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Car and Driver

1980 Peugeot 504 Diesel Doesn't Mess with Success

From the January 1980 issue of Car and Driver. Though tumultuous changes are rippling through the auto industry at an ever increasing rate these days, one thing remains con­stant: the Peugeot 504. It's an old car, intro­duced in France in the late Sixties and first imported to the U.S. in 1970. All the low-vol­ume European builders—Volvo, Saab, Lan­cia, and the like—have completely spaded over their model lineups since then. Peu­geot? Well, there have been new Peugeots since then, too, but 504-wise, a diesel engine is the whole story. Actually, make that two diesel engines. The original version, brought over in 1974, was a 2.1-liter four-cylinder. This was up­graded to 2.3 liters—and 71 horsepower at 4500 rpm—in 1977. It was this second en­gine, together with an easy-shifting four­-speed manual transmission (an automatic is also available), that powered our test car. View Photos Andre LaRoche | Car and Driver Perhaps the reason the 504 has changed so little in the past decade is that it didn't need to. It is an exceptionally comfortable car, more German than French in its manner and methods. The seats are German firm rather than French squishy. The suspension has nice, resilient German roll stiffness produced by anti-sway bars front and rear rather than the typical French marshmallow springs. Only in one area does the we-do-it-different­ly-in-France syndrome intrude: in the loca­tion of the turn-signal lever, which is on the right side of the column. The same lever doubles as the horn button too, so you might as well get used to reaching for it. Of course, the diesel engine strongly rein­forces the 504's Teutonic personality. It makes the Doktor Diesel clatter in abundance. In fact, the Peugeot, at least subjec­tively, is the noisiest diesel on the market these days. You're always aware of it, wheth­er in traffic or cruising, whether freshly start­ed from cold or fully warmed up after an hour's drive. There is more vibration than we'd like, too, enough to set up a sympathet­ic buzz in the test car in some piece of un­seen but audible sheetmetal. Such a ruckus would be bad manners even in a Pinto; it's most unwelcome in a $10,000 car. View Photos Andre LaRoche | Car and Driver The specifications of this new diesel are the same as those of the 1977 model, but performance is off noticeably. Top speed has dropped to an indicated 76 mph. Accelera­tion remains perceptible throughout the range, but when the speedo needle hits 76, the governor tops out. It feels as if your lane had suddenly turned to wet cement. That's top speed—uphill, downhill, tail wind, you name it. And this, in turn, points up one area in which the Peugeot runs counter to trend. Most new cars have 85-mph speedometers and the power to drive off the end of the scale. The 504 Diesel has numbers showing to 130 mph and barely enough energy to lift the needle halfway. Of course, nobody buys a diesel for speed. For that matter, once it's been strained through the emissions-control process, no­body buys a gasoline-powered Peugeot 504 in this country for speed, either. Rather, one buys it for comfort and road manners. There is good seating room for four, and enough width to squeeze three across in the back if you must. Headroom compares favorably with that of the Sistine Chapel. The interior is not fancy—just high-quality vinyl, a few splashes of chrome, and decent carpets—but the comfort tells you that you're in the first­-class section. View Photos Andre LaRoche | Car and Driver The 504 has a first-class way of comport­ing itself on the road too, particularly on sec­ondary surfaces. The long-travel suspension swallows chuckholes and tar patches very gracefully. You don't have to slow down to keep the wheels on the ground in the rough sections. On smooth roads—your average freeways and well-maintained city streets­—the ride is a bit harsher than the American standard, more like that of a BMW. Direc­tional stability is very good, both on bad roads and in crosswinds. Driving is easy in this car. In fact, the 504 is more secure over the road than a number of newer cars, some even made by Peugeot. Such a mannerly car deserves to stay on the market a long time. View Photos Andre LaRoche | Car and Driver Specifications Specifications 1980 Peugeot 504 Diesel Vehicle Type: front-engine, rear-wheel-drive, 5-passenger, 4-door sedan PRICE Base/As Tested: $9598/$10,769 ENGINE diesel inline-4, iron block and head, port fuel injection Displacement: 141 in3, 2304 cm3 Power: 71 hp @ 4500 rpm TRANSMISSION 4-speed manual DIMENSIONS Wheelbase: 108.0 in Length: 182.4 in Curb Weight (C/D est): 3400 lb EPA FUEL ECONOMY (EST) Combined: 28 mpg