There is something amiss in the state of France. Not a day passes without some new report of the poor loves drawing hard on their Gauloises, tears dripping gently on to their croissants as they bemoan their loss of confidence in all things French. Their language has been invaded by crude American imports, their cuisine has been overtaken by a rampant phalanx of British chefs and their influence in the world has been usurped by that pushy Blair chap.
Yet they have at least one thing to celebrate, if the latest offerings are anything to go by — a revived car industry. It is not long ago that you could have told me French car designers had been struck down by a mystery ailment that had rendered them all blind and I would have been forced to believe it, such was the dearth of imagination in some of those dull creations.
What happened that meant we had to swap the futuristic Citroën DS with the dreary Xsara and that battalion of anonymous Euro-boxes?
It seemed that the confidence had drained out of the French car factories and straight into the Channel. And before the French shed any more tears and make a grab for the absinthe, here is another thing that should cheer them up: they have a home-owned car industry, which is more than Britain, for all its gains of recent years, can say.
While we whistled and pretended to look at passing clouds as the family silver was being handed out to the Americans, the French were busy shoring up their industry to ensure that it stayed in domestic hands. Fair play to them; Britain should be ashamed that a nation of its influence could not maintain one mass-producer since the demise of Rover.
Advertisement
So the French might have lost that Gallic imprint that made some of their cars memorable, but they are now producing some of the best shapes on the road. Like the glorious Peugeot 407 Coupé, coming to a showroom near you soon. The French have traditionally struggled to sell upmarket cars, unable to convince buyers that they are a viably glossy alternative to the Germans with their BMWs, Mercedes and Audis. But here is a car with everything: looks, performance . . . oh, and did I mention that the coupé is at its finest as a diesel? Now I am a well-known sceptic of the oil burners, unconvinced by their lolloping performance. Not any more.
The pick of the 407 Coupés has to be the new 2.7-litre V6 HDi. This is a beautiful engine with all the characteristics you would normally associate with a sophisticated petrol-driven car. It is smooth and virtually noiseless and still delivers just over 200 horsepower, which means that performance is as good as anything in its class — and pretty much as good as the 3-litre petrol version — and you will still get well over 30 miles to the gallon.
If I was convinced by the Coupé from the minute I clapped eyes on it, that was nothing to my pleasure in the cockpit. It is a lovely car to drive, to sit in, to show off; you name it. But the £30,000 407 Coupé is an uncharacteristic departure from what the French manufacturers have traditionally done best and that is to make cheap, compact cars with a bit of flair. Designers at Citroën — Peugeot’s sister company — seem to have gone through some sort of Road to Rheims religious experience, looking at their new line-up, which includes the C4 that I tried out. This is probably the first time I have run a Citroën and looked forward to getting into the car, such is the appealing shape.
Better still, this was another diesel, a 1.6-litre, four-cylinder this time — yet this sporty VTR+ version stubbornly refused to return anything less than 43 miles to the gallon, no matter how enthusiastic my right foot. The engine might not be as silky as Peugeot’s V6, but there was plenty of puff and none of the unpleasant rattle that I would normally associate with driving a diesel. The car is a winner and the £500 option of the spectacular all-glass roof is a must to complete the funky styling.
If I had any children left to sell, the Peugeot would be first choice for somewhere to spend the profits, but the C4’s relatively low price, cute looks and astonishing frugality, coupled with decent, sporty performance, has just propelled it on to the Eason wish list.
Advertisement
CITRÖEN C4 VTR+ 1.6 HDi
Price: Between £16,045 (coupé) and £16,445 (hatchback)
Power: 110 brake horsepower from four-cylinder diesel through five-speed manual
Performance: 0 to 60mph in 11.2sec, top speed 119mph; average 60.1 miles to the gallon
They say: Eye-catching and great value
We say: Have it gift-wrapped and sent round
PEUGEOT 407 COUPÉ 2.7 V6 HDi
Price: Between £29,200 and £30,900
Power: 205 brake horsepower from six-cylinder, twin turbo diesel through six-speed automatic gearbox
Performance: 0 to 60mph in 8.5sec, top speed 143mph; average 33.2 miles to the gallon
They say: An elegant, well-proportioned and powerful expression of style
We say: A beautiful and upmarket competitor for the Germans