PSA Group confirms pact with Changan for 1-ton pickup truck

The PSA Group has confirmed that it is co-operating with Chinese brand Changan  develop a 1-ton pickup truck for market by 2020 as the segment grows in Europe and international markets.

Under the agreement, which was signed in June, an all-new platform has been developed for the car, which will serve as a rival to the Nissan Navara, Renault Alaskan and Mitsubishi L200.

The pickup will be produced at the Ding Zhou ChangAn plant, dedicated to LCVs. At the first stage, the one-ton pick-up will be offered to Chinese customers and Groupe PSA overseas markets.

The LCV market represented 14 million vehicles worldwide in 2016, the one-ton pickup represents 18 percent of this market, with a yearly 5% increase worldwide. The pickup segment is experiencing something of a resurgence in recent months. New entries have come from Renault and Mercedes-Benz under an agreement between Renault-Nissan-Mitsubishi and Daimler to share the platform of the Navara. 

It won’t be the only PSA pickup in the portfolio. Peugeot currently produces the Pick Up – a rebadged Dongfeng Rich – for the African market. However, the Changan truck will be the first PSA pickup in Europe since the Peugeot 504, last sold in the early 1990s. 

A pickup truck has been in the works since PSA's Push to Pass plan was revealed last year, although a joint venture with Toyota or Fiat did not come to pass, despite PSA's past commercial vehicle tie-ins with these brands. 

According to Patrice Lucas, EVP of Programs and Strategy at PSA Group: “This new product, which is complementary to the Peugeot pick-up recently launched in Africa, is in line with the core model strategy of Groupe PSA and will support our comeback on this growing market segment. It will contribute to achieve the objectives set for the Push to Pass plan regarding LCVs with a target to increase volumes by 30% by 2018 and triple overseas volumes by 2021^.”

Mingxue Yuan, EVP Cooperation and Strategy – ChangAn, added: “This first common development for a new generation of one-ton pick-ups is a great opportunity for both companies to hit markets in China and overseas.”