FRENCH

[Audio] It is almost impossible to imagine going somewhere you want without a car, especially in the suburbs. Automobiles are really important in modern society. Suppose all of the automobiles were to disappear today, we would not be able to maintain a current lifestyle like we took for granted. However, have you ever thought about how cars could have been distributed across the nations so widely that we can see cars wherever we go?.

[Audio] France was a pioneer in the automotive industry and is the 11th-largest automobile manufacturer in the world by 2015 unit production and the third-largest in Europe (after Germany and Spain). It had consistently been the 4th-largest from the end of World War II up to 2000. It is 16 % of sales of French manufactured products. France is home to two major automaking companies: Stellantis ( owner of the Peugeot, Citroën, DS and Opel/ Vauxhall marques which were originally part of the PSA Group) Renault Group (owner of the Renault, Alpine, Dacia, Renault Samsung Motors marques and 43% of Nissan) the 3rd-largest automaker in Europe and the 10th-largest of the world in 2015. Additional lesser automotive manufacturers in France include: Bugatti, a luxury marque of the Volkswagen Group headquartered in Molsheim. Venturi, a small sports car manufacturer and Formula E team sponsor..

[Audio] The world's first self-propelled mechanical vehicle, in other words, the world's first automobile, was built by the largely unknown French inventor Nicolas- Joseph Cugnot. Nicholas-Joseph Cugnot was born in Lorraine, in 1725 and was trained as a military engineer. Tasked by the army to develop a steam-powered vehicle for the purpose of hauling cannon, Cugnot devised a scaled-down working model in 1769, and in 1770, he unveiled a full-sized steam-driven vehicle, which he called a fardier à vapeur. The vehicle was modeled after the fardier, which was a massively built two-wheeled horse-drawn cart for transporting very heavy equipment, such as cannon barrels. Instead of having a horse at the front, there was a third wheel, which supported a large copper boiler and the driving mechanism. Cugnot was one of the first to successfully employ a device for converting the reciprocating motion of a steam piston into a rotary motion by means of a ratchet arrangement, which was used to drive the front wheel..

[Audio] Joseph Cugnot's 1770 Fardier à Vapeur, at the Musée des arts et métiers, Paris..

[Audio] Evolution of the French Automobile Industry ( 18th - 19th Century) 1769 - Nicolas-Joseph Cugnot builds the first self-propelled mechanical vehicle.[ 11] 1807 - François Isaac de Rivaz invents a hydrogen powered internal combustion engine. 1859 - Jean Joseph Étienne Lenoir develops an internal combustion engine. 1884 - Edouard Delamare-Deboutteville is credited in France with building the first gasoline-powered automobile. 1885 - Amédée Bollée begins manufacturing steam-powered vehicles. 1887 - Léon Serpollet begins building steam-powered vehicles. 1887 - Panhard et Levassor established as a car manufacturing concern by René Panhard and Émile Levassor, with the first car produced in 1891. 1890 - Armand Peugeot produces a four-wheeled car powered by a Daimler gasoline fueled internal combustion engine. 1891 Panhard & Levassor 1894 - Albert de Dion and Georges Bouton produce a single cylinder gasoline-powered engine and in 1898 produced a four-wheeler. They had previously built steam-powered vehicles beginning in 1883. 1894 - Delahaye is founded by Emile Delahaye. The company is bought by Hotchkiss et Cie in 1954 and discontinues auto production. 1896 - Armand Peugeot starts to build and fit his own engines to his cars. 1896 - Léon Bollée builds gasoline-powered cars. 1899 Renault Type 1903 Berliet 20CV Demi Limousine 1912 Lorraine-Dietrich 12 HP Torpedo 1898 - The Renault brothers, Louis, Marcel and Fernand, sell their first car..

[Audio] Statistics. STATISTICS.

[Audio] Total Number of vehicles produced in France from 2009- 2021.

[Audio] Annual Car Sales in France from 2009- 2021.

[Audio] Number of Electric Cars Sold in France from 2009- 2021.

[Audio] New measures include changes to incentives for electric light-commercial vehicles, accelerated expansion of the charging network, and additional funding for the production of electrically-chargeable vehicle ( EV) components. There will also be an assessment of the economic and social impact of vehicle electrification. Accordingly, the government has pledged € 50 million to support and retrain for employees affected in the automotive foundry industry. Boosting electrification The share of battery-electric vehicles ( BEVs) in the French passenger-car market more than trebled in 2020, increasing from 1.9% in 2019 to 6.7% in 2020, according to the French carmakers' association CCFA. Similarly, the commercial-vehicle sector aims to treble the share of electric light-commercial vehicles ( LCVs) in the next two years. Therefore, the bonus scheme for LCVs will be ′adjusted to reduce the difference in acquisition and user costs, which today appears too large to develop sales in this niche,' the government states. The expansion of the charging infrastructure is also a priority in France. ′This summer, 156 service areas out of the 368 on the motorway network will be equipped with fast-charging stations. At the end of 2021, there will be 192. A budget of € 100 million is dedicated to this within the framework of France Relance,' the release reads.The amended plan also seeks to strengthen the competitiveness of the automotive industry and support the local production of EV components. In July 2020, more than €150 million were committed to 25 projects, including € 120 million to develop the production of strategic components for EVs. 17 new projects, representing an additional € 150 million of public support, have been shortlisted for in-depth examination for the next wave of announcements by the summer. This support also comes on top of a € 680 million grant for the establishment of a new battery plant in Douvrin. The facility is operated by the Automotive Cells Company ( ACC), the joint venture between Stellantis and Saft, a subsidiary of the energy company Total. Supporting companies A working group will be set up to support the conversion and upscaling of automotive services, which will consider the anticipated economic and social impact of the 'ecological transition', as well as the forward-looking management of jobs and skills.The French state has already financed 303 automotive companies, mainly small and medium-sized enterprises ( SMEs), to modernise and diversify – to the tune of € 278 million. The working group will now ′revise the HR roadmap for the sector by the end of September 2021, to integrate the conclusions of the last prospective study on employment and skills and to adjust support and training systems for employees.' Additionally, four new campuses for automotive trades and qualifications will be established, ′to strengthen the attractiveness of trades in the sector as well as cooperation between academic and industrial circles,' the release states..

[Audio] As discussed, the history of car making in France takes its roots in 1769, when the first mechanical vehicle of self-propelled type was built. It has taken 90 years to develop an engine of internal combustion which was created in 1859. The further progress of the industry in the country was rapid, and it made France the leading automaker in the world. The first French car brands were also appearing at that time. Some of them exist until today. There are several companies that compete for the title of the largest French car manufacturer. These companies are Peugeot, Renault and Citroen. In the modern age Peugeot and Citroen unite their efforts and work in strong partnership. As for Renault, it is currently a part of the group together with Nissan..

1.Peugeot. Years: 1882 – Present Headquarters: Sochaux, France Founder/Parent Company: PSA Peugeot Citroën Website: http://www.peugeot.com.

Peugeot: Model 408.

One of the most interesting cars the French manufacturer has ever created is the 402 Eclipse. The standard 402 wa s introduced in 1935 as a mass production family car..

2. Citroën. Years: 1919 – Present Headquarters: Saint-Ouen, France Founder/Parent Company: André Citroën Website: http://www.citroen.com.

Citroën: Model C3.

The SM is the only time that Citroën has dabbled into luxury sports coupes, and it remains an icon to this day. It was conceived to be a sporty variant of the DS It inherited the DS' hydropneumatic suspension system, and it was used for Citroën to showcase how much power FWD cars can handle. They somehow managed to eliminate torque steer entirely, and remember, this was the 70s. SM.

3. Renault. Years: 1898 – Present Headquarters: Boulogne-Billancourt, France Founder/Parent Company: Louis Renault, Marcel Renault, Fernand Renault Website: http://group.renault.com.

Renault: 5 Prototype.

It was called the Floride in Europe, the Renault Caravelle debuted in 1958 at the Paris Auto Show. Renault was taking on Volkswagen with their Karmann-Ghia, introduced in 1955. It was upgraded in 1962, receiving a new 956-cc 51- horsepower engine. Over its production lifecycle, it was either powered by an 845 cc, 956 cc, or a 1.1 L engine. Renault Caravelle.

4. Bugatti. Years: 1945 – Present Headquarters: Molsheim, Alsace, France Founder/Parent Company: Ettore Bugatti Website: http://www.bugatti.com.

Bugatti Chiron.

A 1500 horsepower luxury hypercar with a top speed of over 260 miles-per-hour and a 0 to 60 of just 2.3 seconds..

An open-wheeled legend, the Type 35 was one of the most successful race cars in history..

References:. https:// www.amusingplanet.com/2021/12/nicolas-joseph-cugnot-and-worlds-first.html https://statewideinventory.org/french-car-brands https:// www.statista.com/statistics/226032/light-vehicle-producing-countries/ https:// www.mckinsey.com/industries/automotive-and-assembly/our-insights/the-125th-anniversary-of-the-little-engine-that-couldnt https:// www.youtube.com/user/renault https:// www.hotcars.com/coolest-citroen-models-of-all-time/ https:// www.bugatti.com/brand/history/chronicles/.