(first posted 8/15/2017) Back in March, Paul posed a question to the CC community: which car would you most like to find in the wild? At the time, I mentioned the NSU Ro80 in my response, which I would indeed be thrilled to discover. However, reality does not lend my choice much chance of coming to fruition, as there are probably no more than a few Ro80s left in the entire United States, let alone sitting curbside. A similar fate meets most of the other selections on my CC ‘bucket list,’ as since compiling this informal list a little more than a year ago, I have crossed out a grand total of six entries – leaving 48 to go. The upshot of this is that running across a car on my ‘bucket list’ is a none-too-common occurrence. As you may have guessed by now, this 405 Mi16 was one of the six.
In truth, finding any Peugeot 405 on the streets in the United States is becoming harder and harder, as US sales totaled to just over 11,000 during the three years (1989-1991) it was sold stateside. Couple the initial low sales to the fact that these cars were left without a parent company following PSA’s decision to pull out of the US market following the 1991 model year, and the survival rate for 405s is quite low. Strangely, the similar-vintage 505 is still a fairly common sight in the Los Angeles area, but this marks just the fourth 405 I’ve photographed since I started my own CC hunt in 2010, and (naturally) the first Mi16. I can’t find any specific sales data for the Mi16 (the closest being a few vague references to “less than 5,000 sold” in the US market), but I can’t imagine there are more than a couple hundred or so roadworthy examples left in the country.
So how did the Mi16 flame out so quickly? This was a car that seemed like an attractive buy, and indeed Peugeot went to great lengths to outfit the car to American standards. Cruise control, power leather seats, premium sound, and a sunroof were all standard, and it even came with a five-year, 50,000-mile powertrain warranty (quite lengthy for the time). The price didn’t seem too bad either: at around $21,000, it undercut a base 325i sedan by about five grand. A top executive for PSA America even went so far to describe the Mi16 as their first car “designed with the United States market in mind.”
Clearly, it wasn’t the options list that let the Mi16 down. Nor was it the driving experience. The Mi16 featured a 150 horsepower 16-valve four-cylinder engine, lauded by the press and so well regarded that the powerplant earned an honorable mention on Car and Driver’s “Best Naturally Aspirated Engines of All Time” list, keeping company with automotive royalty such as the LaFerrari and Lexus LFA. Contemporary reviews sang out their praise of the engine and chassis, declaring the steering feedback “perfect” and the brakes “impeccable.” One reviewer described it as “Sugar Ray Leonard in a silk shirt,” referencing its commendable blend of power and finesse, and another went so far as to deem the Mi16 “among the best of cars available anywhere.” High praise, indeed.
But it’s also in these reviews where the first signs of trouble arise. Many American reviewers noticed a distinct lack of interior space compared to other offerings, with limited headroom and seats that seemed more suited to French bodies than for the bulkier American clientele. There were the typical Peugeot oddities, like the steering column-mounted horn and the fact that PSA refused to install an airbag in any of its cars (even despite boycotts by consumer groups): oddities that aren’t too damning in and of themselves, but did nothing to help Peugeot’s image as a niche player in the US market. And then there were the build quality issues: more than one review noted some loose-fitting interior trim and various electronic quirks – a bit out of place in a car of its class.
And this brings us back to price: while $21,000 looked good compared to a 325i, the reality is that nobody in America was really cross-shopping those two cars. The 405 was attempting to occupy the tricky-to-navigate gulf between the economy and premium brands – Peugeot simply didn’t have the brand name cachet of a Mercedes or a BMW, so instead of seeing the sticker price as good value for money, prospective buyers were put off by the premium price compared to more mainstream offerings. If you wanted something reliable and good to drive, an Accord was several thousand dollars cheaper. If you wanted something quirkier, a Saab 900 also undercut the Mi16’s price by a few grand.
But the biggest obstacle to the 405’s success was undoubtedly Peugeot’s tiny dealer network. By the time they packed their bags and left our shores for good in the summer of 1991, they had just 151 American franchisees. This minuscule number of dealerships was compounded by the fact that most of them dealt with multiple car brands, and Peugeots were often relegated to the backs of the showrooms, away from the spotlight and from potential buyers’ eyes. It’s impossible to become a major player in the family sedan market when you simply can’t compete in sales and repair networks. The likes of GM could get away with quality control issues because they had such a huge presence in the US market, but for the 405 to succeed in the United States, it had to be damn-near perfect. The Mi16 was a very good car. But it wasn’t perfect.
And so ended the final chapter of the major French imports. Citroën had been the first to depart, felled in 1974 by the oil crisis and government regulations. Renault stayed a bit longer, due to its acquisition of AMC, but it was gone by the summer of ’87, and the 405’s failure was the final nail in Peugeot’s coffin. The Mi16 was pulled from our shores in August of 1991, a world-class machine orphaned at birth.
Crisp. I do enjoy these clean lines. Yet I can’t help but notice the interior quality is questionable at the price point one needed to swallow. It could also be the photos, but “Mi” looks very narrow. Kind of deflating, honestly…
As an aside, Toyota completely copied the full suite of aesthetics of this 405 for the T210 Carina in Japan; just check out this 1998 GT (Yes, it has the 20 valve 4A-GE, and I’d rather have it than the Pug):
The styling has aged well.
According to Wikipedia, they still make a version of the 405 in Iran
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/IKCO_Samand
And they even did a RWD version of the 405. http://boitierrouge.com/2014/07/23/peugeot-405-rd-et-roa-des-propulsions-et-on-ne-le-savait-pas/
along with a pick-up truck/ute version.
http://boitierrouge.com/2016/08/02/iran-khodro-arisun-lultime-rejeton-de-la-peugeot-405/
They also make this 405 based car.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Peugeot_Pars
The big difference with the Toyota effort is when you hurl it into a bend at speed Peugeots corner really well Toyotas not so much,
Chris Amon benchmarked the 405 when he set about redesigning the NZ market Corona suspension he did well to transform a blah Japanese car into a drivers car but having owned examples of both the Toyota still falls short.
Theres a M16 for sale on trademe right now for $2500 very tempting its tidy in and out.
@kiwibryce I had never heard of trademe before so I had to check it out. Gee thanks, now I’m going to be stuck on my phone all day looking at this site! ?
BTW, I can’t believe how many of the cars on that site are equipped to pull trailers. Don’t you guys know you need a Ford F-350 with a turbo diesel to pull anything over 500 pounds!? Ha
Missed that memo here, We just tow things nearly two tons behind my 1.9 turbo diesel hatchback, it pulled it just fine.
I guy nearby sold bagged animal feed, he used a Citroën BX and flatbed tandem axle trailer to haul his goods.
His BX was always rolling down the road in a perfectly horizontal position (hydropneumatic suspension, of course), so he never drew the attention of cops. No “low-rider look” or a car-nose pointing up or down due to overloading or incorrect weight distribution.
Not only that, but Peugeot used the handsome 405 lines in making the somewhat larger but way-too-similar 605. The premium market 605 was a sales failure, and I suspect that the likeness to the downmarket 405 was a big factor.
The main problem with the 605 was the totally random electrical system, that required the first 10,000 cars to be recalled to have their entire wiring harnesses replaced. That was the main problem.
Hi, Mike,
I remember your name from the original Peugeot North America club, that goes back to early ’90’s. Haha. I still have my original-purchase ’89 DL w/ 210K mi. and everything still mechanically original. I also have a S and an Mi16,…oh, and a ’91 205 Look model. All of them are in excellent condition! And very lovely!!
Do you still have yours?
I honestly can’t recall if I’ve ever seen a 405 in the metal, as I’m sure I would’ve remembered. I did have a Hot Wheels Peugeot 405 when I was a kid, and for the longest time I couldn’t figure out what kind of car it actually was, as it did not say the model on the bottom.
I saw a 405 wagon in Rhode Island about 4 years ago – I had no idea those were sold in the US, but they were! At first, I thought it was some early Hyundai that Giugiaro or Pininfarina had a hand in designing.
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Stupidly I ignored a Pug 405 M16 4×4 that was for sale locally that really would have been worth having but I wanted a turbo diesel
I really liked 405s when they came out — the styling was clean (though a bit generic) and the combination of good performance and French comfort was seductive.
BUT, if I had actually been in the market for a mid-size sedan at the time, I’m not sure I would have pulled the trigger. Buying a 405 at the time was basically a $20,000 gamble. And most buyers lost the bet. Build quality was almost legendarily bad by that point and dealers were known to be indifferent, at best.
All of that is too bad, because the 405 could have been the car that resuscitated Peugeot in the US. It came at the time when mid-size sports sedans were all the rage — if Peugeot could have siphoned off just a tiny bit of Nissan Maxima sales, they would have had it made.
Also, it’s hard to tell due to the tinted windows, but it looks like this car has regular (as opposed to motorized) seatbelts, which would suggest it’s a 1989 model. I think US-market Mi16s (and possibly other 405s, though I’m not certain) had regular seatbelts for ’89 and then switched to motorized shoulder belts for 1990. (This alone would make the ’89 the most desirable model year.)
I went to law school in the early 1990s. One of my professors had driven a Peugeot, which was a complete lemon. (He was driving a Volvo wagon by the time I had him for class.)
He often used his car – and the dealer service (or, more accurately, the lack thereof) – as examples in class. It got to the point that, by the end of the semester, he merely had to say “My Peugeot,” and the class started chuckling.
For better or worse, this is my memory of these cars.
You compare it to the Maxima, but to me it looks like a direct competitor to the Infiniti G20. Looks to be about the same size, both with 4 cylinder engine, shooting for the entry-level luxury market, and they both share a similar and very clean styling. However, if Peugeot left the US market in 1991, there wouldn’t have actually been much overlap with the Infiniti G20 coming out in 1991.
I would suspect that the Infiniti was a few thousand cheaper than the Peugeot, which might be why people remember the G20 but the Peugeot is mostly forgotten.
Not only that, some US dealers like Pignataro in WA in 1988 tacked a “market adjustment” of several thousand dollars onto the price of the car, which made an already expensive car ridiculous.
If only Peugeot had waited till the midlife update on the 405. The outside styling was barely changed save for a deeper boot access lip but the interior was transformed and the squeaky plasticy dash completely redesigned. My 94 STi had 300k on the clock and still drove like a new car and its interior made newer passats/A4’S look like they were made of chocholate. I miss my 405 still….
I had a DL model for 15 years and drove it 366,000 km. It was a very good car, with a few issues: flaky wiring (taillights, cooling fan circuit) and a dreadful sealing system on the rear trailing arm bearings meant that most of these lunched their rear axle beams 10 years after they hit the road. Still miss the car though. I will admit that my 1966 404C is more than enough to meet my needs, these days.
The comments about a tiny interior are totally off-base. I am 6’3″ tall with a long torso and I had ample headroom (the DL had no sunroof). Rear room was amazing – legroom and headroom both. This car passed the “me behind me test”. Our family of five had no trouble fitting into the car and driving a couple thousand km.
Interesting comment on the interior fitting you, and you being tall. I have the same experience with a lot of cars that others claim are “cramped” or they don’t fit into. I am only 6’2″ versus you (LOL) but I fit fine into most small cars.I don’t get how someone of normal height and weight can complain about seating room in almost any car or truck. Are these folks cursed with arms of a T-Rex or legs longer than a grasshopper? As long as you can move the seat back, and the steering wheel is able to be adjusted, one can almost always find a fairly comfortable position. I fit into Miatas, I fit into Fiat 500s, into MG Midgets, and have fit into countless other small cars. Do I find them “roomy”? No, but they are small, so I don’t expect them to be. This car is a small sedan, not a large car, so what expectation does one have? Now, I have found myself cramped in the back seats or passenger seat on some, and even so in what would be considered large cars. For me, the big differentiator is width. If the car is wide, then I am really more comfortable with myself and passengers. Having someone too close to me makes me uncomfortable, especially when driving. It took the Japanese makers years to figure out to bring wide versions to the USA for sale versus JDM versions. But for all that, as a single occupant, if my feet reach the pedals, without my legs cramping from being crowded, and my arms are at a reasonable distance from the wheel, no worries.
I’m a very average 5’10” and of pretty average proportions, not short or long waisted as they say. I had a 1981 Mazda with a steering wheel that I had to put all the way up to see the instruments. Every other car I’ve ever driven was fine in this regard. Then I drove my sister’s current model Honda Fit. Same thing as the Mazda. I had to put the steering wheel way up to see the instruments. In a comfortable position the top of the rim was right across the speedo and tach.
It’s not like Japanese guys are super short or anything anymore. I don’t get it.
You can still buy a new Peugeot 405 SLX or GLX. For around 6500 USD.after Kia pride,405& pars& samand are best selling cars here.tons of taxis are samand or 405 s,they also use samand for police cars.my uncle’s 15 years old samand lasted close to 500 k km on original motor.just 4 timing belts&waterpumps.
I had forgotten all about these. It is funny how I went from paying total attention to new cars from, say, 1983-86 to paying virtually no attention to them by 1989-90. I guess that is what home ownership, project cars in the driveway and garage and getting married will do to you. 🙂
It was certainly an attractive car for its time. But it seems to have been very noncompetitive in price, which was a problem for European cars at that time, as I recall. Those that had something unique to offer did OK – Mercedes, BMW, Volvo and even VW had their thing and people were buying them. But the little Pug lacked that single “thing” that got buyers to shun the incredible pricing and quality that attracted so many to the Japanese in those days.
I was surprised it was so expensive compared to a Saab. I wonder if that is a comparison with a 900 Turbo, as it wouldn’t really be fair to put it up against the base model.
In Europe I assume it would have been cheaper than the Saab and probably comparable with Japanese cars.
More than 300,000 Iranians live in LA(down here we call it Tehrangeles)I won’t be surprised if the owner of this MI16 is Iranian American.
The only place in North America where French cars have ever done well is Quebec, no surprise there. I like the clean lines of this car, at first I thought it was a VW Passat!
There is also a lot of them in Saint Pierre and Miquelon which is a French territory near Newfoundland.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Saint_Pierre_and_Miquelon
St. Pierre and Miquelon seems to have a fascinating mix of vehicles — Peugeots coexisting alongside big American pickups. I would love to go there, both for the natural scenery and for the sight of lots of F-150s bearing French license plates.
My best friend in High School (’78-’81) was a first generation American, his Dutch parents arrived in the US sometime in the 1950s. His dad only drove Peugeots, and he loved pointing out how his 504’s doors opened to almost 90 degrees and would silently shut, and features like a back seat ski pass-through. He had a 504 sedan and wagon, briefly owned a 604, a 505, and maybe a 405. He did have to go 70 miles for service as there was not a dealer or repair in Madison WI – I think that’s why he got rid of the 604 as it needed servicing too much. After the 504 wagon my friend’s Mom drove a used ’73 Plymouth Fury 2dr and a ’78 AMC Pacer Wagon.
It’s too bad Peugeot, Citreon and Renault didn’t do well in the US – guess the same could be said (to a lesser degree) of Fiat, Alfa Romeo and Lancia.
What struck me about the review is how much it sounds like a Buick Regal review from c. 2011 or a Cadillac ATS review from c. 2013. Sure, they rave about the driving dynamics and how it’s the best driver’s car in its class, but get to the interior and you see why potential buyers look elsewhere. Goofy controls (i.e. Cadillac CUE and the chintzy gauges), cramped interiors, and questionable build quality make the buyer scratch their head. I looked on TrueDelta, and yup…unfortunately reliability hasn’t been great for the Regal or ATS. At least Buick and Cadillac are mostly relying on CUV and SUV sales.
Is this the way the Mi16 came in the US? This really looks like a stripper 405 with Mi16 alloys, spoiler an badge. The version we got in Europe had standard ground effects, special wheel arch trim, etc. A very handsome and superbly driving car, quite rare and sought after today.
The plastic fender lips and other 205 GTI – like stuff was probably deemed to be too vulgar for the North American market! Ha! Just kidding (I think); the front and rear bumpers were specific to the USA and Canada so retooling for another set of these specific to the MI16, in a car that was going to sell like ice cubes in the Northwest Territories in winter, would have been a stupid idea.
Ok, this makes perfect sense. I wonder if there were mechanical differences as well.
The engine was detuned to lower NOx: compression was set at 9.5:1 instead of 10.4. Power was limited to 150 HP SAE Net, about 8 down on the European version. They only came with leather seats, sunroof, cruise control, A/C, cruise control, seat heaters and all that other “luxury” stuff. The dashboard was a different shape to provide knee braces for Americans who would not use a seatbelt, and a lot of them had the stupid electric seatbelts that didn’t work very well and looked hideous. Canadian cars all had normal seatbelts.
Wow, you really know your Pug stuff. A good bit of info, thanks.
The last 405 I saw was one that I used to see idling in front of work back in 2003, I recall it was noisy as hell.
Car and Driver was really annoyed with the noise level of the Mi16 engine, and in a comparison test of $20K luxury sedans considered it the 405’s Achilles heel. The car wasn’t all that quick (9.5 seconds 0-60, no match for a Maxima SE or the Saab 900 Turbo) even when flogged, and flogging it was loud.
I remember when the 405 was new, FWD and a modern look. Too bad it wasn’t a quality car like the old 505.
Back when the 405 was current, my wife and I chose a GRi 1.9 as a lease car in the UK, based particularly on its handling and ride, being more rewarding to drive than most of the rival models. Even in Europe, the 405 Mi16 was a specialist, low volume model. Ours, with the 8 valve injection engine (as in 205 GTi 1.9’s) was a more mainstream proposition, smooth, lively and fuel efficient.
Peugeot’s smaller 306 hatchback, which was even more of a driver’s car, came with this same 16 valve engine, in the 306 GTi-6 version, which I’m sure sold more than the equivalent 405. With a 6 speed MT, as standard – VERY unusual, at that time. I had some seat time in these, and this transmission plus the strong, rev-happy engine was a marriage made in heaven – seamless acceleration, and always the right gear for any situation.
205 GTi’s never came from the factory with this 16 valve engine, but retro-modders have managed to install them, although it’s not purely a bolt-in job. Like most former 205 GTi owners, that car has a special place in my heart, but I feel the Mi16 mill might be too much of a good thing .
Ah, Peugeot – such a shame, that you stopped making interesting cars, and now just make automotive appliances.
To see on of these in Europe is now an event, indeed any 405 in decent condition is worth noting.
In Europe, Peugeot might have had designs of this car competing with the BMW320 or 325, but in reality it was competing with they hot versions of the Renault 21, MG Montego, Vauxhall Cavalier/Opel Vectra and the like.
The 405 was probably one of the best, perhaps the best, of that crop, but the badge was not BMW and neither was the build quality. It wads a good car, but cars taken out of their natural class are often exposed. We can all name many examples.
I’ve seen one of those in the wild in the US exactly once, when I was in college in the early 2000s. I was walking across campus and a guy driving a red 405 pulled over and asked me for directions.
You might still see a Peugot 505, because they kind of made sense – a French Luxury Car with a modicum of reliability. Not a BMW or a Mercedes, nicer than a Volvo or Saab. Not something that really had a direct competitor.
These didn’t really make sense. As was mentioned, a Saab was better in all respects for $2000 less, or various Japanese offerrings if you were o.k. with that.
We moved to Belgium for a couple of years in 1991 and immediately needed cars. I distinctly remember going to the local Peugeot store and looking at both a 405 and a 605. The owner of the store went to great lengths to explain the superiority of these great french machines compared to other makes. I found the quality completely underwhelming and bought a VW Passat and an Opel Vectra both of which seemed way superior to me. The idea that in the US Peugeot thought of themselves as somewhere between Saab (at the time very fashionable) and BMW leaves me speechless. Destined to fail.
Owned a 405 model – loved the car when it was working. Camshaft was replaced under warranty and other issues kept popping up causing it to go into limp mode at times. Handled great and I loved the interior.
I’ve seen an occasional 405 in the wild, though probably not the Mi16 model, or if I did it was long ago. I remember when they were sold in the US, and they never seemed to gain a foothold in the way even the 505 did. Very similar to the Alfa Romeo which left the US market a few years later (before eventually returning, though they aren’t doing well this time either). Just one of those cars that most Americans probably didn’t remember to put on their shopping list, if they gave it any thought at all. Rover/Sterling left the US the same year Peugeot did, though the circumstances were different – they sold well in their first year here (1987) before quality control problems trashed their rep (despite sharing much with the ultra-reliable Honda/Acura Legend). That was at least Rover’s third unsuccessful attempt to capture the US market. Peugeot meanwhile had planned to return to the US a few years back, but after the Stellantis merger it was deemed unnecessary, with management deciding the money needed to relaunch Pugs in America would be better spent reviving the Chrysler brand (well that hasn’t happened – with the discontinuation of the 300 Chrysler is left selling nothing but minivans).
Cars I’d love to see in the wild (but will never happen) – BMW 507 or at least a 503, Toyota 2000GT, Packard Caribbean come quickly to mind. I also like more common cars with unusual options which I’m more likely to find: a 1988 Mazda 626 with 4 wheel steering, ’74-76 GM big cars with dual front airbags, 1980-82 Thunderbirds with factory Recaro seats, 1967-68 Imperials with the Mobile Director swiveling seat package, 1987 Buick Regal Limiteds with the turbo engine and suspension from the Grand National (the last one hurts because I considered ordering one new but they were too impractical and expensive compared to other choices. I never would have dreamt they’d become super-collectible. Only about 200 were built.
Maybe 10 years ago there was one of these sitting for sale in a large grassy area at the end of a road by the highway. Just like that white one, with the same wheels. I didn’t know what it was, just that it stood out as one of the most attractive cars I’d ever seen. I love 80s designs. I wasn’t in the market for any car, so I never got out and looked. Only a few miles from home, I would drive past it every day going to work. It sat there all summer. So maybe they wanted a lot for it, and/or there was something wrong with it. You pretty much had to be an enthusiast to own it, because in these parts the best chance of a Peugeot dealer would have been 4 hours away. That might have been something to do with it too. Maybe they never sold it, as this area is mostly seasonal residents and they could have taken it with them when they left. I should have checked it out, because it looks like I’ll probably never see one again.
The virtues and relatively few vices of the Peugeot 404, 504 and 505 are well documented on this site.
404:https://www.curbsideclassic.com/curbside-classics-european/curbside-classic-1969-peugeot-404-the-cc-holy-grail-found/
504: https://www.curbsideclassic.com/curbside-classics-european/curbside-classic-1976-peugeot-504-one-continents-french-mercedes-and-coty-is-another-continents-most-rugged-vehicle-is-another-continents-pos/
505:https://www.curbsideclassic.com/curbside-classics-european/curbside-classic-1980-peugeot-505-sd-its-been-waiting-here-for-its-cc-since-1994/
505 Wagon: https://www.curbsideclassic.com/curbside-classics-european/curbside-classic-1989-peugeot-505-wagon-the-last-of-the-worlds-greatest-wagons/
The World’s Greatest Wagons: https://www.curbsideclassic.com/automotive-histories/the-worlds-greatest-wagons-peugeot-203-403-404-504-505-an-illustrated-history/
They cut a tiny niche in a small market segment occupied mostly by Saab and Volvo. Solid European cars priced a cut below Mercedes, though in the home market they competed head to head.
The problem with the 405 was that it didn’t fit that segment. It was basically a French Accord, not a French Volvo or low-end Mercedes. But it was priced 20 percent higher. And it couldn’t compete with the Hondas on quality.
Combine that with the general indifference shown to the US market by PSA and you have a recipe for failure.
Note well that PSA has made virtually no effort to stage a comeback in the US, though I did once see a late-model Peugeot with New Jersey plates cruising around. Apparently they were looking into it at one point. Now they rely on their Stellantis siblings to represent. Renault does basically the same thing with Nissan.
I remember looking at one of these. Seemed like a very nice, somewhat oddball car but I crossed it off my list due to one feature. It had those detestable motorized shoulder belts. I survived a bad head-on collision in ’87, I’m sure I would have passed had I not been securely belted in. Ever since then I’ve been very particular about having good belts – and these days lots of airbags too.
I had the DL stripper version, 1989 model built July 1988.
It had been driven 366,000 km when I scrapped it due to head gasket failure. Good comfort, dreadful rear suspension design which guaranteed to dissolve the trailing arm bearings in 10 years or so, leading to all sorts of fun geometry. Liked to drink oil despite having the updated head (warranty) – but never smoked visibly. Terrible electrical system, and a bunch of other minor annoyances like heater flap stepper motor that fails, broken glovebox latch, ignition switch meltdowns and so on. Super thin (like Dauphine-thin) external sheet metal, which a kid could dent with a gentle push (ask me how I know). They drove very nicely though. Stuck with ours for 15 years. I would not ever have another, not even a T16.
The 406 was a far nicer car in all respects, as found when I borrowed one from a friend for 5000 km in Europe back in 2008. The 406 Coupé was probably the pinnacle.
I had a 406 break 7 seater with 2088 TDI nice car and a very comfortable ride but am now on my 3rd Citroen in 15 years and 2nd C5 hatch I just cant bring myself to downgrade to another brand and anything else is a downgrade.
A friend’s grandmother drove a 1991 Mi16 in red when we were in high school. Though I knew it was a fairly uncommon car, I didn’t really think much of it, as I have owned and operated a couple of French cars in the US and encountered them here and there in my travels. I think I’ve only seen one other Mi16, as well as the occasional garden variety 405 in traffic way back when. Hers must have been okay, as I think she was still driving it into the early 2000’s. I’m pretty sure the nearest dealer was 240 miles away in Spokane, WA back when the car was new.
I’ve also seen precisely one NSU Ro80 in the wild, back in 2009-10. It was dark green, and was equipped with sealed beam headlights and side marker lights that were of its era; I thought it was a US market car… later research says that we never got them here. It was a running, driving car that was for sale at a car show in Tucson… I wish I would have asked the seller more questions.
Probably rarer is the BX16 from Citroen that uses the same engine and were quite the rocketship but depending on where you look they arent rare at all, I got a leaking heater hose fixed at a well known Citroen workshop in Auckland recently when I dropped my car off and collected the loan car there was an immaculate red BX16 parked out side when I returned the loaner the next day the red BX16 was in the shop on a lift and a silver BX16 had taken its place outside, those are the cars that out corner M3s and worth an absolute fortune now, I parked the loaner 1.6 turbo C4 hehind a very nice Pug 406 3.0 manual coupe, they get some nice cars in at that place there was even a 2.0 HDI version of my 2.2 C5 something else thats rarely seen.
The BX was never sold in America although there are a few that showed up under the 25-year rule.
Another factor is that when VW launched the B3 Passat in the US it came with a huge price cut compared to the outgoing B2 (Quantum) which had been a slow seller because it was so expensive prospects could just buy an Audi for the money.
For those who wanted a modern mass-market European midsize car, the new Passat was both better value and had a better reputation for ownership experience.
I’m not sure Audi had much prestige in the B2 Quantum era – it was still a fairly obscure brand in the US and thought of as a poor-man’s Mercedes that was only slightly upscale, sort of the German equivalent of buying a Pontiac or Oldsmobile instead of a Chevy, not a German equivalent of a Cadillac. Recall that the previous generation small Audi was just a VW Passat (Dasher in U.S.) with a notchback instead of a fastback, and different logos. Audi was NOT a BMW/Mercedes competitor in the late ’70s and early ’80s.
In my family we had a 405 GR 2.0 petrol engine.
When we bought it I was as in love with that car as I am with my current girlfriend. A more than beautiful design, one of the last Peugeots designed by Pininfarina.
With a ride as comfortable as a Mercedes. I still miss that car to this day.
405, a true legend. Even today it looks like a modern car.