Do you know this one? Talbot Arizona
06/03/2024
Visually, this car looks familiar, doesn't it? This shape was known as the Peugeot 309, but it was born as the Talbot Arizona. Internally known as Project C28, it was intended to replace the Talbot Horizon. It was developed by the ex-Chrysler UK design team, but the technology was developed in Poissy (at Peugeot). Four-cylinder ex-Simca engines were to be used, which were left over from the Horizon.
A major challenge was the integration of the doors from the smaller Peugeot 205, which would probably have been designed differently had there been full design freedom. Technically, the Peugeot 309 was ultimately based on the 205, including the floor assembly.
The Talbot Arizona was probably the last real Talbot, the name disappeared just like Simca or the last traces of the Rootes Group and its Sunbeam brand.
More about the Rootes Group can be found in a special dossier with vehicle reports.
