French company Peugeot produced its first car in 1889 and in 1892 became the first manufacturer to use rubber tyres on petrol powered vehicles. Initially Peugeot used Daimler engines in its vehicles but by 1896 the company had developed its own technology.

Peugeot’s instantly recognisable and trademarked method of naming its cars, using three digits with a central zero, began in 1929 with the 201. This was also the first car to feature independent front suspension. Further innovation came in 1934 with a car featuring a folding, retractable hardtop.

Expansion began in 1958 as the company broke into the American market and collaboration on the design of engines with other firms came in 1966 with Renault and in 1972 with Volvo. Two years later Peugeot purchased a 30% share in the struggling Citroën company, before taking over completely in 1975.

Despite this growth Peugeot began to struggle in the 1980s, before the arrival of the 205 model turned things around. The 205’s styling helped Peugeot shake off its conservative image, coming second in the European Car of the Year award. More recently both the 405 and 307 have won the award, in 1988 and 2001 respectively.

Peugeot has seen great success in the world of motor sports, particularly in rallying, with the 206 dominating the sport for several years from 1999. This continued a tradition which began in 1913 with a Peugeot victory in the Indianapolis 500.

1991 saw the end of Peugeot’s trading in the USA following rapidly declining sales, while in April 2006 the closure of the company’s British plant was announced. The brand continues, however, to be the UK’s third most popular after Ford and Vauxhall.

EuroNCAP Safety Ratings for Peugeot cars
The European New Car Assessment Programme produces reports on the safety of vehicles based on the results of several crash tests. As well as measuring how the car will hold up in a crash the risk to a pedestrian struck by the car is assessed. The star ratings (maximum 5) of key Peugeot models are shown below.