4/12/2023 0 Comments Craigslist desktop model planesBut once Peugeot pulled the 304 from the market after 1972, they weren’t about to try and find out. It’s interesting to speculate whether a 304 diesel on offer in the US during the energy crisis (and its wake) might have made it a genuine success. The 504 had a hard time enough, until its diesel engine suddenly made it a small-scale rock star of the energy crisis. But in 1971, the demand for a small FWD French sedan was just not there, given that at its price ($2625), there were bigger cars to be had. If it had come along just two year later, in 1973, the energy crisis might have done its sales some significant favors. The 304 was the wrong car at the wrong time for the US. As noted previously, the 304 was offered in the US for only two years, 19. The front end of this US-spec 304, with its quad sealed beam headlights instead of the European composites, does look just like a slightly smaller 504. Peugeot had already unveiled its baby diesel engine in the 204, a pioneering car ten years ahead of the Diesel Golf, and the 304 also got a version, with 1357 cc and 45 hp, about the same as the first of the VWs. They both looked largely the same under the hood, but the 304 engine had more displacement, 1288cc, and 60 or 70 hp. Someone has already made this composite image, so the changes are quite apparent. Trunk space was the single biggest beneficiary, but it made the 304 look a bit more grown up, as well as more similar to the new 504, which arrived about the same time (1969) as the 304. The whole passenger compartment was retained, and the front end got a slight extension. So the 304 was created, essentially by stretching the 204, mostly at the rear. Of course, the Cabriolet was even pricier, but it was still a relatively affordable way to have a genuine Pininfarina-designed Grand Luxe convertible.Īs successful as the 204 was, Peugeot saw there was another gap in the market just above it. The coupe, which obviously used the sedan’s front clip, was a dashing little number. Peugeot had a long tradition of offering coupe and cabriolet versions of its cars, and the 204 was not excluded from that. With FWD, its cargo area was deep and surprisingly roomy, given that the 204 was all of 157 inches long (3990 mm). The 204 came in a full range of body styles, including the popular Break (station wagon). A very advanced car without looking like it came from another planet. And it did that while still maintaining that certain Peugeot-ness. The 204 was an instant success, and widely praised for its ability to provide relatively roomy accommodations, that famous French ride and comfort, and good performance and economy. The 204 was powered by a transverse alloy SOHC four with 1127cc, and similarly to the BMC FWD units, had its gearbox and differential directly below the engine, sharing the same sump. The 204’s front end styling was clearway a scaled-down version as used on Pininfarina’s Cadillac Jacqueline coupe, as was its rear end too, for that matter. As was the case for all Peugeots for decades, its styling was by Pininfarina, and a quite successful one at that. The 204 arrived in 1965 to great anticipation, as this was a giant step for conservative Peugeot. As the European middle class became more affluent, new cars that could accommodate their specific needs and desires, which included a delicate balance of performance, ride, room and economy, clearly pointed the way to FWD. Probably the biggest influence on Peugeot’s decision as to how to build the 204 came from the advanced Issigonis FWD cars at BMC, especially t he ADO16 (Austin/Morris 1100). But a one-size/one model strategy was not going to work in an increasingly fragmented market forever, so in the early sixties, Peugeot developed its first FWD car, the 204. Since WW2, Peugeot had essentially built just one line of cars, a series of roomy (for Europe), comfortable, and rugged RWD sedans, wagons and commercial chassis, starting with the 1948 203 (and even the pre-war 202). In order to get to know the 304, one has to be first introduced to the 204, its slightly smaller but older sibling. But who remembers the 304? The sweet little FWD sedan and wagon that was sold stateside for all of two years (19)? I do! And rather fondly, at that. The sharper ones will even remember the 604. Most car buffs can at least make an association with the classic lineage of RWD Peugeots that were sold here, the 403, 404, 504 and 505. But ever since Peugeot packed up their bags and did a voluntary deportation, the name has been sliding into automotive obscurity. It may have sorta-kinda been one back in the day, mainly on the coasts. For most Americans, Peugeot isn’t exactly a household word, unless they’re still using their trusty Peugeot pepper mill.
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