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Peugeot 406

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Peugeot 406 coupe
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Peugeot 406 coupe

The Peugeot 406 was a large family car produced by the French manufacturer Peugeot from 1995 to 2004.

Contents

History

The 406 was available in sedan, station wagon and coupé bodystyles with a choice of gasoline or turbodiesel engines.

The car can be seen as a direct descendant of its predecessor, the 405, to which it has a very similar silhouette. It used the same platform as the Citroën Xantia, though without that car's sophisticated hydropneumatic suspension system.

The Peugeot 406 was a sales success from its launch, with over 1.5 million units sold.

As was to be expected given Peugeot's long history with diesels, the diesel versions were very popular, and the 406 became one of Europe's best-selling diesel-powered cars. Initially, the car was available with 1.8 L and 2.0 L gasoline and 1.9 L turbodiesel engines, followed by a 110 bhp 2.1 L turbodiesel, turbocharged 2.0 L and 3.0 L gasoline V6 engines.

The turbodiesel engines were replaced by HDi units in 1999. These new generation HDi engines were cleaner, smoother, quieter and 25 percent more economical than the units they replaced.

Although the 406 was not marketed as a sporty vehicle, its engines provided competitive performance, and the car's handling won consistent praise in all product reviews. In fact the handling has always been considered one of the 406's strongest points.

The 3.0 L V6 could match some sports cars for straight line accelereation. Performance figures for this engine have been timed variously between 0-60 mph in 8.5 and 6.9 seconds, the latter time recorded by the UK's Top Gear magazine in 1998.

While similar in size, shape, and design to the contemporary Honda Accord, French journalists lavishly praised the 406 as an excellent driving car, agile and sprightly enough to entertain on back roads, while still comfortable enough to be a long-distance cruiser. Pundits of that era commonly regarded the 406 as superior to the Honda Accord, Opel/Vauxhall Vectra, and Ford Mondeo in almost every aspect.

In 1997, the UK's Car magazine tested the 406 3.0 V6 Executive against the BMW 323i SE and the Audi 2.8 SE. The test involved build quality, appearance and driving performance. The 406 was awarded first place with the following comments:

"Terrific V6 engine transforms 406. Better value than Germans, more fun to drive."

Contemporary journalists noted that build quality was dramatically improved over earlier Peugeot models. Despite its humble commodity marque badge, the 406 has even been compared to larger, more prestigious cars like the BMW 5 Series and the Mercedes CLK.

From 2001 onwards, reviews for the 406 tended to state the car's age, commenting that build quality, equipment levels, crash safety and so forth were starting to lag behind newer rivals'. It could be argued that some motoring magazines, both on- and off-line, say this about many cars which have been around for more than two or three years. Whatever the case, the 406 continued to sell in formidable numbers. Despite some criticism from the motoring press Peugeot wisely followed the old adage, "If it ain't broke, don't fix it".

Due to the car's large size and weight, both of which were greater than most rival models, the gasoline-powered 406 tends to suffer from comparatively poor fuel economy. To an extent this was rectified by the HDi turbodiesel engines which were claimed to reach over 50mpg.

No hatchback version was produced, despite this car competing against rivals like the Renault Laguna and Ford Mondeo, where hatchbacks made up most of the sales. Ultimately, this did not appear to affect 406 sales. (The Citroën Xantia, the 406's sister car, was a hatchback-only model with no sedan bodystyle.)

The highly regarded coupé version of the 406 was both designed and built by Italian designer Pininfarina, with choices of a 2.0 L 4-cylinder engine or a 3.0 L V6, and from 2001, a 2.2 L HDi diesel engine.

The 406 was notably successful in the UK, where it was built in the factories inherited from Chrysler Europe. It broke into the key UK fleet sales market, with 90 percent of units becoming company cars. UK sales overshadowed the Peugeot 205, Peugeot's previous best-selling model in the UK.

The Peugeot 406 was never marketed in the US, due to the failure of the Peugeot 405 in that market.

The Peugeot 406 was succeeded by the larger, more prestigious 407 in 2004. The 407 has failed to emulate its predecessor's success, not through any fault of the 407's, but arguably thanks to the enduring popularity of the venerable 406.

Engines

The 406 was available with the following engines:

The 1.8 L and 2.0 L gasoline engines were intended as workhorse engines to get the car from place to place without the distraction of exciting performance (it should be noted that the 2.0 L engine was the same unit found in the original 206 GTi). The 1.8 L engine in particular struggled to move such a heavy car. The 1.6 L engine was never released in the UK.

The turbocharged 2.0 L gasoline engine was intended to bridge the gap between the gasoline 2.0 L and the 3.0 L V6. It was the same CT (constant torque) engine seen in the sporty Citroen Xantia Activa, supplying 150 bhp and an enormous (for a gasoline engine) 175 ft·lbf of torque. Despite its relatively low bhp output and light pressure (9 psi) boost, the turbocharged engine offered more exciting performance than most of the range and is said to be the best compromise between excitement and sensibility. Although it would quickly fall behind the V6, the 2.0 L turbocharged CT is dynamic enough to compete with certain hatchback GTis, a testament to the ferocity of its acceleration. For example, the manufacturer's quoted 0-62mph acceleration time of the 406 turbo is 9.2 seconds. The Mk 4 Golf GTi's 0-62 is usually quoted as greater than 10 seconds.

The V6 engine was unusual in contemporary car circles for being a full-sized 3.0 L. Usually, manufacturers use a smaller-displacement engine such as Ford's 2.5 L V6. As such, the Peugeot V6 had a distinct displacement advantage over its rivals. Two V6 engines were available. Between 1996 and 1999, the V6 engine was rated at 186 bhp (often quoted as 192 bhp). From 2000 onwards, the V6 was uprated to 210 bhp.

The 406 was most commonly supplied with a diesel engine. The original turbodiesel engine was replaced in 1999 by the superior HDi unit, which is also turbocharged. Although the HDi offered greater refinement, noticeably improved fuel economy, plus a common rail system (which means the engine does not have to be preheated before starting), the HDi engines tended to lack the performance of the old turbodiesel range, with one exception being the 2.2 L HDi.

By 1998, the 406 was one of the most popular diesel cars in Europe, an accolade it still boasts in 2006, fully ten years after its launch - a time when most other cars are starting to fade.

Trim levels

United Kingdom 1995-2004 range

Note: While the HDi engines are not normally referred to as "turbodiesels", they are still turbocharged. This is reflected in the spec list shown above.

Special editions

In 1998, Peugeot UK released a special LS-spec model. The 406 LS was fitted with a subtle rear spoiler, circular front fog lights (replacing the usual cylindrical lights) and a bodykit consisting of mildly modified front and rear bumpers. The LS was fitted with unique 5-spoke 15" alloy wheels.

In 2001, the Rapier edition 406 was released in the UK. This model came in a unique and very attractive shade of blue and was equipped with leather interior and a one-disc CD player.

Performance versions

No overtly sporty editions of the 406 were released. This is in contrast with the Honda Accord Type-R and the Nissan Primera GT, for example. However, the V6 versions were very competitive in performance terms, although they were marketed as luxury cruisers rather than sports saloons.

The 406 saloon is starting to become popular in the tuning and import scene. Two major bodykits have been released - the Diablo, also called the Touring kit (although it does not resemble the BTCC touring car in any way), and the Musketier kit, which resembles the LS special edition. Numerous other front bumpers are becoming available, mainly in Europe, including a BTCC-style lower front bumper.

Lexus-style light clusters, stiffened lowering springs, uprated grooved and drilled brakes, dump valve kits, superchips and so forth are also available to enhance performance. All 406 models tend to respond well to suspension enhancements, and turbocharged models (including the diesels) can be very competitive with minor engine work.

406 in motorsport

A racing variant of the 406 was successful throughout Europe and Australia in touring car racing. Laurent Aïello, who had previously been a multiple winner of the French Supertourisme Championship with the Peugeot 405, won the 1997 German STW Cup in a 406. He also finished third the previous year, and second the following year.

British Touring Car Championship

Unfortunately, the 406 saloon was not very successful in the prestigious British Touring Car Championship, in which (in works guise) it failed to win a race. This came as a surprise to all involved given the 406's excellent string of results from Europe. Of all the championships in the world it would be the BTCC which would prove to be Peugeot's stumbling block.

Tim Harvey and Patrick Watts were regularly seen battling in the BTCC midfield order (1997) in which the 406 showed occasional flashes of real form, scoring several excellent podium finishes. A supposedly improved version of the 406 Supertouring with stiffer front suspension was entered for the 1998 Championship. Driver Tim Harvey reported that the team were "delighted with the car" and were expecting to be front runners for that season. The Peugeot team failed to make any impact at all; in fact, the cars were lucky to even finish a race due to a plague of reliability problems and accidents, neither of which were hampering the 406's victories throughout Europe.

These accidents, combined with changes within the team including a switch from Prodrive to MSD, plus rumoured issues of the car being "underpowered" (Charlie Cox, BTCC commentator, 1998) and suffering from reliability problems possibly related to the suspension and the car's oil system, killed Peugeot's challenge from the beginning. In fact, in the 1998 BTCC season review, the 406 touring cars can be seen to be overtaken by independent runners on several occasions; given the power and handling difference between most works and independent cars, this gives an indication of how the Peugeot team was struggling.

However, nobody ever officially answered the quetion on a million lips: "how come it can't win in Britain when it's dominant in Germany?"

Paul Radisich fought his way into 14th position overall for the year with 31 points. At an Oulton Park meeting, Radisich showed his ability to extract every drop of the 406's potential when he successfully held off race leader Alain Menu on two occasions, preventing Menu's Laguna from lapping the ailing Peugeot.

Tim Harvey finished 17th that year with just 10 points. This was a surprise considering Harvey's extensive experience within the BTCC, and may reflect Harvey's greater tendency that year to suffer accidents on the track.

Peugeot came last out of 8 manufacturer teams with just 96 points in total for the 1998 season.

Despite 1998's atrocious season - following which Peugeot announced its withdrawal from the BTCC to concentrate on its more successful, and bigger-budgeted, rally programme - the 406 made a resounding comeback in its final appearance of the 1997 racing season, where it proved surprisingly competitive in the Australian Bathurst race before retiring with accident damage towards the end of the race. The 406 was not entered into any official British racing championships again.

It wasn't all bad news. In 1997, independent team driver Lee Brookes ran an ex-works Peugeot 406 to defend the title he won in the previous year's Championship. Although the car performed poorly at first as it did for the works team, by mid-season Brookes had turned his 406 into an extremely competitive car. He finished second in the independent cup for 1997.

After the regulations of the BTCC were overhauled in 2001, Peugeot returned to the series with the 406 coupe where they were confident that the car's large size would enable it to outperform the dominant Vauxhall Astra under braking conditions. However, expectations were not great, since the 406 Coupe had reached the end of its product development lifecycle (Charlie Cox, BTCC commentator, 2001) and was not proven in British motorsport. Peugeot again failed to achieve any wins, mainly thanks to an engine failure in the closing stages of an Oulton Park race which denied Peugeot driver Steve Soper a maiden win for the frustrated French manufacturer.

After one flash of brilliance at Oulton Park, the 406 coupe failed to be competitive in the series again. Peugeot remained involved in the BTCC until 2003, but the 406 was replaced after the 2002 season by a racing variant of the Peugeot 307.

Front wheel drive racing cars are not especially popular in the present day, and the 406 touring car only rarely makes appearances in modern motorsport, always run by privateer teams.

Appearances in media

The 406 sedan has made high-profile appearances in several films, most famously the French "Taxi" trilogy. In the first Taxi film the 406 was simply a modified 3.0 V6 capable of tremendous speed; in the second film the car had pop-out wings to aid aerial movement, such as when the car "jumps" over French army tanks trying to block its escape; in the third film, the 406 is further upgraded to be able to travel in icy terrain.

The Peugeot 406 has also starred in the film "Ronin", in which it is driven by Robert DeNiro in the final car chase.

The 406 has appeared in Gran Turismo 2 (Sony PlayStation) where it was among the most competitive Class-C (city runner) vehicles in the game, with characteristically good handling and a potential power rating of 300 bhp (saloon/sedan) and 350 bhp (coupe) through modification.

The 3.0 L V6 saloon also appears in Sega GT 2000 and Sega GT Online (Microsoft Xbox), where it is one of only a handful of mainstream saloon cars included in the games. It is a competitive vehicle after some tweaking despite being the heaviest car in the game.

Peugeot are one of eight manufacturer teams appearing in most of the TOCA games. The original TOCA is based on the 1997 BTCC season and TOCA 2 is based on the 1998 season. TOCA 3: World Touring Cars also features a 406 supertouring in an unofficial trim. TOCA: Race Driver features the 406 coupe BTCC supertouring wearing its flourescent green (2001) livery.

The car also made an appearance in coupe form in Gran Turismo 4.

User mods for vehicle-based computer games such as Grand Theft Auto: Vice City and Need for Speed replace certain cars with the 406.

External links

Peugeot — A marque of PSA Peugeot Citroën — timeline, 1950s-present [http://encycl.opentopia.com/ edit]
Type 1950s 1960s 1970s 1980s 1990s 2000s
0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9
City car 104 106 107
Supermini 203 204 205 206 207
Small family car 304 305 309 306 307 308
Large family car 403 404 405 406 407
Executive car 504 505
604 605 607
Leisure activity vehicle Partner
Mini MPV 1007
Large MPV 806 807
SUV P4 4007

 

From Wikipedia, the Free Encyclopedia. Original article here. Support Wikipedia by contributing or donating.
All text is available under the terms of the GNU Free Documentation License See Wikipedia Copyrights for details.

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