Peugeot Polygon: Steer-by-Wire Future

That’s great, huh? Sculptural shapes with a distinctive illuminated mask made of Micro LEDs, rich glazing as if from a fighter cabin and a profile inspired by the classic Peugeot 205. If the upcoming next generation Peugeot 208 looks half as good as the Polygon concept, which is supposed to be its prototype, then it will be great!

Of course, you have to think about hinged doors, which are only there for effect and to open up a view of the interior. And think about that one right away, because the next evolution of the i-Cockpit with a projection on the entire windshield will not be put into production right away, and the floating foam armchair will not be at all. And you would certainly expect that even the rectangular steering wheel to be just a pure fantasy of the designers, but that’s where we have to stop.

Peugeot is dead serious about him. They call it Hypersquare (literally “hypersquare”) and it will be connected to a steer-by-wire system, i.e. steering with electronic linkage. This, in addition to dampening negative influences on the steering (shocks, vibrations), makes it possible to change its transmission depending on the driving situation.

Whether you’re slowly maneuvering in a parking lot, nimbly passing a turnpike on a county road, or crossing into the next lane at highway speed, a maximum of half a turn of the angular steering wheel to one side or the other should always be enough. This should eliminate wild jerking when parking or nervousness around the center position at high speeds.

We were already able to test a similar system in the Lexus RZ and we were pleasantly surprised how quickly you get used to it – practically immediately after the first few meters you’ll learn to rely on the variable transmission and you’ll seriously never have to fumble with the steering wheel. On the other hand, the unusual shape of its “rams” instead of a steering wheel limited the possibilities of holding it, which would probably be a bit tiring on longer routes.

How it will work in real life with Peugeot and its rectangular steering wheel is still uncertain, but we could try it on a prototype soon. The first production cars equipped with this system should reach the market as early as 2027, but don’t worry, it will undoubtedly be an additional item in the first wave, which only the biggest enthusiasts of modern technology will buy.

However, it is certain that eventually everyone will switch to the stee-by-wire system (as with the electronic linkage of the throttle and brakes), because it brings new possibilities. Above all, the possibility to completely remove the steering wheel when switching to a complete autonomous driving system. However, that is still a long way off. Now we can at least look forward to the new generation Peugeot 208 (which will arrive in two years) and guess how many design elements it will take from the Polygon concept…