Matra Bagheera
| Matra Bagheera | |
|---|---|
 |
|
| Overview | |
| Manufacturer | Matra Automobiles |
| Also called | Matra-Simca Bagheera, Talbot-Matra Bagheera |
| Production | 1973–1980 |
| Designer |
Jean Toprieux Jacques Nochet Antonis Volanis |
| Body and chassis | |
| Class | Sports car |
| Body style | 3-door hatchback |
| Layout | MR layout |
| Related | Simca 1100 Ti |
| Powertrain | |
| Engine | 1294 cc Poissy engine ohv I4 1442 cc Poissy engine ohv I4 |
| Transmission | 4-speed manual all-synchromesh |
| Dimensions | |
| Wheelbase | 2,370 mm (93 in) |
| Length | 3,974 mm (156.5 in) |
| Width | 1,734 mm (68.3 in) |
| Height | 1,175 mm (46.3 in) |
| Curb weight | 965 kg (2,127 lb) |
| Chronology | |
| Predecessor | Matra 530 |
| Successor | Matra Murena |
The Matra Bagheera is a sports car built by the automotive division of the French engineering group Matra in cooperation with automaker Simca. It was marketed as the Matra-Simca Bagheera until its final year of production, when its designation was changed to the Talbot-Matra Bagheera following Chrysler Europe's demise and subsequent takeover by PSA.
In December 1969 Matra and Simca entered into an agreement that rebranded Matra's racing cars as Matra-Simcas and give Matra access to the Simca dealer network in France and the Common Market. The first joint project of the new liason would be development of a replacement for the Matra 530, which had not reached either its targeted market or its projected sales volumes.
Work on the new car began in 1970 under project code M550. Development was led by Matra's head of engineering and design Phillipe Guédon and Chrysler-Simca product planner Jacques Rousseau. Additional direction for the design was provided by Chrysler-Simca planner Marc Honoré. Honoré identified Simca's strongest market as being cars displacing between 1.3 and 1.5 litres and suggested the team focus on building a car of that class, which would constrain the size of the car if performance was to be acceptable. As many as possible of the major components would be sourced from the Chrysler-Simca parts inventory. Although the engine, gearbox and many suspension elements came directly from the Simca 1100, this new Matra would be a mid-engined car rather than front-wheel drive like the donor car.
Chrysler-Simca's planners also wanted a car with more than just two seats. Guédon agreed, but he was also not satisfied with the 2+2 arrangement used in the M530, feeling that the rear seats were too small to be really useful. The solution came to him on a lengthy trip he took in a Ford Taunus station wagon with two colleagues. The back of the car was so full that the travelers sat three across in the front of the car. The M550 would seat three abreast.
Eleven prototypes were built and used for road-testing in environments ranging from Saharan Mauritania to Lapland, as well as for crash-testing. Development was complete by the end of 1972. The car would be built in Matra's factory in the commune of Romorantin-Lanthenay in the department of Loir-et-Cher in central France. Rather than being sold under its development code name, the car would take its name from the character in Rudyard Kipling's The Jungle Book.
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