Peugeot ‘Hypersquare’ Steering Wheel Could Enter Production Soon

A concept illustration of the Peugeot Hypersquare steering wheel design from the latest Polygon concept car that bowed last month.

Stellantis-owned Peugeot looks set to redefine conventions with the steering wheel through its novel ‘Hypersquare'. In fact, the French automaker has reportedly started early prototype testing for which, and the results are surprising to say the least.

Slated to arrive in the upcoming next-generation 208 model, the automaker will reportedly pair the quirky design with a new steer-by-wire system too. This comes some three years after the marque first unveiled the novel squared steering wheel design concept.

Much like how Tesla spurred the tablet-styled infotainment interface trend, said American EV disruptor also had a go at reinventing the steering wheel with its yoke-style steering design paired with steer-by-wire tech – it generated fresh interests.

Not only novel in design, Peugeot is also pairing its Hypersquare with steer-by-wire tech too.

Peugeot reciprocated to both trends with its Inception Concept prior, which bore a squared-off steering wheel design. Recently, Peugeot took things a step further with the Polygon concept that bore the ‘Hypersquare’ steering wheel design.

The automaker reportedly started early prototype testing for this concept recently too, retrofitting an E-2008 demonstrator with a working Hypersquare steering wheel plus steer-by-wire suite.

Like the concept, the actual Hypersquare steering wheel also has four large holes, with the top two also brimmed with several controls and provide drivers a place to rest their thumbs on.

Peugeot has reportedly begun early prototype testing of this unorthodox design, and the results proved surprising too.

Whilst it may not look like it, at least one leading German publication that tested the design reported online that it’s not as uncomfortable to use as many would expect. Said title even noted how the driver’s thumbs “naturally slide into the recesses” mentioned.

Notably, the steer-by-wire suite Peugeot developed works by adjusting steering ratio based on speed. Said ratio tightens up to 5:1 – roughly three-times quicker than standard hydraulic systems – for low-speed duties such as navigating in and our car parks.

However, this in itself presents quite the learning curve too – the same German publication noted also reportedly said the system “reacts almost nervously to every twitch.” It also did note that the suite felt more begins to feel more intuitive as speed increases.

Peugeot first previewed the Hypersquare design some three years ago, and it looks set to enter production through the next-gen 208 model.

Furthermore, reports online further indicate that Peugeot will add several driving modes into the next-gen 208, and at least one of which will be tailored specifically to make the steer-by-wire suite easier for drivers to adapt to.

The French automaker also reportedly wants to ensure drivers still get good feedback from the road, thus explaining the use of sensors inside the steering actuator to monitor the forces acting on the wheel carriers and translate them into haptic feedback.

Whilst it all sounds very novel and exciting, it certainly will take a while before the Peugeot Hypersquare steering wheel enters the market. However, given what we’ve detailed, what do you folks reckon? Would you be keen to see this ‘reinvention’ of the steering wheel?