Surely the US thanks the French for their most iconic statue, but has never paid much attention to their cars.

To change this custom will take time, patience and money. At the Detroit motor show, held this week, the PSA Group confirmed its intention to return to the US market by 2025. This decision may seem strange, considering that the last time the company sold cars in the US was in 1991 and that it faces numerous challenges.

In Europe, it has yet to overcome the deficit situation of Opel and Vauxhall, the brands it bought last year, and in China it will have to try to improve its two joint ventures. There is also the development of the electric car. PSA, which manufactures Peugeot, Citroën and DS, was not the only European brand to have problems in the US. His compatriot Renault, the Italian Fiat and the British and Swedish manufacturers have not had much luck in the US market either. In contrast, German, Japanese and South Korean brands have been more successful there. It seems that Carlos Tavares, the CEO of PSA, keeps some ace up his sleeve. One is that, after betting on SUVs – which already represent 20% of sales – the range of PSA seems more appropriate.

The purchase of Opel, previously owned by GM, has brought many engineers with knowledge of the US market. In addition, Tavares is not in a hurry. Selling cars there will be the final stage of a multi-phase process that will last for a decade. The same time it took to build the Statue of Liberty.

EXPANSION – BY Financial Times – 01/21/2018 (Translation Soft)