France 1956: Simca Aronde takes the lead

The Simca Aronde is the best-selling vehicle in France in 1956.

The French new car market is up by the double-digit for the third straight year in 1956 at +13.6% to a new all-time record 629.164 deliveries including commercial vehicles. Imports on the other hand edge up just 3.4% to 11.179, including 4.711 from Germany, 3.309 from the US and 1.604 from the UK. Renault (+18.9%) improves its share to a round 30%, distancing Citroen (+3.9%) down to 25.4% while Simca (+12%) and Peugeot (+13.9%) roughly match the market, giving the Top 4 carmaker a 92.9% share. Panhard (+43.3%) improves to 3.7% at #5.

The Panhard Dyna ranks #9 in France in 1956.

For what would remain its only annual win, the Simca Aronde (+16%) takes advantage of a model transition at Renault to snap the French pole position with 13.7% share. The Citroen 2 CV (+17.4%) advances to a record 2nd place while the Renault 4 CV (-17.4%) logically drops to #3 as it is replaced by the Renault Dauphine landing directly at #4. The Peugeot 403 (+261.2%) ends its first full year of sales at #5, toppling the 203 (-40.9%) as the brand’s best-seller at home. Notice also the Panhard Dyna (+44.6%) breaking into the Top 10 at #9.

Previous year: France 1955: Citroen threatens Renault for #1, first podium for 2CV, legendary DS 19 lands

Full Year 1956 Top 20 All-brands and Top 112 All-models vs. Full Year 1955 figures below.