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Marques | Matra
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Matra grew out of the high technology aerospce boom of the 1960s and branched out into smallscale automotive manufacture and development.
The company remained independent throughout its life, although it did form close alliances with several French companies throughout its lifetime, most notably SIMCA and then Renault. Matra has been responsible for the production some of Europe's most innovative cars.
A potted history
The sublime Matra 530 sports car led to SIMCA/Chrysler taking an interest in the company. That co-operation led to the aerodynamically styled three-seaters, the Bagheera and Murena.
he carmaker, Matra (Mechanique-Aviation-TRAction) grew out of a small aeronautical contracting firm called CAPRA, which had been originally founded before World War II. The company, which had been based in the free French zone, had changed its name to Matra in 1942, and then carved out a successful niche in the immediate post-war years by building high technology guided missiles.
Matra became a major force in French aeronautic research, and by the 1960s, it became clear that a side-benefit of its research could be the improvement in aerodynamics as well as applied technology within motorsport. In 1965, this ambition could be achieved, when Matra took over the manufacture of René Bonnet's Renault-powered sports cars. Concurrently, Matra also threw itself into an ambitious race and rally car programme, that in time, would lead to the company lifting the most glittering prize of all.
The first Matra road car to see the light of day was the Ford V4-powered Matra 530, which broke new ground in the field of aerodynamics. A critical, if not a commercial success, the 530 paved the way for the company to form an allegance with SIMCA to produce the Matra-SIMCA Bagheera sports coupé in 1973. The Bagheera was especially interesting for sporting a mid-engined layout and three-abreast seating - and it paved the way for a fruitful relationship with the Chrysler organization.
The Bagheera was then followed by the Matra-SIMCA Rancho, which was a pseudo-offroad vehicle that offered rugged styling, a plastic body and two-wheel drive. The Rancho sold in reasonable numbers, and thanks to continued investment from Chrysler, production levels continued to rise. When the Bagheera was replaced by the even slippier Murena in 1981, it seemed as if the relationship between Chrysler in France and Matra had reached maturity, but sadly, it was not to be.
In 1978, Chrysler pulled out of Europe, leaving SIMCA in France and what used to be Rootes in the UK to be taken over by Peugeot. In 1979, the British and French operations were re-branded Talbot, leaving the Rancho and (later) the Murena to also be re-branded in the same way. In the years that followed the formation of Peugeot-Citroen-Talbot, much in the way of rationalization took place, as profits were notoriously difficult to come by. Matra's operation was one such victim of rationalization, being left to fend for itself until Renault purchased it in 1983.
Sadly, one of the most influential cars of the 1980s had been in development at Matra at the time: a one-box multi-purpose vehicle, which would have been powered by a range of Talbot engines, whilst using many carry over parts (such as headlamps, grille, interior fixings). What happened to that car? Renault saw the concept, embraced it, introduced it almost unchanged (down to the Alpine-esque headlamp/grille arrangement), and went on to produce hundreds of thousands of them. It was the Renault Espace.
The Renault Espace started out as the Matra P11, and was envisaged as a replacement for the Matra-Rancho. After approaching other manufacturers, including Citroen, it evolved into the P20 (having been re-modelled by Philippe Guédon, and revised to use the Renault 18 platform). There was still much SIMCA in the styling in evidence, most apparently, around the lean-forward nose, which according to its original designer Geoffrey Matthews, came straight from the Chrysler Alpine.
Matra models
Matra Bonnet Djet 5 1964
Matra Sports was founded and through the purchase of René-Bonnet, and its first production model was a contination of the René-Bonnet Djet line.The Djet 5 was the first Matra car to roll-off the Romorantin production line. A total of 916 Djet 5s were built. The Djet was powered by a 1.1-litre Renault-Gordini motor
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Matra M530 1967-73
Matra introduced the Matra 530 as the succesor for the Djet at the Geneva Autosalon. This was the first car designed entirely by Matra, and its attention to aerodynamics belies its heritage. The targa roof was ahead of its time, as was the top speed: 110mph from an uninspiring V4 Ford engine mounted centrally.
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Matra-SIMCA Bagheera 1974-1980
The three-seater was a stylish Coupé that carried over some of the M530's engineering, but using many off-the-shelf parts provided by SIMCA. The mid-mounted engine was straight from the 1100 (1442cc), but even with such a small engine, the Bagheera comfortably topped 100mph. 1976 saw the arrival of a facelifted type 2 version.
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Matra-SIMCA Rancho 1977-83
Groundbreaking SUV produced by Matra by dipping heavily into the SIMCA corporate parts-bin. A modest success really, but one that was (unintenially?) mimicked in later years, by many manufacturers who saw the potential in an "urban on-roader". Following the re-naming of Chrysler into Talbot in 1979, it became known as the Talbot-Matra Rancho.
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Talbot Matra Murena 1981-1983
Perhaps one of the prettiest cars ever built, the Murena adhered to the same formula as the Bagheera, in supplying three seats and a mid-engine. Its predecessor was sometimes gently criticised for lacking power; in response to this, the Murena received a 1594cc (ex-Solara engine) and a 2.2-litre from the Tagora. In the UK, it was offered with an after-market turbocharger.
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Footnote:
Matra built the first three generations of Espaces, but when the model was taken "in-house" by Renault in 2001, the company started producing the Avantime. When it became clear that this car was not selling and Renault were going to pull the plug on the operation, Matra tried to cut a deal with MG Rover to produce a version of this car for the British to sell. As can be read elsewhere, that deal fell through, and the Matra production line was dismantled for sale in 2003.
With thanks to Julian Marsh for additional information
Copyright © 2004 Keith Adams