Rare Rides: A 1991 Peugeot 405 Mi16, the Last-ever New Peugeot in America

The Rare Rides series will always have space for unique French cars. It’s featured several Renault vehicles and a couple of Citroëns to date, but only one Peugeot, to my recollection. That one, a 106 GTI, was an import to Canada by an enthusiastic second-hand buyer. Today we feature a second Peugeot: one actually sold by a dealer, brand new, in America.

It’s the hottest 405 sold in the U.S. — the excellently named Mi16.

Introduced for the 1987 model year, the 405 was a consolidation effort on the part of Peugeot. The large (for Europe) family sedan was a replacement for the aged (and smaller) 305 sedan, and the aged (and larger) 505 sedan. Upon the 405’s introduction Peugeot continued production of its predecessors for a few years. The old sedans wore their sheet metal in a much heavier and more serious way than the slick, Pininfarina-designed 405.

With much confidence in its new family car, Peugeot released 10 different variations. There was a front-drive version, an all-wheel drive version (Mi16x4), and in 1988 an estate was added to the lineup.

North America was more limited in its 405 selection, as one might expect of niche French car offerings on the continent. Available from the latter part of 1988, the base DL and mid-level S trims were complimented by the range-topping Mi16. The lower two trims were also available in a now-hen’s-teeth Sportswagen.

The 405 found immediate success in Europe, especially in the home French market. North America was a completely different story. By the late 1980s, Peugeot’s North American sales were dwindling as the 505 model aged into oblivion. The 405 was sort of a last-ditch effort to turn the brand’s fortunes around, after the company decided not to import the sporty 205 hatchback.

In 1990 Peugeot managed 4,261 sales in North America, followed by a drop to 2,240 between January and July of 1991. Shuttering a business opened in 1958, Peugeot ended its North American operations entirely and headed back home.

Today’s Rare Ride in gorgeous emerald is a 405 Mi16. Powered by a 1.9-liter inline-four producing 160 horsepower, horses travel to the front wheels via the five-speed manual transmission. With a high 203,000 miles, the owner offers a full binder of service paperwork as a testament to their faithful care of this rare Peugeot.

Said seller is presently asking $7,500 (a lot), but it’d be tough to find another in this condition.

[Images: seller]