Although the Peugeot works has been in manufacturing for many centuries it was not until 1889 that they decided to enter into the vehicle industry and start to sell their automobiles through dealerships. Peugeot originally manufactured crinoline dresses which used steel rods for rigidity. The making of these circular rods eventually led into making bicycles in the nineteenth century; the most famous being the Peugeot ‘Le Grand Bi’ (penny farthing) bicycle.
Armand Peugeot as the company was originally known would not enter the vehicle market until late in the nineteenth century with a three wheeled steam driven motor car. Only four of these seminal automobiles were prefabricated and as such, not many prefabricated it to the forecourts of dealerships. Steam however was soon forgotten by Peugeot in favour of internal combustion with the help of Gottlieb Daimler.
Peugeot have always been a leader in the industry and were in fact the first company to fit rubber tyres to their cars; even though these were not pneumatic and instead prefabricated of solid rubber. It was at this point that Peugeot entered motor racing, despite the automobiles resembling horse drawn carriages and still being steered by a tiller.
By the turn of the nineteenth century dealerships were sprouting with three hundred automobiles being sold in 1899 out of a total of 1200 automobiles sold in the whole of France. Peugeot not forgetting their bicycle heritage also produced a motorbike at the turn of the century and continue to do so to this day. The success of the company as a national institution was seemingly already assured by 1903 with over half of France’s automobile sales.
The company divided its energies during the twenties, one focussing on the bikes and the other focussing on the cars. Throughout this period Peugeot continued to place inexpensive automobiles onto their dealership forecourts with the Type 201 being the cheapest automobile in France. Innovation was always a consistent theme; the development of retracting roof was an attempt to coax rich Frenchmen with stylistic designs and luxurious cars. The curvaceous bodies and sloping headlights of this period would be features in Peugeot design for generations after.
During the fifties Peugeot began to open dealerships in USA trying to capture some of the booming economy in the post war states. It was at this point that many collaborations with other European companies occurred, such as a combining efforts with Renault in 1966 and Volvo in 1972. The company also utilised the exquisite designing capabilities of the Pininfarina home to make models even more captivating to buyers.
The seventies saw a major move by Peugeot to take over rival French manufacturer, Citroen. This meant an even more extensive number of dealerships at their disposal and meant that with the formation of PSA (Peugeot Societe Anonyme) Peugeot were part of the biggest automobile manufacturer in France. PSA worked towards keeping the company identities separate throughout this period and the distinctive flare of apiece brand continues to this day.
With ongoing growth and successful dealerships throughout Europe, Peugeot were healthy to buy the European division of Chrysler. This had blended success and in fact caused trouble for the PSA’s financial position. Despite a poor period throughout the eighties Peugeot were healthy to recoup the losses from the previous decade and achieve a strong position throughout the nineties. Despite losing the American income base in this period the company still does well in Europe and will continue to do so with innovative technologies and quaint French styling.
Ultimately the company has a rich and diverse heritage; after a relatively modest beginning manufacturing dresses they have managed to become one of the automotive powerhouses of Europe. In today’s highly competitive automobile industry they will be hard pushed to remain favourite and continue to grow as they had done in the previous century.
Motoring expert Thomas Pretty looks at the development of this historic automobile company and traces the heritage of the automobiles we see on the forecourts of Peugeot dealerships today.
