Matra Murena: the galvanised mid-engined coupe

The Matra Murena was a mid-engined, rear-wheel-drive sports car produced by the French engineering group Matra from 1980 to 1983 in Romorantin-Lanthenay. It replaced the Bagheera with the same three-abreast layout, but with a galvanised chassis and composite body panels that made it essentially immune to rust.

Matra Murena at a glance

based on one source (English Wikipedia).

History of the Matra Murena

The Murena succeeded the Matra Bagheera, a similar mid-engined coupe born of Matra’s earlier collaboration with Simca. Development ran under two project names, M551 for the 1.6-litre car and M552 for the 2.2-litre one, with the prototype designated P-551. Matra kept the Bagheera’s layout and hatchback shape but set out to fix its main faults: a lack of power, no five-speed gearbox and a chassis that rusted badly. The engineering was done entirely by Matra, and the design was led by the Greek industrial designer Antonis Volanis, who had worked on the Bagheera interior and been principal designer of the Matra Rancho.

The chassis was a new design that looked almost like a unitary body. Its rear cradle was reconfigured for a new rear suspension, and the whole structure was galvanised — the Murena was the first production car to use galvanised steel for all chassis parts. The twelve major body panels were made of fibreglass-epoxy using the sheet moulding compound process, so that only the rear suspension trailing arms could rust.

Matra drew heavily on the corporate parts bin. The engines came from the Talbot Solara and Talbot Tagora, the transaxle was developed by Citroën for the CX, the taillamp clusters came from the Talbot Horizon with custom lenses, the steering rack and front suspension from the Solara, the front indicators from the Renault 12 and the door handles from the Peugeot 505. The front suspension followed the Simca 1100 and Talbot Alpine tradition with upper and lower transverse A-arms, longitudinal torsion bars and an anti-roll bar; at the rear the Bagheera’s torsion bars gave way to semi-trailing arms with coil springs.

Two engines were offered: the 1.6-litre Poissy unit and a 2.2-litre Type 180. The 2.2 could be ordered with the “Préparation 142” package, which raised output from 118 PS to 142 PS; the last 480 cars left the factory with this engine and twin side-draught Solex carburettors, and were called the Murena S. All cars used the same five-speed transaxle with different final-drive ratios. The Murena was built only in left-hand drive, though a small number of right-hand-drive conversions were made by Wooler-Hodec. It was offered in ten colours over its life.

Design and features

• Galvanised chassis: the first production car with every chassis part made of galvanised steel.
• Composite body: twelve fibreglass-epoxy panels on a steel frame, essentially rust-free.
• Three-abreast seating: three separate seats in one row, the middle one folding into an armrest.
• Aerodynamic shape: a drag coefficient of 0.328, low for a 1980 coupe.
• Corporate parts: Talbot engines, a Citroën CX transaxle and Horizon tail lamps.

Matra Murena versions

• Murena 1.6: the base model with the Poissy four.
• Murena 2.2: the larger Type 180 engine with a single Solex carburettor.
• Murena S: the last 480 cars, built with the 142 PS Préparation 142 engine and twin carburettors.

Matra also built the Rancho, and the Murena shared its engines with the Talbot Alpine and Talbot Tagora. More cars are in the Talbot collection.

Sources

• Matra Murena, English Wikipedia: development, chassis, engines, production