The Peugeot 305 is a medium-sized car produced by the French automaker Peugeot from 1977 to 1989. It was offered as a four-door saloon, five-door estate, and as a three-door van derivative.
During the mid 1970s, the motoring press speculated that a new Peugeot would soon arrive, in order to update the company's model lineup, in an attempt to make the Peugeot more internationally appealing. Since Peugeot had only recently discontinued their long-running 404 model, many people thought that the purpose of the new car would to fill the gap, previously occupied by the 404, between the 304 and 504 models, to compete against cars like the Ford Cortina/Taunus and Renault 12. It therefore would have been natural for the new car to be called the 405, commencing a new "05" generation of Peugeot models. However, in fact the car was developed from the running gear from the 304, but in terms of size and price, it was close to the already-defunct 404. The 304 would remain in production some time after the new car was introduced. Instead of being called the 405, the new car was called the 305. When it made its press début in November 1977, the motoring press were initially confused as to why it was called a 305 rather than a 405.[citation needed]
The Peugeot 305 was unveiled in November 1977,[2] and was initially available as a four-door saloon with a choice of two petrol engines: a 1290cc, 65PS (48kW; 64hp) unit for the GL and GR models or a 1472 cc, 74PS (54kW; 73hp) for the top-specification SR model. Four months later Peugeot announced the 305 GRD, discreetly identified from the outside by the letters "GRD" on the left side of the boot/trunk lid, and powered by a 1548 cc diesel unit incorporating an aluminium engine block with an overhead camshaft along with a Bosch injector pump, and offering up to 50PS (37kW; 49hp) of power.[2]
In March 1980, the 305 Break (Estate) and Break Service (French market name for the Fourgonnette or Van) were introduced at the Geneva Salon.[3] Going on sale in August, these replaced the earlier 304 Break and Fourgonnette, which were discontinued in May 1980. At Paris 1980, the sportier 305 S with twin carburettors and 89PS (65kW; 88hp) was introduced.[4] After the 1982 facelift, the top model became the GTX, with 105PS (77kW). The 305 was the first of the "05" generation of Peugeots, a generation which survived until the end of 605 production in 1999.
Despite the performance limitations of the smaller engine, the gearbox in all 305s was excellent, with extremely precise and light gear changes.[citation needed] The 305 combined a front-wheel-drive car with an excellent and durable gearbox. There was no fifth gear provided but Peugeot was reported to have said that the car had no difficulty reaching 95mph (153km/h) if pushed to the limit.[citation needed]
Power came from 1.3-litre or 1.5-litre petrol and 1.55-litre diesel engines and later, after the facelift, the 1.5-litre was replaced by a 1.6-litre and 1.9-litre petrol and diesel engines (XUD) were added. These were the same as used in the Talbot Horizon, a model acquired in 1979 when Peugeot took over Chrysler's European division and rebranded it as Talbot.
The facelifted, series 2 models arrived at the Paris Salon in late 1982, to keep the 305 competitive with newer designs like the Ford Sierra and the new version of the Vauxhall Cavalier/Opel Ascona.[5] They had revised frontal styling, new improved front suspension and steering, a new dashboard and a modified under bonnet and subframe layout to allow the new generation of XU series engines with 5-speed gearbox to be fitted. Thus switching from the Mini type in-sump gearbox arrangement used also in the 204 and 304 to the now-universal end-on gearbox configuration (pioneered by Fiat in the 1960s Autobianchi Primula), of front-wheel drive with a transverse engine and a gearbox on the end of the engine and unequal-length drive shafts. However, the GL / GR and van models continued to use the earlier XL/XR series engines with four-speed gearbox for a few more years. The diesel engine fitted to the phase 2 305 was capable of over 50mpg (Imp). The engine at the time was regarded as the best diesel around where most other engines notably those from Volkswagen and British Leyland sounded agricultural in comparison.[citation needed]
Late 305 GT BreakPeugeot 305 GL Van
Sales of the 305 were strong in France and most other countries where the car was sold, In Britain, its original competitors were the Ford Cortina MK4, Vauxhall Cavalier MK1 and Morris Marina. It was launched around the same time as its key French rival, the Renault 18. Later in its production life, it was competing with newer rivals including the Ford Sierra, MK2 Vauxhall Cavalier, Austin Montego, Renault 21, and the British-built Nissan Bluebird.
Production of saloons ceased in 1988, following the launch of the slightly larger and more powerful Peugeot 405, which proved a much stronger seller in the United Kingdom. Production of 305 estates ceased in 1989 and did not see a direct replacement until the launch of the 306 estate in 1997. The three-door Van (Fourgonnette, or Break Service in the home market) continued to be built until June 1990 and was not replaced.[3] A total of 86,413 Fourgonnettes were built, making it the least common bodystyle by a substantial margin.[3]
Although it was a reasonably common sight on Britain's roads throughout the 1980s and until well into the 1990s, just 76 examples of the 305 were reported to be on Britain's roads by February 2016.[6]
Body design
The body was done by Italian stylist Pininfarina and was completely new.[7] It was all-steel monocoque which strongly resembled the BMW 3 Series of the time. The design is based on Peugeot's 'VSS' prototype safety vehicle, which Peugeot created to improve car safety. This meant that the car had front and rear crumple zones, side impact protection, a protected fuel tank and bolt-on front wings. Three bodystyles were available, consisting of a conventional three-box four-door sedan, a five-door station wagon, and a three-door panel van.
VERA
A series of aerodynamic research studies called VERA (Véhicule Économe de Recherche Appliquée, "applied research in economical vehicles") was also begun in 1981. The first model was a petrol-engined version (VERA 01) with a 63hp (46kW) engine, topping out at 155km/h (96mph).[8] The cars were significantly lightened; the VERA 02 went from 925 to 750kg or 2,040 to 1,650lb and made more aerodynamic.[9] A large rear wing, skirts covering parts of the rear wheels, and deeply scalloped sections behind the front wheels were all noticeable. The Cx was reduced from 0.44 to 0.319, helping lower fuel consumption between 33 and 38 percent.[9] At the 1982 Geneva Salon the VERA 02, with a 1362cc turbodiesel, was shown, and the more radical VERA Plus followed later in 1982 - this was no more than a thinly veiled Peugeot 309 prototype.
Suspension
The 305 estate marked the debut of the now standard PSA Peugeot Citroën rear suspension layout. This is fully independent using trailing arms. It is very compact and was designed to minimise suspension intrusion into the wide flat loadspace, while providing excellent ride and handling. This was later developed (in other Peugeots) to use torsion bars instead of the 305's horizontal coil springs, and it was a key ingredient of the success of the Peugeot 205. The torsion bars system was very similar to those used by Renault and Simca for many years previously.
The Ford Sierra is a mid-size car or large family car manufactured and marketed by Ford Europe from 1982–1993, designed by Uwe Bahnsen, Robert Lutz and Patrick le Quément — and noted for its aerodynamic styling producing a drag coefficient of 0.34, a significant improvement over its predecessors.
The Vauxhall Cavalier is a large family car that was sold primarily in the United Kingdom by Vauxhall from 1975 to 1995. It was based on a succession of Opel designs throughout its production life, during which it was built in three incarnations. The first generation of Cavalier, launched in 1975 and produced until 1981, was Vauxhall's version of the General Motors 'U-Car' - essentially an Opel Ascona B/ Opel Manta with a few minor visual differences.
The Peugeot 205 is a supermini (B-segment) car produced by the French manufacturer Peugeot from 1983 to 1999.
The Peugeot 405 is a large family car manufactured by the French automaker Peugeot from 1987 to 1997. Its production continued under license from outside Europe in Iran by Iran Khodro Company until 2020. It was voted European Car of the Year for 1988 by the largest number of votes in the history of the contest. About 2.5 million vehicles have been sold worldwide, both in left and right drive versions, as a saloon and estate. Inearly 2020, the 33-year production run of the Peugeot 405 was counted as the twentieth most long-lived single generation car in history."
The Peugeot 504 is a mid-size, front-engine, rear-wheel-drive automobile manufactured and marketed by Peugeot from 1968 to 1983 over a single generation, primarily in four-door sedan and wagon configurations – but also as twin two-door coupé and cabriolet configurations as well as pickup truck variants.
The Citroën BX is a large family car which was produced by the French manufacturer Citroën from 1982 to 1994. In total, 2,315,739 BXs were built during its 12-year history. The hatchback was discontinued in 1993 with the arrival of the Xantia, but the estate continued for another year. The BX was designed to be lightweight, using particularly few body parts, including many made from plastics.
The Peugeot 309 is a small family car that was manufactured between 1985 and 1994 in England, Spain and France by PSA Peugeot Citroën. It was originally intended to be badged as a Talbot and, as development progressed, to be called the Talbot Arizona.
The Rover 200 Series, and later the Rover 25, are a series of small family cars that were produced by British manufacturer Rover from 1984 until 2005.
The Opel Ascona is a large family car that was produced by the German automaker Opel from 1970 to 1988. It was produced in three separate generations, beginning with rear-wheel-drive and ending up as a front-wheel drive J-car derivative.
The Simca 1307 is a large family car produced by Chrysler Europe and subsequently PSA Peugeot Citroën from 1975 to 1986. Codenamed 'C6' in development, the car was styled in the United Kingdom by Roy Axe and his team at Whitley, and the car was engineered by Simca at Poissy in France.
The Peugeot 204 is a small family car produced by the French manufacturer Peugeot between 1965 and 1976.
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The Renault 18 is a large family car produced by French manufacturer Renault between 1978 and 1989, with South American production continuing until 1994. It formed the basis for the closely related Renault Fuego Coupé, with which it shared its floorpan and drivetrain, but with the Fuego initially using the negative offset type front suspension from the larger Renault 20/30, which became standardized across the 18 range from the 1983 model year onwards.
The Peugeot 304 is a small family car manufactured and marketed by the French manufacturer Peugeot from 1969 to 1980.
The Peugeot 604 is an executive car produced by the French manufacturer Peugeot from 1975 to 1985. 153,252 cars were sold during its 10-year production life. It was made in France and also assembled by Kia in South Korea, between 1979 and 1981.
1982 in motoring includes developments in the automotive industry throughout 1982 by various automobile manufacturers, grouped by country.
1978 in motoring deals with developments in the automotive industry that occurred in 1978, listed by country. The automotive industry designs, develops, manufactures, markets, and sells motor vehicles.
The Opel Corsa is a supermini car engineered and produced by the German automobile manufacturer Opel since 1982. Throughout its existence, it has been sold under a variety of other brands owned by General Motors and also spawned various other derivatives.
References
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