Peugeot Australia in talks with French HQ to expand eight-year warranty

Back in 2016 the company announced it would back certain models in its range with the benchmark eight-year, unlimited-kilometre warranty, and now the local branch of Peugeot is in talks with its French headquarters, Groupe PSA, to implement a longer warranty as a permanent fixture.

Peugeot Australia general manager Kai Bruesewitz told CarAdvice at the launch of the 2017 Peugeot 2008 that the company saw the move to offer the best warranty in the country as more than a promotion, though in real terms that's exactly what it was: a means to shift existing stock to make way for updated models, such as the 308 hatchback, that have since launched.

"We are happy with the results that we achieved with the eight-year warranty, and it put us back on the shopping list because we could give people peace of mind for the product," Bruesewitz said.

More than just a talking point, though, Bruesewitz said that offering a better level of customer care than competitors would dare is something that shows the local distributor, Sime Darby Automotive, stands by its product offering.

"It reinstates trust back in the brand," Bruesewitz said. "From that angle it was a good move, and we used the eight-year warranty as a promotion, but we’re certainly in discussions with Groupe PSA on how to move forward," he confirmed.

Just how much of an impact the eight-year warranty plan had on sales is somewhat unknown: there were various retail activities around the Peugeot 308 towards the end of 2016, and stock thinned out toward the end of the year. But Bruesewitz said that the program generated interest, and it's something he is feeding back to France.

"We are yet to fully analyse the effect that it has had, and we will continue our discussions with Groupe PSA on how to position our cars from a warranty perspective in the future," Bruesewitz said.

It may not be an eight-year plan that Groupe PSA agrees on: Peugeot is offering five-year/unlimited-kilometre warranty plans as a promotional aid on some of its other products, including the just-introduced new-look 2017 Peugeot 2008 small SUV.

"Because there is probably a bit of a movement from manufacturers, offering five years and more to assure buyers about their backing of their products. We are doing that also for selected models, because it’s going in that direction," he said.

Would you like to see Peugeot adopt a permanent eight-year warranty? Would it be enough to get you to consider the brand? Let us know in the comments section below.

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