight

3,748 LBS


Interior

Peugeot really pulled no punches dressing up the Exalt Concept's interior, almost to the point of the ridiculous. There are plenty of design characteristics to look at, not the least of which is what Peugeot describes as its "i-Cockpit".

Try to turn your eyes away from the black-ebony wood on the dashboard and center stack and you'll likely appreciate the cabin more. The leather-wrapped, wood-trimmed steering wheel and the digital instrument cluster that features two folding touchscreen displays are a nice touch to the Exalt's overall look and functionality. Whereas the former is distinguishable because of its use of “chiné”, a natural wool-based mixed fabric, the latter provides the kind of modern tech functionality that we still haven't seen in today's production cars.

You'll also notice nine toggle switches Peugeot installed on the dashboard of the Exalt. Peugeot's inspiration is a little over our heads, but each of these switches do serve their own individual purpose, so that's worth pointing out. One of these toggle switches controls activation of the black light system, which now seems appropriate for a cabin as eccentric as the Exalt.

Not surprisingly, there are also details about this concept that draw similarities with Peugeot's other otherworldly concept, the Onyx. The bucket seats are made of the same composite material associate seat squabs and backrest in natural wool-based “chiné” mixed fabric with the side areas dressed in aged leather. There's also a lot of basalt fiber details, which Peugeot describes as a natural component from carbon fiber that's produced by smelting the basalt stone, thereby reducing the use of petrochemical resources.

Oh, and speaking of just plain nutty, the black ebony wood on the Exalt's cabin also has what looks like etchings that Peugeot describes as a combination of "a lion with bamboo stems and leaves", a work of art that apparently was "entrusted to a Chinese master craftsman using traditional techniques".

We've seen a lot of interior concepts in recent years, but very of them are as fascinating as this one.

Drivetrain

Not one to be outdone by the complexity of both the exterior and interior designs of the concept, the powertrain for the Exalt is actually a hybrid. It's made up of a 1.6-liter turbocharged four-cylinder gas engine that produces 270 horsepower and 243 pound-feet of torque, and is combined with a rear axle-mounted, 70-horsepower, electric motor that combines to produce 340 horsepower. This hybrid powertrain all mates to a six-speed transmission.

No details on performance have been released, but we expect the Exalt to hit 60 mph in around five seconds to go with a top speed of possibly around 150 mph.

Drivetrain Specifications

Gasoline Engine

4-cylinder, 1.6-liter THP turbocharged

Output

270 HP

Torque

243 LB-FT

Electric motor

rear axle-mounted 50 kW electric motor

Combined output

340 HP

Transmission

Six-speed automatic


Prices

It's still a concept so don't expect any pricing details to be released anytime soon. But if we were to make a guess, a production Exalt could probably retail for anywhere between $90,000 and $100,000.

Competition

}1}Nissan Sports Sedan Concept}1}

Comparing concept cars is a little tricky because there are no assurances that both models, let alone just one, could get green lit for production. But it is a fun exercise, especially if you can find a similar prototype with equally similar characteristics, give or take the presence of wood in the cabin.

On that note, the recently unveiled Nissan->ke62 Sports Sedan Concept is actually an actual preview of Nissan's future design language. The aesthetics are more modern than what we've seen from Nissan recently and it actually has progressed to the point that we could actually see its language on a future production model.

But unlike the Exalt, the Sports Sedan Concept strictly carries a fuel-consuming 3.5-liter V-6 that produces around 320 horsepower and 280 pound-feet of torque.

Conclusion

It would be very, very interesting if Peugeot decided to produce the Exalt Concept, even in a limited capacity. We certainly dig how the company managed to combine steel and Shark skin aesthetics with a cabin that's probably best appreciated if you're actually inside it.

The hybrid powertrain produces ample output, but not enough to justify the audacity of the Exalt Concept's design.