Peugeot 404: the taxi that would not wear out

The Peugeot 404 is a large family car that Peugeot produced from 1960 to 1975, with a truck version sold until 1988. It was styled by Pininfarina and offered as a saloon, estate and pickup, with a convertible added in 1962 and a coupé in 1963.

Peugeot 404 at a glance

History of the Peugeot 404

A Pininfarina design

Styled by Pininfarina, the 404 was introduced in 1960 as a saloon with a 73 PS petrol engine and a four-speed column-change gearbox with a reversed gate, as on the 203 and 403. A ZF three-speed automatic, similar to the unit offered on some BMWs, was available from the Paris show as an alternative to the manual. The bodyshell is very similarly styled to that of the 1959 Austin Westminster, which Pininfarina also designed.

Development year by year

For 1961 came the Super Luxe with a silver-painted superstructure, chromed headlight rims, large hubcaps, tan leather and a front armrest. In 1962 the suspension gained travel and flexibility, the dashboard was modified with circular vents replacing the square ones, brake linings were reinforced and anti-reflective paint was used on the dashboard. That year also brought the Commerciale, Break and seven-seat Family estates, on a wheelbase 190 mm longer than the saloon, longer overall at 4,590 mm against 4,445 mm and heavier at 1,190 kg against 1,100 kg, with tandem coil springs at the rear and a new fuel filler behind a flap in the rear wing.

The cabriolet appeared at the Paris show in October 1961 and the coupé six months later; their bodyshells were built by Pinin Farina in Turin, with only the floorpan and mechanical parts shared with the saloon. Kugelfischer fuel injection was offered from the Geneva show in March 1962. In 1965 the price of the convertible in the United States, $3,899, put it in the same bracket as the Jaguar E-Type.

The 1963 models included the Super Luxe with the 86 PS injection engine, and in March the 404 Diesel with the Indenor XD85, replaced in 1964 by the XD88 with a Bosch pump. Between July and September 1963 the carburetted and injected saloon engines moved to five bearings. The coupé arrived in 1963 with the cabriolet body and a fixed roof. In 1965 injection power rose to 96 PS and carburettor power to 76 PS, brakes gained a Bendix Hydrovac servo and all models received reclining front seats. The 404 A8 of October 1964 used the 403’s 1.5-litre XB2 engine in stripped form for French government agencies; 525 were built until September 1967.

Worldwide production

Popular as a taxi, the 404 earned a reputation for durability and value. It was built under licence in several African countries until 1991 in Kenya, and assembled in Argentina by Safrar and Sevel at El Palomar, in Quebec at the Société de Montage Automobile plant from 1965 to 1968, in New Zealand by Campbell Industries, in Australia by Renault Australia and in Chile by Automotores Franco Chilena. French production of 1,847,568 cars ended in 1975, by which time 2,885,374 had been built worldwide.

Design and features

• Pininfarina body: a three-box shape shared in spirit with the Austin Westminster.
• Kugelfischer injection: offered from 1962, up to 96 PS.
• Indenor diesel: from 1963, the engine that made the 404 a taxi favourite.
• Long-wheelbase estates: Commerciale, Break and seven-seat Family.
• Licensed production: built on four continents and in Africa until 1991.

Peugeot 404 versions

• Saloon: the original body, carburettor or injection.
• Commerciale, Break, Family: estates on the longer wheelbase.
• Cabriolet (1961) and coupé (1963): Pinin Farina bodies from Turin.
• 404 Diesel (1963): Indenor engine, XD85 then XD88.
• 404 A8 (1964): stripped 1.5-litre car for French government use.

The 404 replaced the Peugeot 403 and was itself replaced by the 504, with the 204 below it in the range. More in the Peugeot collection.

Video: 1975 Peugeot 404 start up

Video by on YouTube.

Sources

• Peugeot 404, English Wikipedia: design, year-by-year changes, engines, bodies, production