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Peugeot-Citroen may resurrect the Talbot badge for a series of low-cost cars, the French press has reported.

The sources say that PSA is considering building a range of back-to-basics vehicles in developing nations, which would then be imported for sale in western European markets.

According to the newspaper reports, PSA would like to enter the budget car market, but does not want to tarnish its existing brands by using them on a low-cost car.

PSA has also seen the succes...Read the full article

 I was looking at this theme only yesterday -not knowing that it was under active consideration- and concluded that either Talbot or Simca could be used for base-line cars. Panhard is another option but is not known enough outside France (this might be an advantage). One might be tempted to think that a Talbot would last a week before it broke down and a Simca would rot in the same period.

But what could PSA use for a luxury brand? Neither Peugeot nor Citroen for different reasons seem to inspire confidence outside the French cabinet, so doing a bit of brand placement might be in order. PSA doesn't seem to have any names in its history that would carry the right cache. I wonder if they could buy the Delahaye or Hispano Suiza rights -the latter would be more difficult and problematic, I suspect so I would prefer Delahaye. Neither would be ideal in terms of lineage, but I'm sure that if the C6 was produced slightly more upmarket under a Delahaye badge, it would be considered much more desirable and people wouldn't laugh at the owners -Citroen UK's bizarre marketing notwithstanding.

I think Citroen should resurrect some/all of the following brands: Bouquet, Garcin & Schivre; Audibert & Lavirotte; Chaigneau-Brasier; Chenard-Walcker; Constantinesco; Marie de Bagneux; Quo Vadis; Le Zèbre; La Va Bon Train and many others. I would definitely consider buying a 'La Va Bon Train C6' or a 'Quo Vadis Berlingo'.

julianphillips:

I think Citroen should resurrect some/all of the following brands: Bouquet, Garcin & Schivre; Audibert & Lavirotte; Chaigneau-Brasier; Chenard-Walcker; Constantinesco; Marie de Bagneux; Quo Vadis; Le Zèbre; La Va Bon Train and many others. I would definitely consider buying a 'La Va Bon Train C6' or a 'Quo Vadis Berlingo'.

No!  The amount of people I still hear that can't pronounce Renault or spell Alfa Romeo properly.  Can you imagine the general British public with any of these....

Quality!  I had a Talbot Horizon whilst a student - tough old thing and it rode beautifully - I love cheap cars - they are a real test of ingenuity.  Citroen and Peugeot used to make fairly upmarket cars at one time (alongside the cheap, clever stuff while it was still possible for mass-market brands to do so - perhaps therein lies the rub - it might be more profitable in the long run to bring back the idea of a brand credibly covering the whole market in the way VW seem to be, from the UP! to the new Pheaton). I think the C6 is highly desirable in it's own mad way - The French brands (including Renault) seem to be subtly moving into the space left by BMW and Audi in their never ending pursuit of the chav dollar...

This could sound damn stupid, yet make complete sense, if we are having this economic downturn we can't escape from, a budget brand of euro extraction could be a right nice little earner for Peugeot/Citroen... no one else is better suited to the job, they keep their brands as is, and create a new one to stop us buying Korean, or as time will pass, Chinese brands... No brainer?

Who can forget the Talbot Horizon, with it's clunky gearbox, rattley interior and speedo/odometre that would just fall out as you drove along?

However having said that, it was cheap, cheerful and came with a tank of petrol when you picked it up in Paris.

Which was nice. 

 

I may be an old sentimentalist but for me the history of the Talbot name goes back to the Rootes Group and the Sunbeam Talbot - not a downmarket, economy marque. If they want a cheap and cheerful name from their past, let them use Simca or, at worst, Hillman.

I had a Talbot Samba cabrio - in lovely bright garden-pea green!

Nothing wrong with sentimentality when it comes to cars. It's the subjects bread and butter, GD.

I'd personally love to see Singer make a come back in some form. The Singer Gazelle Singer Vogue would be welcome in a modern shape of their old form. The Sunbeam Rapier is a name that has been abused by Peugeot for too long.

well...Rapier anyway!