The Talbot 1100 is the Simca 1100 as it was sold after PSA Peugeot Citroën took over Chrysler Europe and revived the Talbot name. The car it was based on, launched by Simca in 1967, was one of the first modern front-wheel-drive family hatchbacks and stayed in production for more than fifteen years.
Talbot 1100 at a glance
| Maker | Simca, later Talbot |
|---|---|
| Production | 1967–1982/1985 |
| Class | compact family car (C-segment) |
| Bodies | three- and five-door hatchback, estate, delivery van |
| Layout | front-wheel drive, transverse engine |
| Engine | 1,118 cc Poissy four at launch, later 1.2 and 1.3 |
| Length | 3.94 m |
| Front suspension | double wishbones, torsion bars, anti-roll bar |
| Rear suspension | semi-trailing arms, torsion bars, anti-roll bar |
| Brakes | front discs |
| Steering | rack and pinion |
| Project | “Project 928”, started 1962 |
The Talbot 1100 is the Simca 1100 sold under the Talbot name; the article is based on one source (English Wikipedia).
History of the Talbot 1100
The 1100 was the result of “Project 928”, begun by Simca in 1962 and finalised by the engineers Philippe Grundeler and Charles Scales. Simca’s market research in the early 1960s showed the growing popularity of front-wheel drive, which gave better comfort and space in small cars. In spring 1962 the company set up a project for a new front-wheel-drive range of saloons, estates and light commercial vehicles, all within France’s 6CV tax class between the Simca Mille and the Simca 1300. Both transverse and longitudinal engine layouts were tested, and in 1963 the transverse design was approved.
The car was shown on Sardinia and at the Paris Motor Show in 1967. It combined a hatchback or estate body with folding rear seats, front disc brakes, rack-and-pinion steering and all-round independent suspension — double wishbones at the front, semi-trailing arms at the rear — on torsion bars with anti-roll bars. The engine was slanted to allow a lower bonnet, and the engine, gearbox and suspension were carried on a subframe so that the unitary body was relatively unstressed; the body was welded to the frame, not bolted. At just under four metres long, the 1100 set a blueprint for European and Japanese C-segment hatchbacks, and it was reportedly studied closely by Volkswagen while the Golf was being designed.
There were three- and five-door hatchbacks, an estate that was no longer than the hatchback but boxier, and a delivery van; the estate had two doors until 1970 and four afterwards. The 1,118 cc Poissy engine was a larger version of the rear-engined Simca 1000 unit, and 1,204 cc and 1,294 cc versions were added later. The 1100 also provided the basis for the Matra Simca Rancho, and the hatchbacks were replaced in the range by the Simca-Talbot Horizon.
Design and features
- Modern package: transverse engine, front-wheel drive and unequal-length driveshafts.
- Independent suspension: double wishbones in front, semi-trailing arms at the rear, with anti-roll bars.
- Practical body: hatchback with folding rear seats, plus estate and van versions.
- Influence: a landmark design studied by rival makers, including Volkswagen.
Talbot 1100 versions
- Hatchback: three- and five-door models, the core of the range.
- Break: the estate, two doors until 1970 and four doors afterwards.
- Van: a delivery version on the same running gear.
- Larger engines: 1.2- and 1.3-litre developments added during the run.
The same running gear underlies the Matra Rancho, and the 1100 was replaced in the range by the Talbot Horizon. More cars are in the Talbot collection.
Sources
- Simca 1100, English Wikipedia: development, engineering, bodies, engines
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