I also have to emphatically agree with Trygve on this point...I think that
to the majority of drivers on the road, Peugeots are perceived as being
"regular cars," the same as a Chevy or VW. In fact, I would guess that
there are many Peugeot drivers who themselves do not consider their cars to
be anything special. However, people like myself and the rest of us on this
list perceive some sense of value or character in these cars, which is the
foremost reason for "collecting" a car...whether this becomes a trend beyond
our cyber-club remains to be seen.
>While I'm rambling, I guess other factors that make a car a desirable
>collector vehicle is that we wanted to own one when they were new but could
>never afford one when we were teenagers. This is where the MG,
>Austin-Healey, Porsche, etc., come in. Now that a lot of us are in middle
>age and have some liquid assets we might start trying to get what was
>unattainable before. So, ask yourselves, who desperately wanted to buy a
>505 or 405 when they were available new?
Two points here: First, just about every convertible ever produced that is
over 15 years old can now be considered a collectible (barring Dodge 600s,
of course). Open cars naturally lend themselves to the collector. After
the 404 convertible, Peugeot did not sell any ragtops in the US, hence, the
most obvious collector Peugeots do not exist here. And those hardtop cars
which become collectable are usually high-end, high-performance, or some
combination of the two. Some, like Datsun 510s and BMW 2002s, found their
way into collectability because of their combination of driving enjoyment
and affordability. Others, like Fiat 131s and Rover TCs are steadily dying
away due to rust, failure, etc, and will probably never enjoy collector
status.
And secondly, when the 405 first came out, I was 14 years old. My father
was buying a new car, and was choosing between an Acura Legend, a Nissan
Maxima, a Volvo 740 Turbo, and a Honda Accord. I convinced him to check out
the Eagle Medallion and Peugeot 405S, in the hopes that he might drive home
with something interesting. He was more impressed with the Medallion than
with the 405, and he ultimately bought the Legend. But I would consider
that a case of teen-age Peugeot desire. Maybe that's why I currently have
my 405 - a similar situation to people who bought MGs because they were the
dream cars of their youth (although if I truly had the dream car of my
youth, I would then be driving a Lamborghini Countach 5000S QV).
Adam
PS - Has anyone else ever thought that the basic design of the '89-97 Ford
Thunderbird is similar to the 405? The slope of the A and C pillars, as
well as the overall proportions, and front grille/headlight design always
struck me as very similar...just a thought.
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