Peugeot, Eclipses
Peugeot introduced
the folding hard roof in the thirties!
Hans Arend de Wit
Peugeot 404 with sliding roof and Peugeot Eclipse with retractable hard
roof.
After the Second World War retractable,
folding hard roofs have become fashionable only but recently, with many
other marques other than Peugeot, but Peugeot was the first, in the
thirties. It’s a quaint new trend, because in the sixties carmakers
were criticized for making fabric convertibles, and suddenly this became
an unofficial ban. When after the war more and more cars hit the road,
and inexperienced drivers got accidents and turned their cars over,
the makers felt that they should take measures, by stopping making soft
tops. The cabriolet fell in disfavor.
Even after-market sliding roofs were seriously frowned upon, because
as the car salesmen said, a hole in the roof ruins the structural rigidity.
The roof of a Peugeot 404 was basically designed with a standard sliding
roof so that was very okay in the sixties. In the thirties the retractable,
folding roof was designed by a dental technician, on his way to become
a dentist, George Paulin. He worked in a collective dental ‘cabinet’
in the Rue de Rennes, not far from where you may nowadays find the renowned
bookshop specialized in car books. On the side he was an ambitious automobile
designer, and during the Second World War he was a hero in the French
resistance. He designed, and in 1931 patented, the first power-operated
retractable hardtop, which in 1934 was used in the Peugeot 402BL Eclipse
Décapotable, a coupé. Between 1934 and 1938 he was designer
for French automobile bodybuilder Pourtout. Among his designs were a
Panhard coupe, a Unic cabriolet, a remarkably beautiful Delage D8, the
“water drop” Talbot-Lago, the Darl'mat Peugeot roadsters
used in 1937 and 1938 at Le Mans. From 1938 to 1940 he worked exclusively
for Rolls-Royce-Bentley. For them he designed the Corniche I in 1939
and the Comet Competition. After Paulin designed the first steel retractable
roof constructed by Pourtout on a Hotchkiss, and he had a second car
constructed with his meanwhile in ’32 patented system. The first
Peugeot 301 based prototype was constructed with support from the Parisian
Peugeot dealer and tuner Emile Darl'Mat who was very happy with the
result and started selling the Pourtout/Paulin specials in his dealership._Darl'Mat
sold Peugeot the idea to adopt the roof system for more of their models,
the 301, 401, 601 and 402, by Peugeot and Pourtout. In July 1940 he
began working with the British Intelligence to fight the Nazis. Turned
in to the Gestapo by French Vichy elements he was arrested in 1941 and
condemned to death by a German military tribunal, and executed in March
1942. Paulin was posthumously awarded the Croix de Guerre and the Médaille
de la Résistance by the French government.
The Eclipse still had striking, streamline looks, with large headlamps
hidden behind the grille. After the war the model 202 was continued
until 1948 when the 203 was introduced.
A long time later, in the Fifties, Ford picked up the idea of the roof,
and Mercedes-Benz followed in the Nineties. In 1998 the roof was reinvented
by Peugeot to suit modern tastes with the 20 Coeur shown at the Geneva
Show in 1999, then the 401 was launched at the Paris Show and adoption
of the so called ‘beaver tail’ type of body across the range.
It’s a mere coincidence that the Eclipse is shown together with
the 404, which was introduced in 1960. The first new model was the 203,
in 1948.
While in 1941 the society and the economy of whole countries were being
blasted to smithereens Peugeot started working on the design for the
203, which was to replace the 202 that
had become too old in comparison with the cars of the competition. The
203 was planned to become a technically and esthetically advanced medium
sized saloon, with an engine of 1290 cc, an undreamed of and unusual
proposition in those days. The car was exhibited at the Paris Motor
Show in 1947. Volume manufacturing was initially hampered by strikes
and shortages of materials, but production got under way in 1948.
The 203 was the first monocoque bodied production Peugeot, an eye catchingly
modern car that bore a marked resemblance to the American Chevrolet
Fleetline fastback, although its wind cheating profile also reflected
the streamlining trend apparent in some of Europe's more modern designs,
including some of Peugeot's own 402 model, from the 1930’s. The
public did not receive the 203 as positively as was foreseen, but soon
enough it got its solid reputation of being very dependable. The roadability
was incredible, but the down side was rust, as with so many French cars.
The 203 found its buyers among dignitaries, deputy heads of corporations,
ministries, lawyers, professionals on that level, and management consultants,
those who were the fast moving spearheads of the new world. In local
traffic often in a bluish gray, and with a deep shrieking exhaust tone,
and many rallies were won in any color.
In the days of the pre-soft top ban there were also several low volume
cabriolet conversions available during the 203's production run, though
removing the roof from an early monocoque design necessitated extensive
body strengthening which added to the car's weight. Suicide doors were
convenient and standard. A Miracle on Wheels, was the catchline.
With the 203 Peugeot
had built a strong image, and in the upsurge of the car sales in general
Peugeot saw room for a higher targeted model and developed in close
co-operation with Pininfarina, the Turin-based Italian designer, the
403, which was unveiled on 20 April 1955,
at the Trocadéro Palace on the Seine, opposite the Eiffel Tower.
This was the start of a fruitful collaboration that still endures till
this day. The 403 had strong but refined lines, uncomplicated and elegant,
the first Peugeot to have a convex windscreen, and is the first mass-produced
car in the world to have an automatic fan which is controlled by engine
temperature. This year the lion mascot as a relief ornament was taken
off the bonnet of the 203 and 403, as it was considered too dangerous
for cyclists and pedestrians; the lion image became a two dimensional
and placed as a shield shaped badge on the grill. A sliding roof had
become a standard feature.
Later on the vulnerable semaphore-style indicators on the C pillars
were replaced by flashing indicators within the light cluster. The front
lights were modified to conform to new standards and parallel-parking
windscreen wipers were substituted for the normally "not quite
parallel" ones. The 403 was generally appreciated as a fine and
chic saloon.
Superseded by the 404 in 1960, the 403 remained in production as a budget
alternative until 1966.
The Peugeot 404 was
introduced in 1960 as a large family car, and was produced till 1975.
Like the 403 was also designed by Pininfarina, with long sweeping, angular
lines, as if sketched on a drawing board, and initially offered as a
sedan, estate, and as pickup. A convertible was added in 1962, and a
coupé in 1963. Popular as a taxicab, the 404 enjoyed a reputation
for durability and value.
In 1961 the Super Luxe model was introduced, painted silver, chrome
headlight rims, large diameter hubcaps, tan leather interior trim, and
front armrest.
In 1962 the suspension got increased travel and flexibility. The dashboard
was modified, and square air vents were replaced by circular, directional
vents. Anti-reflective paint was used for the dashboard. And then there
was the sliding roof! The then renowned design studio De Wit Coppenhagen
created an advertising campaign with small ads in the editorial section,
very simple, with amongst others a photo zooming in on a serious guy
with his hat on, underneath the opening of an open sliding roof; brilliant
copy by Gregor Frenkel Frank, photos by Rudolf Zwamborn. This striking
and successful advertising caused an explosion in sales.
In total 1,847,568 404’s were produced, with an additional 2,885,374
cars under license until 1988. The 404 is still relatively common in
developing nations, mostly as a pick-up.
The 404 saloon was tested by Motor magazine in 1968. The styling was
criticized as square cut, perpendicular and appearing rather dated,
while the interior was considered "austere" compared to British
cars of the time; the article includes a performance comparison with
the Triumph 2000, Ford Corsair 2000E and Humber Sceptre. However, great
praise is given for build quality, with the article stating that the
car is suitable for African safaris and Arctic gales alike. The owners
obviously thought differently. Many of them were the former owners of
the 203, added with physicians, g.p.’s, and professionals in many
trades. After all it remained a Pininfarina, and a sturdy automobile
that became an indispensable part of a rather sober but stylish well-to-do
life-style, and a box of fine memories.
Like the paternal house seems to have
shrunken as time goes by, the cars of our memories also have a way of
getting smaller, sometimes even as small as in the scale of 1:18. The
Eclipse, and the 404, were made by Norev, the 402 and 403 by Solido.
The cars were photographed in front of the entrance of what once was
Garage Zuidwijk until the 16th of February 1999. The former owner, Kees
Tukker, until the garage went into foreclosure at that date, had been
official Peugeot dealer in the South of Amsterdam. Presently it’s
an anonymous entrance to a bunker of underground garage boxes, in a
block of apartments flats. As it goes.