Peugeot 605

The Peugeot 605 is an executive car that the French manufacturer Peugeot produced between 1989 and 1999, with a facelift in 1995. It was a saloon built on the same platform as the Citroën XM and the successor to the well received but slow selling 604, and with the 405 it took over from the 505 as that car was phased out. It was launched in July 1989 in left-hand drive form with only petrol engines, a right-hand drive version reached Britain in the first half of 1990, a turbodiesel followed in April 1990 and a naturally aspirated diesel in autumn 1990. Like the XM it suffered early quality problems with its ambitious electrics, and a costly recall could not undo the damage to its reputation. The Phase 2 car of 1995 had a better interior and side airbags, but sales stayed low after the 406 arrived, and it was quietly dropped in September 1999 in favour of the 607, ending the 05 generation that began with the 305 in 1977. One served as a French presidential state car for François Mitterrand.