The Peugeot 407 is a large family car produced by the French automaker Peugeot from 2003 to 2010. It is available in saloon, coupé and estate variants, with both diesel and petrol engines. The petrol engines range from 1.8 to 2.9 litres displacement, whereas the diesels range from 1.6 to 3.0 litre engines. The 407, along with the larger 607, was succeeded by the 508 in January 2011. Sales commenced in April 2004 in France. According to the European Car of the Year website, the 407 was one of the runners up in the award in 2005.
Overview
The 407 was the successor to the hugely successful Peugeot 406, and was launched in The Sunday Times Motorshow Live on May 27, 2004. The streamlined design of the car was seen as quite radical, its most distinctive features being its large front grille and the steeply raked screen pillars. The car was first announced and presented to the press in Paris in December 2003. The estate, known as the Peugeot 407 SW, was launched four months after the saloon, whereas the coupé was launched in January 2006, having being presented in the Frankfurt Motor Show of September 2005. The annual sales of the Peugeot 407 peaked at units in 2005, with sales outside Europe. The coupé ended production in December 2011. The models were given a minor facelift in August 2008, resulting most petrol engined models being withdrawn from sale in the United Kingdom, and other countries of Europe. One model was available with AMVAR electronic suspension, that controls each wheel's damping independently, adapting the hardness of the ride every 2.5 milliseconds to suit the driving style.
Safety
Engines
Television commercials
The first advertisement, known as "The Toys" or "Les Jouets", featured life size toy cars shown up, by the sleek newly released Peugeot 407. Directed by Philippe André for French agency BETC Euro RSCG, the advert was filmed in Sydney, Australia. André developed twenty model cars especially for the shoot. The soundtrack is provided by French duo, The Film, with their song Can You Touch Me, an adaptation of their earlier song, Can You Trust Me. The next advertisement featured the same scenario of life size toy cars in Sydney, this time taking a new Peugeot 407 SW out of the city to a beachside home. Along the way, we see old and decrepit station wagons breaking down, or suffering from image problems. The soundtrack features Hear Me Tonight by the Modjo. The commercials used the slogan Playtime is Over, which some perceived to be a retort to the Renault's Laguna slogan Serious Playtime. In Spanish, the slogan given at the end was Volvamos a hablar de automóviles, i.e. Let's talk about cars again.
The 407 sedan appeared in the comedy filmTaxi 4 of 2007 and the film Taxi 5 of 2018, unlike the previous films which had its predecessor.
Successor
In November 2009, Philippe Varin, from PSA, announced that the successor of the Peugeot 407 will not be called the Peugeot 408, but instead the Peugeot 508, which was officially launched at the Paris Motor Show in October 2010. The saloon of the 508 is approximately 12 cm longer than the 407, and also replaced the larger Peugeot 607. The name Peugeot 408 is used for a Chinese built notchback version of the Peugeot 308, that replaces the 407 in America.
Model car releases
The Peugeot 407 saloon has been produced by Majorette and Norev, while the SW has only been produced by Norev. The coupé has been produced by Norev and Welly, and the "407 Elixr" concept presented in the 2003 Frankfurt Motor Show, has been produced only by Norev.
