Peugeot 205

The company Peugeot was doing badly at that time. After years of growth there was a kink in the sales following the oil crisis in 1973/74. The French market was not that strongly affected by it, but the export to Central Europe and North Africa decreased. Economical cars, agile and nevertheless offering a lot of interior space would have a sales prospect.
In any case, the 104 was not the suitable product to rescue Peugeot, judging by its sales figures. After extensive market analyses and under the obligation to catch modernity the 205 was introduced, which actually should have been a 105.
The 205, especially with four doors, was a big success. The design of the car reached out, because Peugeot turned its back on edges, which had been for many years its feature, and created an extremely pleasing design. This was possible obviously only by an occasional break from Pininfarinas conceptions.
In France the car was available also with a 1-Liter-engine, but for exporting especially to Germany, there were the 1.4-Liter mentioned above, and the 1.8-Liter-Diesel engine. At the provisional end there were 147 KW (200 HP), a strong road version of the Racing vehicle with central engine.