Well, first, there was the price. In 1964, a new 404 wagon could be had for just under $2000. Eight years later, the 504 wagon, with automatic transmission, was nearly $5400 in Denver. The era of the high-quality, low-price French car was gone.
Secondly, the 404 was indestructible. It never broke down. Yeah, ours went through 3 speedometer cables in 85,000 miles, and I can remember coolant gushing from under the dash while passing through Dallas one December (heater hose cracked), but nothing that sidelined the car and required towing. (He just re-routed heater hoses, by-passed the heater, and refilled the radiator with melted ice water from the ice chest in the back. That got us to the nearest garage.) That car a took a family of five (six after 1969) all over North America; more than once each to San Diego/Tijuana, San Francisco, Calgary/Edmonton, El Paso/Juarez, Washington DC, NYC, Pittsburg, Cleveland area (Massillon, actually), Montreal, Jacksonville every Christmas... damn thing never broke!
The 504 always had something going out. Something in the induction, I don't remember exactly what it was (manifold? One of the carburetors?) cracked and had to be replaced. It took about a week to get the part in, and it was expensive, too. The front struts went out far too soon. The transmission (a ZF unit) needed a major repair; that incident required an expensive tow back to Denver from Cheyenne. That was the last time it was driven anywhere outside of the Denver area. (Peugeot dealers, or anyone else who would work on them, were few and far between. So, the cars HAD to be reliable, which wasn't a problem for the 404s or 403s.) It never really ran well; the French were still trying to get a handle on the then recent US emissions requirements, so it would stumble and die at intersections on warm-to-hot days. The dealer (Carl Bartz Motors) never figured that one out. When it started using oil at 46,000 miles, my father was told the engine needed rebuilt. Two weeks later, he sold the car for well below market value, and that was the last Peugeot he ever bought. To this day, whenever the subject is brought up, he will only say he wished he'd bought 3 or more 404s, stored them and used them as needed. He would be driving one today, if he could buy it new....
He's never bought diesel anything, so, a 504 diesel may well have been a much different animal. It wouldn't have been subject to the emissions requirements of the gassers, that's for sure. Even better would be one of the 404 diesels. Best of both worlds!
Mark in Lakewood, CO
From: "Kevin Kraly" <kraly@comcast.net>
To: "diesel mercedes" <diesel_mercedes@yahoogroups.com>
Sent: Wednesday, August 1, 2012 1:11:24 AM
Subject: Re: [diesel_mercedes] Re: I thought I was feeling like the Maytag Repair Man.
From: "Kevin Kraly" <kraly@comcast.net>
To: "diesel mercedes" <diesel_mercedes@yahoogroups.com>
Sent: Wednesday, August 1, 2012 1:11:24 AM
Subject: Re: [diesel_mercedes] Re: I thought I was feeling like the Maytag Repair Man.
Unfortunately, the 504s of the 70s ended the great love affair....
What wasn't so good about the 504? One of my neighbors had 4 of them, all Diesels, and they seemed to keep going and going.
Kevin in Hillsboro, OR who wouldn't turn down a cheap 504 Diesel, especially a station wagon
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