The History of  Pininfarina and Peugeot          

A 50 years long story

The building plant Sergio pininfarina The 403 from 1955, The first Pininfarina design.

Peugeot and Pininfarina have been working together since 1951 when Peugeot decided to call in an inde-
pendent design house to create its new 403 Saloon. Peugeot was seeking a distinctive, lasting look of its 
own and it was no accident that it opted for Pininfarina, a design house with an established international 
reputation for a style that combined classicism, inventiveness and personality. The new Peugeot saloon
 which came out in 1955 was a bigger suc­cess than the French firm had ever dreamed of, in the end over 
a mil­lion units where produced, an unimaginable figure for the period. Well before inter-company collabo­
ration had become the European fashion. Peugeot and Pininfarina had established a partnership that is 
highly unusual in the automotive world.

The 404 Cabriolet 

 And it still goes on Initially con­fined to design it was in the Sixties that the relationship was extended to manufacturing and Pininfarina produced its first complete cars for the French company. 

404 Coupe
Building the 404 coupe cabriolet

 They were niche cars, coupés and cabriolets. Pininfarina produced the bodies which were them sent to Peugeot where the mechanical parts were assembled. A series of numbers and successes followed:  

404-204-504- 205 and 306 to which we must now add the latest, the 406 Coupé. This marks a turning~ point in the Peugeot Pininfarina partnership, because, for the firsf time, in addition to styling and de­sign, the French company has en­trusted Pininfarina with responsi­bility for manufacturing the complete vehicle, including, assem­bly of the mechanical parts, and testing.

 

This publication aims to sum­manse, in a series of photographs from the Pininfarina and Peugeot archives, the enormous, amount of work done in almost 50 years, which has had a lasting effect on the life of the two companies.

204 coupe + cabriolet The queen of africa
Excellent results in the   african rallies Absolutely rustfree 
The 504 coupe and  cabriolet

Study for an extremely economical sports car for the young. The criterion 
behind the styling was inspired by the idea of keeping costs down, and as a 
result the front and rear, which included the lids and bumpers, were perfectly identical, as were the doors and left and right longitudinals. The Interior was simple and essential. The instrumentation incorporated in the design of the distinctive facia was the same as that on the basic model.

(right) This proposal for a coupé designed to slot in­to the medium-high bracket of the Peugeot range and to keep the tradition of Peugeot­Pininfarina coupés alive, celebrated thirty years of Pininfarina’s cooperation with the French manufacturer, begun officially in 1955 with the launch of the 403 Saloon. The name was Griffe.

The 306 Cabriolet The 205 Cabriolet and the last creation the 406 coupe

This proposed extension to the 205 range, made its world debut at the Turin Motor Show. In this compact prototype station wagon, the demands of space blend with the styling and the quality of the finish, to obtain and maintain the “elegance and apeal” of the basic model.

 

 

The 306 Cabriolet

Presented at ‘the Frankfurt Motor Show that year, it has been manufactured by Pininfarina since 1994. Like
all the previous cabriolet and coupé models,Peugeot entrusted Pininfarina with the styling, research, engineering and production of the bodywork. Today the 306 
Cabriolet is enjoying new success with the 1997 version, thanks to renovated s
tyling and product contents. 
The 306 Cabriolet also comes with an elegant hardtop which makes the car really versatile.

TRADITION AND PRESTIGE

The coupé and the cabriolet are an essential part of Peugeot history and tradition. This tradition is the result of the partnership with one of the world’s best known design centres, which has produced some of the most beautiful and successful cars in recent decades, Pininfarina, Peugeot’s historical partner with whom, for over forty years, as product ranges have evolved, it has created proposals that have never gone unnoticed. This partnership has acquired a new dimension with the 406 Coupé project. For the very first time Peugeot has entrusted Pininfarina with the responsibility not only for the exte­rior and interior styling, but also for industrialisation and production in strict respect for the standards, particularly quality, that are a part of everyday life in Peugeot s own manufacturing facilities., The effect of this increased responsibil­ity has been to stimulate the already fertile inventiveness of Pininfarina de­signers to create a car which is capable of arousing emotions that can only be the fruit of artistic expression

Sergio went into politics from 1979 to 1988, he was quite invisible MEP for the Liberal group, and as a senator for life he led with one abstention, with the fall of the Prodi government, after the Berlusconi era dawned. Berlusconi has never held Italian cars. Sergio knew his dose Italian tragedy. His son and successor slain dyed Andrea died in a Vespa accident in 2008. Sergio went into retirement in 2006. The company is now re only concerned with design and engineering, including electric cars. Production proved too expensive, a few times Farina was one the verge of bankruptcy. Now the company for the first time in years back in profit. The merit of the Farina and Bertone-dynasties, and some twenty others, that there were still some beautiful, colorful and original dull gray cars on our roads. And it's not just about cars of 150,000 euros or more, reaching 300 kilometers per hour, as it is not raining, but also very affordable modest and charming carts. Because everyone has the right to beauty and quality. That must in any case apply to a product as mundane as a car.

Unfortunately, on July 3, 2012 brought an end to his glorious life, the models will still be there for long.

  kurtorbie@peugeot-504-cc.be