The PGO Speedster is the first car of the small French maker PGO Automobiles, and the name has been used for two quite different roadsters. The first, built from 1980 to 1998, copied the AC Cobra 427 almost panel for panel; the second, the Speedster II of 2000, turned to the Porsche 356 for inspiration and used Peugeot 206 parts underneath.
PGO Speedster at a glance
| Maker | PGO Automobiles, France |
|---|---|
| First generation | 1980–1998 |
| Speedster II | shown in 2000, in production from February 2002 |
| First shown | Geneva Motor Show 1980; Paris Motor Show 2000 for the Speedster II |
| Body | two-seater roadster |
| First-generation style | copy of the AC Cobra 427 Mk. VI |
| Speedster II style | inspired by the Porsche 356 No. 1 |
| Engine, first generation | Rover SD1 Vitesse V8, 184 kW with a Holley four-barrel carburettor |
| Running gear, first generation | steering, suspension and brakes from the Ford Granada |
| Running gear, Speedster II | Peugeot 206 chassis, axles and gearbox; later cars on the Peugeot 206+ |
| Gearbox, Speedster II | manual, automatic available from 2008 |
The model itself is described in the German Wikipedia article; the English article on PGO Automobiles supplies the company history. No production figures were available.
History of the PGO Speedster
PGO was founded in 1980 by three brothers, Patrick, Gilles and Olivier Prévôt, whose initials gave the brand its name. The company started out building replicas, and the Speedster was the first car developed by Gilles and Olivier Prévôt, presented at the Geneva Motor Show in the year the firm was founded.
Speedster, 1980–1998
The first Speedster was an outside copy of the AC Cobra 427 Mk. VI: at first glance only the badge separates it from the original, though side by side the different external dimensions are obvious. Its engine came from the English Rover SD1 Vitesse, and with a Holley four-barrel carburettor it produced 184 kW. The steering, the front and rear suspension and the braking system were all taken from the European Ford Granada, so the car was a mixture of British and American ideas in a French body. It stayed in production for eighteen years.
Speedster II, from 2000
The second generation changed its model: the Speedster II takes styling cues from the Porsche 356 No. 1, the first car Porsche built, and was presented at the 2000 Paris Motor Show. This time PGO did not aim for detail accuracy — the tail lights, for example, do not match the retro look at all. The chassis, the axles and the gearbox came from the Peugeot 206, and later cars were based on the Peugeot 206+. An automatic gearbox has been offered since 2008, and series production began in February 2002, two years after the presentation.
The best-known owner of a PGO was the German singer Jürgen Drews, who had a Speedster II until 12 May 2014, when he gave too much throttle while loading the car onto a trailer and wrote it off.
Design and features
- Replica, twice over: first an AC Cobra, then a Porsche 356 — the Speedster has always borrowed its shape from a famous car.
- Cobra running gear: a Rover SD1 V8 with a Holley carburettor, and Ford Granada steering, suspension and brakes.
- Peugeot underneath: the Speedster II used the Peugeot 206 chassis, axles and gearbox, so the mechanical parts are ordinary hatchback fare.
- Retro, not exact: the Speedster II deliberately stops short of copying the 356 in detail.
- Automatic option: available on the Speedster II from 2008.
PGO Speedster versions
- Speedster (1980–1998): the Cobra-bodied first generation.
- Speedster II (from 2000): the Porsche 356-styled second generation on Peugeot 206 mechanicals.
- Speedster II on the Peugeot 206+: the later cars, built on the facelifted 206.
- Speedster II automatic (from 2008): the two-pedal version.
The Speedster II formed the basis of the Cévennes roadster that followed it in the PGO range. The other side of the PGO name is the Taiwanese scooter maker, represented here by the Big Max. All of them are listed in the PGO collection.
Video: PGO Speedster 2
Video on YouTube.
Sources
- PGO Speedster, German Wikipedia: generations, engines, chassis, production dates
- PGO (automobile), English Wikipedia: company history, Speedster II, Paris 2000
