Automotive industry in France
France was a pioneer in the automotive industry and is the 11th-largest automobile manufacturer in the world by 2015 unit production and the third-largest in Europe (after Germany and Spain).
French automotive manufacturers were long dominant in francophone Africa, but beginning in the 1970s the Japanese were making inroads due to lower prices and the availability of suitable light offroad cars and trucks.
1890 – Armand Peugeot produces a four-wheeled car powered by a Daimler gasoline fueled internal combustion engine.
1929 – French annual automobile production peaked at 253,000 passenger cars, a level that would not be matched till after the Second World War.
[13] 1933 – With French passenger car production at 140,635 units, France lost its place as Europe's top automobile producer to Great Britain 220,775.
1934 – Citroën introduces the Traction Avant, featuring front wheel drive and unitary construction.
In Germany the Hitler government treated the German auto-industry to a central role in a radical economic strategy driven by what can be seen as a Keynesian approach to "fiscal stimulus".
1945 – The Pons Plan reflected government determination to structure the French auto-industry according to priorities identified by politicians and civil servants.
A punitive fiscal horsepower tax is imposed on larger engines leading to the demise of most of the Grandes Routières such as Bugatti, Delage, Delahaye, Hotchkiss et Cie, Salmson and Talbot-Lago by the mid-1950s.
1961 – Launch of the Renault 4, a small estate car which is aimed at the lower end of the market dominated in France by the Citroën 2CV, as well as foreign competitors like the Volkswagen Beetle and BMC's new Mini.
Peugeot launches the 504, a large rear-wheel drive family saloon, which is voted European Car of the Year.
1969 – The Renault 12 medium-sized saloon and estate range is launched, but it missed out on the European Car of the Year award, which goes to the Fiat 128 from Italy.
1974 – Despite its new CX (successor to the 19-year-old DS) being voted European Car of the Year, Citroën files bankruptcy.
1975 – The Simca 1307 (sold in Britain as the Chrysler Alpine) is launched and is voted European Car of the Year, making use of a hatchback bodystyle and front-wheel drive.
1976 – Renault launches a new small family hatchback model, the R14, which is similar in concept to the Volkswagen Golf from West Germany.
1978 – PSA Peugeot Citroën takes over Chrysler's European division, the former Rootes Group in Britain and Simca in France.
Shortly before the sale is completed, the new Horizon mid-sized hatchback is voted European Car of the Year.
Launch of the Renault 18 saloons and estates, which feature front-wheel drive and will eventually replace the long-running R12 models.
The Simca marque is discontinued after 45 years by the company's new owner Peugeot, who revive the Talbot badge for the entire former Chrysler Europe model range.
Launch of the Talbot Samba, a reworked version of the Peugeot 104, which is built at the former Simca factory in Poissy.
1986 – Georges Besse, Chairman of Renault, is murdered by the communist terrorist group Action Directe.
1992 – PSA Peugeot Citroën establishes joint venture with Dongfeng Motor Corporation in China.
1996 – Renault is privatized and its new Scénic version of the Megane hatchback is launched to compete in the new compact MPV sector, winning the European Car of the Year award.
Peugeot facelifts the 106 supermini to keep it competitive with a host of newer rivals, while Citroën makes use of the 106 design for its new Saxo, which replaces the AX.
1997 – Smart assembly plant opened in Hambach, Moselle by German carmaker Mercedes-Benz to produce two-seater microcars.
Launch of the Citroën Picasso, a compact MPV similar in the style to the Renault Scénic, which is based on the floorpan of the Xsara hatchback.
The Peugeot 206 CC is launched - the first French car to feature a folding steel roof, which enables it to double as a coupe and convertible.
The second generation Renault Laguna is introduced at the end of the year, being one of the first mass production cars to feature a "keyless" entry and ignition system.
Launch of the Renault Laguna II, which is one of the first mass-produced cars in the world to feature keyless entry and ignition.
2021 – PSA Group completed the merger with Italian-American automaker Fiat Chrysler Automobiles, thus leading up to the establishment of Stellantis, which headquartered in Amsterdam, Netherlands.
