If you were given a car that costs around $200,000 to challenge the supercar Ferrari 488 and complete faster track laps, you'd be sure to say "crazy."
But if you relax the conditions: you have a "B-class car with a controlled ceiling" sedan and at the same time have 30 days to modify it, will the answer be no? Speaking of which, it is necessary to mention the recent Dongfeng Peugeot "Pinnacle Renovation Plan" - through 30 days to convert a B-class car into an event that can beat the supercar Ferrari 488 at faster laps on the track. The object of modification is the Dongfeng Peugeot 508L, which is famous in the control industry.
I believe that when it comes to this, there will still be many people who have doubts about a B-class car beating a supercar. So how did the "Pinnacle Renovation Plan" upgrade the Peugeot 508L step by step into a track weapon that can compete with the Ferrari 488? Let's review the "Pinnacle Transformation".
Five-link independent rear suspension 200,000 can also have a sharp bending weapon
Race on the track, mastering corner time is more effective than grabbing straight time. It should be known that the Ferrari 488, as a top sports car, not only has a low body center of gravity, but also adopts a body structure with the engine in the middle, and the handling limit is higher. Of course, the Peugeot 508L is not vegetarian either. As a family B-Class car, the Peugeot 508L is equipped with a five-link independent rear suspension that only luxury civilian cars can use.
At present, the same price models on the market generally use three-link and four-link rear suspension. The more linkages contained in the suspension means the higher the cost, but the Peugeot 508L is willing to put down the book in the invisible place, equipped with five connecting rods independent rear suspension, which is higher in mechanical quality.
Here is a simple explanation of the advantages of the five-link independent rear suspension. It can realize the degree of freedom control of the wheel in 6 directions, that is, it can better suppress unnecessary bouncing of the wheel and better achieve ground adhesion. This also creates a higher handling limit for the Peugeot 508L, which can be done even with intense track driving.
In addition, the Peugeot 508L also adopts the design of the rear suspension all-aluminum beam, which reduces the weight by 15.1kg. This is a picture that we have a hard time seeing in regular models. The benefits are not only lightweight, but also greater strength. The Peugeot 508L also uses anti-roll bars in the rear suspension to suppress the roll angle in the extreme corners of the vehicle during intense driving conditions.
The program team did not make more modifications to such an excellent chassis, but simply adjusted the rear beam angle tie rod hanging at the rear. Such a simple adjustment can make the dynamics of the rear of the car more active, further releasing the advantages of the 508L in the corners.
Five-link independent rear suspension for daily driving, but also bring a good driving experience, that is, we often say that the suspension texture, can make the impact from the road surface more rounded. Moreover, the Peugeot 508L can also optionally be equipped with AMVAR variable independent suspension system, the front and rear four wheels are equipped with a set of electronically controlled hydraulic shock absorbers, through the electronic control system to control the flow rate change of the liquid in the shock absorber, change the size of the shock damping, and adjust the suspension "soft, standard, hard" shock absorption mode to meet the needs of handling and comfort under different road conditions.
In addition to the hard configuration of the five-link independent rear suspension, the Peugeot 508L also has a CLDR master chassis tuning that sets the essence of Peugeot's century-old driving control. Relying on more than 300 tuning sub-items, more than 300 tuning models, more than 100,000 tuning big data accumulation of exquisite tuning, and the reliable stability test of the chassis in the first two to three years before the product was put into production, the limit of the Peugeot 508L chassis supported the label of "B-class car driving control ceiling". Such a chassis configuration, whether it is daily driving or track competition, is easy to use.
Power fine-tuning can also be small and large
The "Pinnacle Renovation Plan" did not overemphasize the adjustment of power parameters, but only upgraded dozens of horsepower through the rewriting of the power program, and the maximum output of the engine end was rewritten from the original 211Ps to 259Ps. Challenging 670Ps with 259Ps also highlights the handling performance of the Peugeot 508L from the side.
The 1.8T 400THP equipped with the Peugeot 508L is still quite interesting, using VVL continuous variable valve lift technology, a new electronically controlled turbocharger, and a new generation of chain drive timing system, which increases the power by 10 to 15% and reduces fuel consumption by more than 7% compared with the previous generation. The "Pinnacle Renovation Plan" easily upgraded the power output just by rewriting the program, indicating that the Peugeot 508L engine still has great advantages in hardware structure.
At the same time, the Peugeot 508L also adopts the newly imported Aisin 8AT transmission, which has a wider gear ratio, better power, more economy, clear shift logic and faster response.
High-strength body 380 kg slimming is a must.
Lightweighting is a relatively high-level content in the modification process. In the face of Ferrari, the Peugeot 508L is imperative to be lightweight. For the Peugeot 508L, only by losing weight to the extreme can it be expected to fight Ferrari. Fortunately, the Peugeot 508L has an ultra-high-strength body-in-white body, and the use of high-strength steel in the body accounts for more than 70%. In the most important longitudinal beams of the body, such as A/B columns, seat beams, and door impact-proof beams, the Peugeot 508L is more directly and uses high-strength thermoformed steel with a strength of up to 1500MPa. In addition, some of the body is also made of aluminum alloy, and the utilization rate of the whole car galvanized sheet is as high as 88%. At the same time, the body is also designed according to the cage structure, similar to the structure of the space warehouse, which can effectively resist the impact from different directions.
The stronger skeleton became the basis for the Peugeot 508L to lose 380 kilograms, equivalent to the weight of 7 adults.
Details of the original part: The track-like design behind the steering wheel
If you go to the scene to see the modified car, you will be surprised why the steering wheel has hardly changed. Yes, the steering wheel can be said to be the least changed place in this peak renovation plan, retaining the original design while only changing the material of the steering wheel. The program team mentioned in the video that the steering wheel of the Peugeot 508L is very similar to the steering wheel of the racing car, especially in the current GT3 and GT4 racing cars.
The steering wheel of the Peugeot 508L is not a perfect circle in structure, and the upper and lower parts adopt a straight design, which can effectively reduce the obstruction of the line of sight, and at the same time, its size is still the smallest in the same level, which can increase the speed of lapping.
In fact, there are many track-based design elements such as these can be seen on the body of the Peugeot 508L. There is also such as the i-cockpit all-sensory cockpit, which intelligently layers the line of sight area and the control area, which can realize the control of the hand without leaving the disk and the eye from the road. In addition, the Peugeot 508L is also equipped with a 330mm diameter oversized brake disc and the use of ceramic brake pads, of which the front brake disc is a Brembo brand brake disc, which is actually a unique design of the Peugeot 508L to continue the Peugeot track lineage.
Seeing this, you must already know why the "Pinnacle Renovation Project" has the courage to transform a Peugeot 508L in 30 days and challenge the Ferrari 488 head-on. In addition to efficient and reasonable customization, the Suspension Configuration of peugeot 508L leapfrog level, the chassis tuning skill that sets the essence of century-old driving control, the super body structure, and the track-oriented design that can only be discovered in the details. The accumulation of countless advantages has made this seemingly impossible game possible. And this is the original car strength of the Peugeot 508L.