The 864 was a high-class car built by Hotchkiss from 1936 to 1939. In practice it was a light update of the Hotchkiss 486 of the Serie 400, itself an update of the 413, and its 2,324 cc four-cylinder engine gave 60 hp and a top speed of 120 km/h. After the Second World War the same line returned as the Artois.
Hotchkiss 864 at a glance
| Maker | Automobiles Hotchkiss, France |
|---|---|
| Production | 1936–1939 |
| Predecessor | Hotchkiss 486, from the Serie 400 |
| Engine | 2,324 cc four-cylinder in-line |
| Power | 60 hp |
| Top speed | 120 km/h |
| Family | the four-cylinder line that began with the 413 |
| End of production | 1939, with the outbreak of war |
| Postwar return | 864 S49 |
| Successor | Artois with the 2.3-litre engine |
The 864 is described in the Italian Wikipedia article devoted to it and in the French article on the marque; there is no English article.
History of the Hotchkiss 864
An update of the 486
The 864 was not a new design. It was a slight update of the Hotchkiss 486, which belonged to the Serie 400 and was itself an update of the 413, so nothing was new compared with the two cars that had gone before. The engine was a 2,324 cc four-cylinder in-line, the same size as the 413’s, and it produced 60 hp, enough for a top speed of 120 km/h.
The end of the Serie 400 line
The 864 replaced the 480 and 486 at the end of 1936, when those two cars were taken out of production. It was built until 1939, when the outbreak of the Second World War stopped car production at Hotchkiss. During the war only the Amilcar Compound van and the C.G.E.-Tudor electric car continued to be made.
The postwar 864 S49
When Hotchkiss slowly restarted car production after the war it modernised the 13CV and 20CV cars, fitting independent front suspension and hydraulic brakes. The four-cylinder car came back as the 864 S49, and it was still in the range in 1948 when the Artois was presented at the Paris Salon as its replacement. At the 1950 Paris Salon the 864 S49 and the 686 S49 «Artois» gave way to the 1350 and 2050 Anjou, which kept the same mechanical parts under a new body.
Design and features
- A four-cylinder luxury car: 2,324 cc, 60 hp and 120 km/h, the last of the Serie 400 line.
- Familiar shape: visibly an evolution of the 413 and 486 rather than a new design.
- Postwar modernisation: the 864 S49 gained independent front suspension and hydraulic brakes.
- A short life: three years of production before the war stopped the line.
Hotchkiss 864 versions
- 864: the 1936–1939 car with the 2,324 cc four.
- 864 S49: the postwar version with independent front suspension and hydraulic brakes.
- Artois: the 1948 replacement, with the same engine raised to 70 hp.
- Artois 3.5: the six-cylinder edition of the 864 with the engine of the 866.
The 864 closed the four-cylinder Serie 400 and was replaced by the Artois, while the six-cylinder Serie 600 ran alongside it. More cars are in the Hotchkiss collection.
Video: Hotchkiss 864 Cabourg 1947
Video on YouTube.
Sources
- Hotchkiss 864, Italian Wikipedia: engine, power, production years
- Hotchkiss, French Wikipedia: the 864 S49 and the 1950 Salon
- Hotchkiss, Italian Wikipedia: wartime production and the Artois
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