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French manufacturers were the first to come to the US and Canada at the end of the 19th century At the beginning of the French automobile industry was the most advanced and the French market was by far the most important.
The first car was the Obedient made in Le Mans, France in 1873. There was a steam engine As anecdote, when the first car in Paris, the driver received 73 fines, although the car could not go over 30 mph.
The French pioneers have worked hard to develop steam, electric motors and gasoline to determine the largest industry bases in the world.
The gasoline engine was created in 1860 in Paris by Etienne Lenoir, but it was patented in 1884 by Edouard Delamare-Deboutteville The first two cars of gasoline were produced in 1883 and 1884 but the chassis was destroyed during testing and the project was abandoned Meanwhile a first electric car engine was designed in 1869, but it was only in 1881 that the first electric car was operated in reality, there was a bus to link instead of the nation and Versailles Like anecdote, the bus was 9 tons of batteries.
It wasn t until 1886 that the Germans are beginning to have an interest in cars near Stuttgart, Daimler and Maybach created a very small engine gasoline cooled air that has developed power 1.1 The German market didn t exist for Louise Sarazin - Daimler and Maybach representative in Paris - convinced Emile Levassor that France was a market for such a small engine Emile Levassor thought his client immediately Peugeot Frères.
Type 3 engine was designed by Daimler, but was licensed for production in France by Levassor then sold to Peugeot He was 15 V-twin and produced 2 hp, enough for a maximum speed of about 18 kilometers per hour 11 mph.
A type 3 was lightened came in 1895 in Paris Bordeaux Paris, placing second and to maintain an average speed of 21 5 kilometers to the time of day 13 4 mph.
The 80s were the beginning of the end for Peugeot and Renault in the US and Canada.
The situation for Renault US was very complex In 1979, Renault bought American Motors Corporation when AMC went bankrupt The agreement included a loan of 135 million to AMC and place for Renault in the US AMC concessions It was good news to the CMA already struggling dealerships in the United States to expand AMC, Renault has decided to invest more by opening the Bramalea Assembly was the automotive assembly plant the most advanced in America North Futhermore Renault has found a way to sell jeeps in China in the middle of the cold war.
The Assembly Bramalea became a great interest in Chrysler, which wanted to lease part of the advanced assembly lines to build their own cars AMC could not afford not to explore this option because of its financial support from Renault.
In the mid-80s sales were declining and AMC had to fight against rumors that some production lines wercked The Pentagon has also had problems with AM General, a major defense contractor, managed by a company part owned by French Government the US government would not allow a foreign government to own a significant part of a major supplier of defense accordingly profitable AM General division was sold.
Georges Besse, new CEO of Renault, continued to defend the future of French society on the North American market, pointing to the company's completion of the new and automotive assembly plant the most advanced in North America, as well as the recent introduction of thoroughly modern, fuel injection 4 0 L and 2 L 5 motors in addition, Jeep vehicles were riding an unprecedented increase in demand It seemed Besse and others that AMC was on track to profitability, however, November 17, 1986, Georges Besse, which has a high profile among french capitalists, was killed by direct action, a clandestine militant extremist group variously described as communist, anarchist and Maoist who professed strong sympathies for the proletariat and the aspirations of the third World.
Under pressure from Renault executives after the death of Besse, the new president of Renault, Raymond Levy has undertaken repair work relations and give the company its investment in American Motors.
On March 9, 1987, Chrysler agreed to buy Renault's share in AMC, and all the remaining shares, for about 1 5 billion Chrysler have immediately benefited from new Jeeps and new engines, easily recoup their investment but changing AMC-Jeep Eagle name The acquisition was an attractive deal for Chrysler.
By following the Renault left the North American auto market they came partly However in 1999 when Renault bought Nissan Today, some Nissan cars use the Renault chassis and you can easily find Renault technology in Nissan and Infinity vehicles.
As for Peugeot, the situation was much different Peugeot had a prestigious image which participated in the expansion of the US auto industry, for example, Peugeot was the first non-American car manufacturer to win the Motor Speedway of Indianapolis in 1913 with a speed of 150 kph about 94 mph.
So why Peugeot leaves the North American market.
Officially, it was because of price competition between US and Japanese automakers Let's say that the 80s are the best time for the US market Automakers had to make significant price reductions to sell their stocks Meanwhile Peugeot launched the all-new 405, a large car with a positioning between segments midmarket and upmarket as Oldsmobile in the early 2000s.
Result was the failure of the new 405, essentially pushing to stop production Peugeot cars for the North American markets, although the 605 was ready to be launched.
In fact, the French pioneers were a great inspiration for car manufacturers in the world, but World War II destroyed all the know-how of high production of luxury material in French However, some prestigious models were made such the Citroen DS, Renault Alpine, the Peugeot 404 or cut Facel Vega cars.
Today, the French car industry rises steadily up Month after month the new models are more and more powerful sophiticated The high quality of recent models can not get back to where they should be.
Give us your thoughts on the French automotive industry in the United States.
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