Classic French cars we'd love to own

They've got a certain je ne sais quoi

French cars have always stood out from the crowd: they're often mechanically quirky, stylistically non-conformist and endearing to a remarkable degree.

And with France's wonderful Rétromobile show taking place this week, we thought this would be the perfect time to take a look back at our favourite Gallic classics.

From economy hatchbacks to high-performance coupés, here are some of the finest (and, in some cases, most under-appreciated) classic cars made across the Channel.

1. Citroën 2CV (1948)

Many people know that Citroën started work on the 2CV before World War II, but secretly went back to the drawing board in the early 1940s because engineers were afraid the invading Germans would steal the design.

What's rarely mentioned, though, is that many people hated the 2CV at first.

Citroën first presented it at the Paris show in 1948, but show-goers criticised the design – comparing it to a sardine can – the suspension, which they equated to a swing set and even the grey paint (too similar to what you’d find in a dreary hospital, apparently).

The 2CV’s future looked grim, but history proved those naysayers wrong, and the model lasted until 1990.

2. Citroën DS (1955)

The DS replaced the Traction Avant at the top of the Citroën line-up in the mid-'50s, but really the two were leagues apart.

The Avant came to life in 1934 and, by the 1950s, its design perfectly reflected its age. The DS, on the other hand, looked like it came from outer space.

If it resembled nothing else on the road, it was just as futuristic underneath: the DS came with the revolutionary hydraulic suspension Citroën began testing in 1954 on the Traction Avant’s rear axle. Those who claimed it was 20 years ahead of its time were surprisingly spot on; production ended in 1975.

3. Facel Vega Excellence (1956)

Facel Vega designed the Excellence to lock horns with the world’s most prestigious cars – and for a time, it did.

Often billed as France’s Rolls-Royce, this majestic saloon with suicide rear doors offered a Chrysler-sourced V8 engine and either an automatic or a manual transmission.

It was certainly a hit with the rich and famous, with celebrities including American actress Ava Gardner buying one. It even appeared in several Hollywood movies.

4. Citroën Bijou (1959)

Although based on the 2CV, the sporty-looking Bijou coupé wore a shapely glassfibre body that seemingly had nothing in common with its forefather. It also offered a much nicer interior with, notably, a single-spoke steering wheel sourced from the DS parts bin.

Surely the Bijou would be a hit in England, the country it was designed for and built in? No chance!

The main problem was that the Bijou sat on a stock 2CV chassis and used the same 425cc air-cooled flat-twin, a unit rated at a lackadaisical 12hp. So while it was more pleasant to look at than its utilitarian sibling it was also, believe it or not, even slower.

Unsurprisingly, production totalled a mere 204 examples between 1959 and 1964.

5. Panhard PL 17 (1959)

When the Panhard PL 17 arrived in 1959 it was a relatively modern car for the time, thanks to its front-wheel drive and wind-sculpted body.

The massive hood opened to reveal an 850cc air-cooled flat-twin engine that made 50hp in its most powerful configuration, and it's interesting to imagine what a successor to the PL 17 would have looked like: it could have become one of the most forward-thinking saloons on the European market, in the same vein as the DS and the NSU Ro80.

The replacement never happened, though. Citroën axed the model in 1965, shortly after it acquired Panhard, and gave the brand the bullet two years later.

6. Renault 3/4 (1961)

With front-wheel drive, four doors and a practical hatch, the Renault 4 was one of the brand’s most emblematic models.

It was around for more than three decades, across numerous derivatives, and Renault ending up building more than eight million of them. That's a lot of cars. 

But success wasn't a given. It launched alongside a cheaper, entry-level variant named the Renault 3, aimed squarely at taking on the dominant Citroën 2CV, but which proved too basic for its own good; production for that car ended less than a year later.

7. Alpine A110 (1962)

Alpine presented the A110 as the logical evolution of the A108. But while the A108 used parts sourced from the Renault Dauphine, the A110 benefited from the technical advances introduced by the then-new 8, including the Cléon four-cylinder engine.

The A110 soon emerged as one of the most successful members of the Berlinette segment, but it wasn’t alone on the market. 1962 also marked the introduction of Panhard’s CD and René Bonnet’s Djet, which later joined the Matra line-up.

Both enjoyed the credibility of competing in (and finishing) that year’s edition of the 24 Hours of Le Mans, but the A110’s numerous rally victories helped cement its reputation in enthusiast circles.

8. Simca Coupé 1000 (1962)

The Simca Coupé 1000 and the 1200S that replaced it are among the French automotive industry’s greatest unsung heroes.

The original coupé made its debut in 1962 as a sportier version of the shoe box-shaped 1000. Bertone built the body in Italy and shipped it to Simca’s Poissy factory on the outskirts of Paris, where final assembly took place.

Simca and Bertone jointly introduced the 1200S, which received an updated design and a more powerful engine, in 1967.

9. Renault 16 (1965)

The 16 hails from a bygone era when Renault made credible luxury cars.

Though not as advanced as the Citroën DS, one of its main rivals, it stood out with a hatch, a tastefully upscale design and front-wheel drive. The upmarket TX trim later offered power windows and central door locks.

Renault tried selling the 16 in America, too, but it failed to convince buyers who still preferred immense saloons.

10. Peugeot 404 Diesel record car (1965)

In the 1960s, European auto-makers exasperatingly tried to convince buyers to switch from gasoline- to diesel-powered cars. It was a truck fuel, motorists argued.

To prove them wrong, Peugeot built an experimental prototype based on the 404 convertible and equipped with a 2.2-litre diesel engine. It duly set 18 records on the Montlhéry track in France, notably, covering 5000kms in 31 hours.

Peugeot then installed a 1.9-litre diesel in the prototype and set 19 additional records. The firm had proven its point and sales of its diesel-powered cars took off.

11. Simca 1100 (1967)

Simca tried it all. Front engine and rear-wheel drive, rear engine and rear-wheel drive and, finally, front engine and front-wheel drive.

In a remarkable display of foresight, the firm introduced the latter configuration in 1967 when it launched the 1100.

Like the Autobianchi Primula, the 1100 was years ahead of its time: today, nearly every city car comes with a transversally-mounted engine, front-wheel drive and a hatch.

12. Citroën GS (1970)

Years in the making, the Citroën GS made the DS’ style and hydraulic suspension accessible to a new set of buyers.

It was considerably more aerodynamic than its rivals and inaugurated an air-cooled flat-four engine.

Period road-testers agreed the GS was worth the wait: it beat the Maserati-powered SM and the NSU-turned-Volkswagen K70 to become the 1971 European Car of the Year.

Citroën let the GS (which later became the GSA) wither on the vine until 1986.

13. Peugeot 504 pickup (1970)

The Americans, not the French, are most often associated with the pickup – but in Europe, Peugeot enjoyed a near-monopoly on the segment for decades.

The 504 picked up where the 404 left off – pun intended – and went on to become a true world car; Peugeot built it in numerous countries including China, where it came as a four-door, Nigeria and Argentina.

Dangel built one of our favourite versions of the 504 pickup. The small French firm added a four-wheel drive system it designed in-house, a lift kit for the suspension and front fender flares. Also offered as an estate, Dangel’s 4x4 504 became popular in France’s mountainous regions.

14. Monica 560 (1972)

When Facel Vega closed its doors in the 1960s, wealthy French industrialist Jean Tastevin was left complaining that he couldn’t buy a high-end car with a ‘made in France’ label. His solution? Build one himself, of course.

The end result was the stunning Monica 560, a true grand tourer in the vein of the Maserati Quattroporte and which used a V8 engine from Chrysler.

Unfortunately, by the time it arrived on the market in 1974, the effects of the Arab oil embargo were being felt. As petrol prices rose, the French government enforced strict speed limits and interest in powerful, expensive saloons waned. Tastevin threw in the towel in 1975.

Historians disagree on how many 560s Monica built. Some peg the figure at about 150 cars; others claim the brand assembled no more than 17 regular-production cars. Either way, we'd like to own one.

15. Renault 5 Gordini (1976)

The hot hatch segment created by the Autobianchi A112 Abarth in 1971 blew up during the 1970s.

Volkswagen concocted the Golf GTI and Renault fired back with the 5 Alpine, which adopted the 5 Gordini name in the United Kingdom because Chrysler owned the Alpine name.

With 93hp on tap, the 5 Gordini instantly became one of the best affordable performance cars of its era. Renault turned the dial up a notch when it introduced a turbocharged model with 110hp in 1981.

16. Matra Rancho (1977)

Matra’s Rancho still stands out as an excellent example of automotive parts bin-raiding.

It started life as a Simca VF2, a small van which itself spawned from the 1100. Then, after grafting a rear end designed in-house, Matra added a 1.4-litre engine from the 1308 and installed a handful of mechanical components from the 1100 TI.

The result was a recreational, leisure-oriented vehicle that predated the modern-day SUV. It never received the four-wheel drive system it deserved, however.

17. Peugeot 104 ZS2 (1979)

In hindsight, the Peugeot 104 ZS2 served as the opening act for the 205 GTI.

Starting with the 104, one of the smallest cars in France, Peugeot shoe-horned a 1.4-litre four-cylinder engine equipped with double Solex carburettors and a model-specific camshaft. Its 93hp rating sent the ZS2 from zero to 100 km/h in 10.5 seconds, a respectable statistic at the time.

There was a catch: unlike the 205 GTI, the ZS2 arrived as a limited-edition model, with Peugeot deciding to cap production at 1000 examples.

It wasn’t cheap, especially not for such a small car, but enthusiasts quickly scooped up the entire production run.

18. Renault 5 Turbo (1980)

With the original 5 Turbo, Renault took a path few auto-makers dared venture on to – it transformed the homely 5 into a mid-engined, 160hp rally beast.

Bertone designed the interior and Renault made some of the body panels out of aluminium to keep weight in check; production totalled 1690 examples.

Renault followed-up with the 5 Turbo 2 in 1983. Cheaper than the original, it received an interior derived from the 5 Gordini Turbo and body panels made of steel. The firm’s mid-engined madness then simmered down until the Clio V6 arrived in 2001.

19. Renault 25 (1984)

Concerned that the hatchback silhouette of the Renault 20/30 was putting off buyers in key markets such as Germany, the company's decision-makers replaced them both with the 25.

The 25 duly arrived with a more conventional silhouette, closer to that of a three-box sedan, but while retaining the hatch in an innovative 'notchback' design.

The upscale Baccara trim comfortably rivalled the Mercedes-Benz W124 (which later became the first E-Class) and the BMW 5 Series in terms of comfort and equipment.

20. Peugeot 205 Rallye (1987)

While the Peugeot 205 GTI has already achieved cult status, enthusiasts often overlook the Rallye model.

Introduced in 1987, it represented a different take on the concept of a hot hatch that was aimed squarely at buyers who wanted a purer (and more affordable) pocket rocket.

To that end, it eschewed many of the 205 GTI’s creature comforts and offered a less feature-rich interior stripped down to keep weight and costs in check. Power came from an evolution of the AX Sport’s 1.3-liter four-cylinder engine tuned to provide 103hp.

21. Citroën XM (1989)

The Citroën XM finally took the torch from the CX in 1989, and opened a new chapter in the auto-maker’s history.

Like its illustrious predecessors, the CX took the form of a highly futuristic car with an aerodynamic design that gave it the drag coefficient of a modern-day Chevrolet Volt.

At launch, the engine line-up included a 2.0-litre four-cylinder offered with either a carburettor or fuel-injection and the ubiquitous 3.0-litre PRV V6.

The XM’s list of options included what Citroën cleverly called a 13th window. It was mounted directly under the rear window to prevent wind from entering the cabin when the hatch was open.

This decidedly Gallic take on the concept of a luxury car remained in production until 2000.