From the 403, which appeared in 1955, Peugeot began a long collaboration with the Italian coachbuilder Pininfarina. At the beginning, we can not say that this one was particularly sprained: he operated his photocopier and offered the Sochaux manufacturer designs already applied by other customers.
Thus, the 404 of 1960 recovers the main lines of the Lancia Flaminia appeared in 1957 … applied just following by the BMC on its Austin Cambridge / Wolseley 15/60 / Morris Oxford of 1958, or even the Fiat 1800/2100 of 1959 …
This did not prevent the French from achieving great success! For its replacement, Peugeot has put its own style office, headed by the excellent but underestimated Paul Bouvot, in competition with Pininfarina.
The first produced a modern but rather stiff design, well in the style of the productions of the time, however endowed with a rather aggressive front face, characterized by projectors imitating, in an anthropomorphic way, frowning eyebrows. The idea would come back to a member of the team, a certain Gérard Welter.
The second, under the auspices of Aldo Brovarone, signs a bodywork much more worked in volume, almost plump, and equipped with a front face clearly reminiscent of that of the small 204. The management of Peugeot, very friendly with that of Pininfarina, favors the Italian proposal, to the chagrin of Bouvot who does not give up.
Thus, he offers a mix of the two: the proposition of Pininfarina, with the front designed by his team. This clever solution was validated by the Sochaux pundits, and this resulted in the 504, which appeared in 1968. It was immensely successful and determined a good part of Peugeot design for decades to follow.
But who had the idea to say of this before that he had “the eyes of Sophia Loren”? This is Sergio Pininfarina in person, admiring the work of the stylists of the Lion and a good player. As for the odd “broken” trunk lid which clearly sets the aesthetics of the 504 apart, it would indeed be due to an involuntary breakage suffered by a plaster model at Pininfarina.
Peugeot management has still validated it, and we can say that it has greatly served the look of the sedan, identifiable among a thousand whether from the front, profile or rear.
Thanks to Olivier Guin, creator of the remarkable Facebook page Car Design Archive for allowing me to retrieve his photos.
