The above shot of twin Renault Twingos goes some way toward explaining why one doesn’t see too many older cars in Grey Paree. Although I somehow managed to end up resident there from 1990 to ’98, unfortunately I didn’t take many shots of vehicles from that period, so have tried to make up for that oversight during a couple of recent business trips (the latest of which ended the day after the horrific terrorist attacks of November 13). With only a few spare-time hours to go CC hunting, I nevertheless believe I managed a reasonable degree of success. Interestingly, the best pickings seemed to be found within a couple blocks of my former residence on the Rue Chateau-Landon. This time we’ll focus (ha ha) on French makes that would have been common on the streets when I was living there; a future post will look at some foreigners and oddities of the same period.
Of course, one of the icons of French motoring is the Citroen 2CV (1948-1989). Production wound up a couple years before I first arrived, and although not that common in the bruising urban environment, they could still be seen frequently. Nowadays, I’d say they are about as often sighted in the city as, say, a Ford Model A would be in downtown Chicago, so I considered it fortunate to have caught two on the same weekend. The blue, square-headlight ’70s model above was spotted near Saint-Michel…
…while the tan number was rather casually parked adjacent to the Marche d’Aligré, near a restaurant owned by a long-time friend.
Looking a bit like an origami egg, Citroen’s AX was not, I guess, a direct successor to the 2CV, and was not as long-lived (1986-98) but shared the same general themes of very low mass and general simplicity. Badging indicates this one has a 1.5 l diesel and the white front signal lamps say it’s a post ’91 model. Three lugs per wheel should be enough for anyone, eh?
Sticking with Citroen, here’s a typically battered example of a ZX (1991-98), their Escort-class car of the period. Sometimes criticized as not being ‘real’ Citroens, since they shared their platform with the Peugeot 306, and frankly rather homely little machines, they were outsold by the 306 when new. They seem to have had the last laugh, however, as the tooling went on to have a lengthy second life in China.
Considerably less common was the ZX wagon variant offered from ’93 onward. This fairly decent example was resting comfortably near the Parc des Expositions in the suburb of Villepinte. I quite liked the look and size of the wagon versus the hatchback version.
A couple years later in the design cycle than the ZX (although sharing some general visual themes) and considerably bigger and more sophisticated, was the Xantia (1993-2002). This one was spotted cruising near Gare de l’Est, again in the relatively uncommon wagon format. I pretty much guarantee this one is regularly garaged somewhere.
No Paris street scene in the ’90s would have lacked a few base-model Peugeot 205s (1983-98). The two-door example, gathering parking tickets like leaves, was shot near the Bir-Hakeim metro stop. Back in the day, I drove one of these as a rental and even with a tiny 1.1-liter engine, performance was sprightly and handling very pleasant. Amazing, however, how the jaunty look of the coupe…
…almost entirely disappears when one adds two more doors. Maybe it’s the beige paint as well, but that looks like a schoolteacher’s car if there ever was one. With that said, there seem to be more 205s remaining on the street than any contemporaries in the same class, so Peugeot must have built them reasonably well.
Although this Peugeot 306 (1993-2002) carries entirely different sheet metal than its sister Citroen ZX, I think one can see a bit of family resemblance, particularly in the greenhouse area. Back in the day, three- and five-door hatchback versions ruled, so it was kind of unusual to find a sedan on my wanders about town.
Moving up another size gets one a true classic. The lovely and timeless Peugeot 405 (1987-96) was, to these eyes, the best-styled French sedan of the period, so it was great to see this one in reasonably good condition on the Rue Chateau-Landon, more or less directly across the street from the building I once lived in. If I had ever had a car of my own in Paris (and the off-street space to keep it), this would have been on my short list. Make mine the 2 liter, 155 HP Mi16 (which this is not), thanks. They were available for a few years in the States as well.
Lastly, Renault. Their supermini of the period was of course the second-gen R5 or ‘Supercinq‘ (1984-96), and these things were everywhere during the ’90s.
Somewhat prone to rust, they don’t seem to have fared as well as the small Peugeots, but they still turn up here and there…
…including this shockingly well-preserved example in ‘Saga’ trim, seen near the Pont des Arts.
The Renault Clio (1990-98) that gradually replaced the Five was first introduced about the time I moved to Paris, and came off as something of a Great Leap Forward in both overall quality and content. These became a hit in the domestic market and decent first-gen examples, like the one seen here just off Rue Lafayette, can still be spotted frequently.
We close out with this example of a Renault 19 (1988-96), seen here in the guise of its post-’92 facelift. Although highly practical, they were remarkably plain and generic-looking vehicles, despite (apparently) the shape being credited to Giorgetto Giugiaro’s ItalDesign. Also available as a notchback sedan, known as ‘Chamade’, these seem to have pretty much vanished from French roads.
What’s missing? Well, the Renault 21 and 25 come to mind, as well as some of the bigger Citroens. Oh, well, maybe next trip. Hope you enjoyed this brief diversion down, er, la voie de la mémoire; more in a week or so.
Further Reading:
James Pembroke Tenneson discusses the Peugeot 205
Peugeot 205 vs. Renault 5, by Jim Klein
Tom Klockau and the Peugeot 405
Very familiar cars I see examples of these everyday the direct successor to the ZX sits in my driveway and though the Xsara is based on the 306 it has no Peugeot equivalent, The 405 and Xantia are on a shared platform the Xantia has hydro pneumatic suspension the 405 has steel and the little AX and Peugeot 105 are platform mates all PSA cars are galvanised so has no rust issues unlike Renaults.
Do you mean Peugeot 205, Bryce? I don’t recall there being a 105. Although there was, later, the cute 106 which was also sold as the Citroen Saxo.
Love these photos, by the way! Quite a few of these were sold in Australia, the only exceptions being the first-generation Clio, 2CV, Renault 5 and Citroen ZX.
Australia has an odd relationship with French cars. I feel like in the 70s they were probably relatively common, but during the 80s and 90s they became very niche. Renault withdrew from the market for a few years, and although Citroen and Peugeot sold the 205 and AX they only offered them in GTi and GT trims. Now, Renault uses Nissan’s distribution channels and they are rapidly growing in popularity. Citroen is faltering but I think the quirky Cactus may give them a boost (I love it!). And Peugeot has its best lineup in decades and I wish them all the best. We’ll see if things pan out.
But I feel like you have to go to a trendy inner-city neighbourhood in Brisbane like West End or Paddington to see French cars with any regularity in Australia. Renault is changing that but I hope Peugeots and Citroens become less of a niche choice too. There’s that tricky balancing act for French cars though: do you offer quirky French style and risk alienating some people but earning passionate followers, or do you try and match the Japanese in feature content, quality and dynamics and play it safe with styling? Unfortunately, French cars still (perhaps undeservedly) have a reputation for, if not unreliability, then just higher parts costs and different maintenance schedules. And people often want to play it safe. More’s the pity.
No I mean Peugeot 105/6 not seeing them in Aussie is no surprise with Aussies very restricted car market but they sold in NZ in reasonable numbers, since Peugeot swallowed Citroen there has always been sister cars sharing the same flloorpan and architecture one of the few exceptions is the Xsara which had revised suspension from the 306 which made it an exceptional handling car better than the brilliant 306, hurling mine into tight bends a much more than sensible speeds on 3 wheels is great fun the rear steer catapults it out of corners in a way that frightened people who bought early ZX/306 cars.
The chase in the film Bourne identity always makes me laugh NO BMC Cooper S could get away from a well driven ZX not a snowball in hells chance.
@William, I’ve seen a couple of early C4s here. Even at the auctions. There’s a coupe (non Vti) near the local school.
Down here in tram city, you can find all sorts of European iron within 5-10 km of the CBD. The area where I live has plenty of Peugeot diesel wagons (all silver and grey, mostly autos, sorry for those suffering the brown fetish).
Agreed on the Cactus. Lovely thing.
Spot on, William, about French cars being common – for a limited time. After the war, Peugeot 203/403s and 4CV/Dauphine Renaults were fairly common in Australia. Not Citroens though – the big ones were always available but WAY out of mainstream!
Local assembly helped Peugeots and Renaults become especially common in the sixties; they were seen as a slightly upmarket alternative to the common British cars. The Renault 12 was especially popular at first, but quickly gained a reputation as a throwaway car, which was not something Australians could afford. Then along came Japan Inc. and wiped Renault from the map. When local assembly ended and prices went sky-high, Renault was doomed.
Peugeot survived due to its reputation as a strong, long-lived car for the outback. It was always seen as a superior car to Renault, a stronger car, less failure-prone and able to sustain something of a prestige price – we knew the quality was there. That’s why a generation of Australians have grown up never having heard of Renault except for Top Gear!
The Citroen AX is an excellent car with almost go kart handling and they are well built too. Still a lot on the road here in the UK. Whilst not related to the 2CV they are in that tradition of frugal Citroens. My 1.5 diesel easily tops 50mpg.
Curb weight of the lightest version: only 650kg, not much heavier than a 2CV. They didn’t really weigh much more than an actual go-kart.
That’s about ten times as much as an actual go-kart weighs.
Yea – AX has some plastic body parts incuding the tailgate and bumpers – but the best feature is the wine bottle holders in the door pockets – or is that for Perrier; mine currently holding bottles of anti-freeze, as unlike the 2CV all AX’s are water-cooled.
I love the Twingo. It’s absolutely genius. The silver one is post facelift.
You can still buy a brand new 405 in Iran. That car donated a lot of its guts to the 306. Although, I’m with the OP, I rather have them equipped with the XU10 engine instead of the more common XU7
I like the Twingo too. It was sort of the last gasp of good design from Europe. The way it combines elegant simplicity with original detail solutions and optimized utility reminds me of the last good Italian design work done in the ’80s.
For fun driving the XUD is best with its tractor like torque delivery from very low rpm.
What I remember about the XU7 is that it had some torque and tractor-like NVH. The packaging of the engine compartment was clever, with a couple of quirks.
Keep an eye on your front LCA bushes.
Yeah it does tend to eat them, the next batch will be nolathane from Romania, my turbo diesel is remarkably quiet and smooth, some things in the engine bay are frustrating to access compared to the same engine a friend has in a larger 406.
Some other French cars I’d love to see:
first-generation Citroen C4 coupe
Citroen XM
Renault Laguna coupe
Renault Wind (I had forgotten these existed as they had such a short run)
Peugeot 1007
This is one of the reasons I love Curbside Classic: it can educate people. Oh, sure, we love to read about cars we’ve owned or lusted after or are extremely familiar with, but learning new things can be so rewarding. I imagine a lot of Americans – and Curbsiders are predominantly American – would not have heard of a lot of these. That’s why I get a kick out of sharing Australian oddities, when I do, if only for the “WTF” reactions from the community. More photos from Paris, I say!
+2 on the comment.
While its fun talking about the car industry in the 50’s or motorcycles, because I can go on and on about either subject, these are the articles that really makes me appreciate this web site. Long articles about cars that I’d really like to own, but never will because they’re not to the general American tastes.
Yes, I’m the guy who’d probably own nothing but French cars (especially Citroens, I find Peugeots boring to the point I’ve always considered them almost American cars) if they were available over here with a reasonable service support.
Spot on about educating people here. This article was great in its ability to show what is being used daily in Paris; otherwise, I might only have seen these during one of the rare times I watch a movie or television and still would have known nothing about it.
Syke has a great comment, but I’m looking at it from the other direction….given the number of CC’ers who are not in the United States, I’m hoping that I’ve been able to give some insight into these American cars, especially the ones that were not from the Big Three. One those occasions when I find something not built by the Big Three (again a rarity, but I keep plugging along) I have written about it and it’s been educational doing so.
From an international standpoint, the Holden Monaro was one of my favorite cars to write about as there was simply so much to learn in researching it.
Completely agree – loved the “tour” and reading about these cars. I imagine a lot changed in the Parisian automotive landscape in 25 years.
All of those except the Wind are about locally, I must shoot some for the cohort since theres some interest. NZs vehicle fleet would astound you William we have all those odd ball models and makes unseen in Australia, My brother when he emigrated to Brisbane was amazed when they went car shopping Falcon for him no problem lots to choose from, 4 cylinder jappa for his girlfriend virtually no choice at all such a tight market she ended up with a 4 banger Camry that promptly blew a headgasket as they often do easy to fix though my brother is a mechanic.
Another oddity that is worth a look is the Citroen Pluriel – this was in production 2003 to 2010. It is a two door with a detachable roof made up of framework and fabric – and a drop down tailgate. Interesting but answered a question few were asking.
My 1967 404 Peugeot was a Parisienne, with a licence plate ending at 78 department.
She was registered at the Champs Elysées, but resided in the stables of the “weekend house” of the owner, a house any other mortal would calla chateau !
I remember the French guy who sold classic Peugeots and parts here in the Netherlands, this is twenty TWENTY years ago :
Jeohnn I found a white 404 with 34000 on the clock
In Paris, well the outskirts of Paris, the very rich village of Le Vesinet
I laughed at him loud and told him the gear leaver and one hubcap would still be in order.
But he let me in on a secret : Many wealth Parisians do have “a car”but hardly ever use it, they are stored like the Citroën Xantia and the metallic grey 405 in the pictures, but hardly ever used.
I went down there and found a n early new mint 404 in the stables, my wife who talked art with the owner was shown some pictures and told me we’d far far better just take one of those home !
Turned out the man had been one of the most influencial rich people in France !
Could they be hoarders? This doesn’t sound like the case of a widow never selling her late husband’s garage classic. Unless it’s some way to evade taxes, I can’t think of any other reason why folks would store a relatively commonplace car model.
Thanks for these interesting pictures. I also was recently in Paris, returning to the USA a week before the tragic attack. Car spotting was a fun part of the trip where I as you noticed far more older Peugeots then Renaults. The 9 and 11 were as rare as Alliances and Encores are now in USA, I only saw one 11. One thing that was pleasantly common were Peugoet 405s, 605s, and Citroen XMs. They seemed well taken care of by elderly owners who lived close by to where I was staying on Rue de Rome. 505s, 504s, 604s, DSs, CXs were nowhere to be seen.
One car that was very common was the Peugeot 508 that seems to function as a sort of French Panther. This is probably the last era of France having a domestic car for this function so it was this current model that I honored by buying a scale model of it at the Peugeot experience store on the Champs de Elysee.
Fantastic pictures.
I last went to Paris in 1999, and the top photo is about the most quintessentially 90’s Paris shot I could imagine. I swear about 50% of Parisian traffic was bashed up, skittles colored Twingos.
Great article
The bug-eyed Twingo and now the Citroen Cactus are the two French cars of the “post American import” era that really appeal to me. From the earlier era, the R16 is a winner. What brilliant packaging and detail design for its time. The only Fremch cars I have driven, as far as I can remember, were a Megane diesel rental in France, and an early 504 here in the US. Both good drivers, but nothing special visually.
That was a nice tour of Paris.
Some things never change. I first was in Paris back in ’70s and found Parisians have a different attitude to life and cars than German Biedermeiers.
The nose to tail parking Twingos and the ‘stop right here for a moment’ 2CV show this excellently. Bent rules and bent sheet metal are just part of daily life. There are more important things, like cafe, vin rouge, baguette….
Cool! I love the pictures of the R5s. I was there for a week in 1989 and those and Fiat Unos were the cars I remember seeing the most. Aside from “Les Cars” and the Fiats, Citroen CXs, four-door Ford Sierras and stretched R25s (usually some kind of official vehicle) seemed to be the most common cars on the boulevards. It was also a hoot to see Talbot Horizons-I would think to myself, “A Plymouth? In Paris?”
I’m jealous of the people in the blue 2CV enjoying plein air motoring in the streets of Paris. I’ve always wanted to ride in one. Another French classic quickly disappearing from French roads is the Renault 4. These French cars from the 80’s and 90’s have more appeal to me than any modern Ferrari, Maserati, Lamborghini or their ilk will ever have.
Speaking of French cars, I saw this Peugeot Partner Teepee van in the customer parking lot of the local self service junk yard (called a you pick it, you pull it yard). It had Mexico City Federal District licence plates and not the common diplomat plates on it that I see a lot of non USA model cars having on them. This means somebody decided on a road trip from Mexico to the mid Atlantic.
It looked like a nice van
Back
Side
Close up back
Great pictures! I went to Paris back in September 1998. I also took some random pictures of cars along the streets. Here’s one with a Mini (a car I never saw in the flesh until this trip) and a car I never expected to see in France (’73 Montego).
Of course I took a picture of a 2CV while there!
American cars were out of this world for French people.
The gas in France is heavily taxed but also includes your road tax.
The Autoroutes are privately owned so you pay seperately for them
So the more you drive, the more you pay.
The thirstier your car, the more you pay.
So the All American gas-guzzler was really to show that you had money to burn !
Like driving a Range Rover in Paris was a statement for people that you also had a weekend house in the country !
I enjoy these visits to locations populated by cars I’m not familiar with. It’s fascinating to see cars that have no direct connection, or are only somewhat related to cars that have been sold in the US. I loved that Chevelle SS454 earlier this week, but I also love the Twingo, something I’ve never seen in the flesh. Thanks to all who contribute articles.
Especially for Paul, Paris, early seventies and Peugeots, lots of Peugeots !
Tres Bien!
I rode in a 404 diesel taxi in Vienna in 1969. It looked a bit out of place among all of the Mercedes.
There should be a prize for (a) counting the 404s in this photo and (b) identifying anything else.
I can see at least 5 404s, plus a Renault Estafette and a Peugeot J van,2 Peugeot 204s, a Simca 1301 or 1501, and is that a Peugeot 504 Coupe on thew far right?
And maybe a Renault 6 on the left?
Nice article, but I wouldn`t want to go to or be in The City of Light these days.
Our thoughts are most definitely with the Parisians right now.
That first picture is spot on. I was in Paris in the 1990s, and the majority of cars showed amazing amounts of abuse and neglect. Seeing two year old Jaguars and S-class Mercedes in a similar state of deterioration was a bit of a shock. Of course, parking anywhere in Paris is a nightmare, and completely chaotic.
I dug out a couple of pictures of Paris taken by my sister in 1964, showing some cars of that time near well-known sites. The first is Versailles:
And the second (obviously) is the Moulin Rouge. The featured Dirk Bogarde movie is “The Password Is Courage”.
I don’t recognize the white car in the foreground, just left of center.
Anyone?
It’s a Simca 1300/1500. It was produced until 1976. It’s almost totally forgotten today, I haven’t seen one on French roads for at least 30 years… Too bad, because this clean, early 1960s design was really nice.
Yes Simca theres one a couple of streets away or was it was for sale recently.
Wow I had no idea these cars were ever exported to NZ :-). As said, they are by and large forgotten in France now, I’ve read that good ones go for 2000 euros, provided you can find one. The wagon was particularly nice.
Yes, Oliiver is spot on. Is there a black at the back, parked on the kerb?
It’s been on CC
https://www.curbsideclassic.com/curbside-classics-european/curbside-classic-1966-simca-1301-the-conventional-but-good-looking-simca/
I think the black car parked in front of the Moulin Rouge is a Peugeot 404, based on what appears to be a wrap-around rear bumper. Also I think I can see the outline of small fins. The roof line also matches. And finally, there’s a chrome strip below the door handles.
Of course, it helps that I have access to the original high resolution scan:
Great pictures!
Paris, February 2012 – Autobianchi Bianchina cabriolet
That’s new to me!
I’d quite like one!
Brings back many vivid memories of our trip to Paris in 2010. Yes, folks park by “feel”, and don’t put on their parking brake, so that the cars can be pushed a bit in case someone needs to get out and their car is severely blocked in.
Definitely interesting to see these as kind of a vintage snapshot. Also, was there any logic to Citroen’s naming scheme? AX, BX, CX, ZX, GS, DS, ID, XM..they obviously didn’t go in alphabetical order!
I was in France last month, kept an eye out for 2CVs but saw only one — this van variant in Marseille —
That AX bought back memories, not all pleasant. Everything they say about French cars is true. Everything!
Great article and fascinating to see the centuries represented by architecture, city design, and of course internal combustion powered vehicles.
Is that an official parking spot? I do not see a driver. Looks like it bonked something based on the different weathering patterns of the paint. Canoot tell what the pinstriping pattern is, but it looks neat.
https://www.curbsideclassic.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/11/1984-96-Renault-5-Marche-dAligre-20140420.jpg
Even in their banged up state these Twingos still give off a cheery vibe. Interesting patina patterns, wonder how they acquired some of it?
https://www.curbsideclassic.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/11/Twingos-mating-Paris.jpg
while it is probably garaged interesting how even a pampered vehicle can develop damage such as Xantia’s crinkled Quarter Panel.
https://www.curbsideclassic.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/11/Twingos-mating-Paris.jpg