The Matra 530 is a sports car

Sports car

A sports car is a small, usually two seat, two door automobile designed for high speed driving and maneuverability....

 created and built by the French

France

The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...

 engineering group Matra

Matra

Mécanique Aviation Traction or Matra was a French company covering a wide range of activities mainly related to automobile, bicycles, aeronautics and weaponry. In 1994, it became a subsidiary of the Lagardère Group and now operates under that name.Matra was owned by the Floirat family...

.

The first real Matra

In 1965 Matra's CEO Jean-Luc Lagardère

Jean-Luc Lagardère

Jean-Luc Lagardère was a major French businessman, CEO of the Lagardere Group, one of the largest French conglomerates....

 decided to develop a sports car more accessible to the ordinary, non-racing public, a voiture des copains (car for friends), as successor to the Matra Djet

Matra Djet

- External links :* * * *...

. The result was their first sports car (the Djet was a René Bonnet

Automobiles René Bonnet

Automobiles René Bonnet was a French automobile maker.The firm was the continuation of Deutsch et Bonnet by René Bonnet when Charles Deutsch, the "D" in DB, founded his own firm CD...

 design) M530, named after Matra's R530 missile

Missile

Though a missile may be any thrown or launched object, it colloquially almost always refers to a self-propelled guided weapon system.-Etymology:The word missile comes from the Latin verb mittere, meaning "to send"...

, designed by former Simca

Simca

Simca was a French automaker, founded in November 1934 by Fiat. It was directed from July 1935 to May 1963 by the Italian Henri Théodore Pigozzi...

 designer Philippe Guédon. Like its predecessor, the car was built upon a steel

Steel

Steel is an alloy that consists mostly of iron and has a carbon content between 0.2% and 2.1% by weight, depending on the grade. Carbon is the most common alloying material for iron, but various other alloying elements are used, such as manganese, chromium, vanadium, and tungsten...

 frame

Chassis

A chassis consists of an internal framework that supports a man-made object. It is analogous to an animal's skeleton. An example of a chassis is the underpart of a motor vehicle, consisting of the frame with the wheels and machinery.- Vehicles :In the case of vehicles, the term chassis means the...

 with polyester

Polyester

Polyester is a category of polymers which contain the ester functional group in their main chain. Although there are many polyesters, the term "polyester" as a specific material most commonly refers to polyethylene terephthalate...

 body and had a mid-engine

MR layout

In automotive design, a RMR or Rear Mid-engine, Rear-wheel drive layout is one in which the rear wheels are driven by an engine placed just in front of them, behind the passenger compartment. In contrast to the rear-engined RR layout, the center of mass of the engine is in front of the rear axle...

. To accommodate for both 2+2

2 plus 2

The term 2+2 is a phrase used to describe the configuration of a car with seating for two passengers in the front, plus two smaller seats for occasional passengers in the rear.-Description:...

, mid-engine layout and a reasonable boot, many engine options were considered. Finally, it was decided to purchase the running gear from Ford in Germany

Germany

Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...

: the 1700 cc Ford Taunus V4 engine

Ford Taunus V4 engine

The Taunus V4 was a V4 piston engine with one balance shaft, introduced by Ford Motor Company in Germany in 1962. The German V4 was built in the Cologne plant and powered the Ford Taunus and German versions of the Granada, Capri and Transit...

 and gearbox stemming from the Taunus 15M TS

Ford Taunus

The Ford Taunus is a family car sold by Ford in Germany and other countries. Models from 1970 onward were similar to the Ford Cortina in the United Kingdom...

 were chosen. This setup is compact enough to fit between the rear seats and the boot. The other interesting features of the M530 were its targa top

Targa top

Targa top, targa for short, is a semi-convertible car body style with a removable roof section and a full width roll bar behind the seats. The term was first used on the 1966 Porsche 911 Targa, and it remains a registered trademark of Porsche AG....

 roof, pop-up headlights and most notably the outstanding avant-garde

Avant-garde

Avant-garde means "advance guard" or "vanguard". The adjective form is used in English to refer to people or works that are experimental or innovative, particularly with respect to art, culture, and politics....

 design.

M530A

The first 530 (badged Matra Sports M530A) was shown to the public on March 7, 1967 at the Geneva Motor Show

Salon International de l'Auto

The International Geneva Motor Show is an annual auto show held in March in the Swiss city of Geneva. The show is hosted at the Geneva Palexpo, a convention centre located next to the Geneva Cointrin International Airport...

. It had a 70 DIN hp

Horsepower

Horsepower is the name of several units of measurement of power. The most common definitions equal between 735.5 and 750 watts.Horsepower was originally defined to compare the output of steam engines with the power of draft horses in continuous operation. The unit was widely adopted to measure the...

 Ford 1700 cc V4 engine

V4 engine

A V4 engine is a V form engine with four cylinders and three main bearings.-Automobile use:Lancia produced several narrow-angle V4 engines from the 1920s through 1960s for cars like the Lambda, Augusta, Artena, Aprilia, Ardea, Appia, and Fulvia....

, which gave the car a top speed of 175 km/h (109 mph). It went on production one month later. In its first two production years, the chassis has been built by Carrier in Alençon

Alençon

Alençon is a commune in Normandy, France, capital of the Orne department. It is situated west of Paris. Alençon belongs to the intercommunality of Alençon .-History:...

 and assembly took place at French coachbuilder Brissonneau et Lotz

Alstom

Alstom is a large multinational conglomerate which holds interests in the power generation and transport markets. According to the company website, in the years 2010-2011 Alstom had annual sales of over €20.9 billion, and employed more than 85,000 people in 70 countries. Alstom's headquarters are...

 in Creil

Creil

Creil is a large town in northern France. It is designated municipally as a commune within the département of Oise.-History:Archaeological remains in the area include a Neolithic site, as well as a late Iron Age necropolis, perhaps belonging to a Gaulish fortress or protected camp.The city itself...

. The engine bay of the early model 530 was accessible by removing the acrylic glass

Acrylic glass

Poly is a transparent thermoplastic, often used as a light or shatter-resistant alternative to glass. It is sometimes called acrylic glass. Chemically, it is the synthetic polymer of methyl methacrylate...

 rear window.

French artist Sonia Delaunay

Sonia Delaunay

Sonia Delaunay was a Jewish-French artist who, with her husband Robert Delaunay and others, cofounded the Orphism art movement, noted for its use of strong colours and geometric shapes. Her work extends to painting, textile design and stage set design...

 painted a 530A at special request of Matra's CEO Jean-Luc Lagardère in 1968.

1969 saw many changes to the 530. First, the running gear followed the same evolution as the Ford model it was taken from and power increased to 75 DIN hp by using a different carburetor

Carburetor

A carburetor , carburettor, or carburetter is a device that blends air and fuel for an internal combustion engine. It is sometimes shortened to carb in North America and the United Kingdom....

. Secondly, Matra closed a deal with Chrysler Europe

Chrysler Europe

Chrysler Europe was a division of the Chrysler Corporation that operated between 1967 and 1979.-Formation:In the 1960s, Chrysler sought to become a world producer of automobiles. The company had never had much success outside North America, contrasting with Ford's worldwide reach and General...

, to sell their cars through the Simca

Simca

Simca was a French automaker, founded in November 1934 by Fiat. It was directed from July 1935 to May 1963 by the Italian Henri Théodore Pigozzi...

 dealer network from 1970 onwards and jointly develop the M530's successor. Finally, the cars were now constructed completely at the Matra Automobiles factory in Romorantin

Romorantin-Lanthenay

Romorantin-Lanthenay is a commune in the Loir-et-Cher department of central France.-History:The current commune is the result of the merger, on 29 May 1961, of the former communes of Romorantin and Lanthenay.-Transportation:...

.

Road Test M530A

The British "Autocar

Autocar

Autocar is a weekly British automobile magazine published by Haymarket Motoring Publications Ltd. It refers to itself as "The World's oldest car magazine".-History:...

" magazine tested a Matra M530A in March 1969. The car had a top speed of 95 mph (152.9 km/h) and accelerated from 0-60 mph (96.6 km/h) in 15.6 seconds. An "overall" fuel consumption of 26.9 mpgimp was recorded. This put it significantly behind the similarly priced Lotus Elan +2

Lotus Elan

Lotus Elan is the name of two convertible cars and one fixed head coupé produced by Lotus Cars. The original Type 26, 26R Racing version , 36R Racing version , 36 Fixed Head Coupe, 45 Drop Head Coupe, and the "Type 50" +2 Coupe, circa 1962 to 1975, are commonly known as the '60s Elans...

 on performance, but the two cars were closely matched on fuel economy. The Ford engined Matra's £2,160 manufacturer's recommended price was a little lower than the £2,244 price on the Lotus, but both were massively undercut by the £1,217 then being asked for the MG MGB GT

MG MGB

The MGB is a sports car launched by MG Cars in May 1962 to replace the MGA. Introduced as a four-cylinder roadster, a coupé with 2+2 seating was added in 1965...

, based on an older simpler design and sold in greater numbers. Also included in the price comparison was the Porsche 912

Porsche 912

The Porsche 912 is a sports car that was manufactured by Porsche of Germany between 1965 and 1969 as their entry-level model. The 912 is a nimble-handling compact performance four-seat vehicle, delivering 90 SAE horsepower at 5800 rpm. It is capable of up to fuel economy. This combination is...

 then being offered in the UK with a manufacturer's recommended retail price of £2,894 . The testers commended the Matra's refinement, handling and steering, soundness of construction and finish, while noting that its performance was 'not outstanding'.

M530LX

Introduced at the 1970 Geneva Motor Show was the Matra Simca M530LX, which was a minor redesign of the 530A by Michelotti

Giovanni Michelotti

Giovanni Michelotti was one of the most prolific designers of sports cars in the 20th century. His notable contributions were for Triumph and BMW marques...

. The most notable changes were the rear hatch (now made of glass and opens with struts like a hatchback

Hatchback

A Hatchback is a car body style incorporating a shared passenger and cargo volume, with rearmost accessibility via a rear third or fifth door, typically a top-hinged liftgate—and features such as fold-down rear seats to enable flexibility within the shared passenger/cargo volume. As a two-box...

) and the front bumper.

M530SX

A budget version of the 530, Matra Simca 530SX, was introduced in October 1971. The SX lacks the targa top roof and pop-up headlights. Instead there were four fixed headlights mounted on top of the front (hence it was nicknamed "The Pirate"), the only available colours being orange and white and the finishing was much simpler than the LX version (black instead of chrome bumpers). It wasn't commercialised on all markets where the LX was sold and while its luxury brother didn't sell well (because of its awkward "either you'll love it or you'll hate it" design, poor build quality and lack of engine power), the SX sold even worse.

Production numbers

M530's production ceased in 1973, a total 9,609 cars (2,062 530A, 4,731 530LX and 1,146 530SX) have been built.

No right-hand drive

Driving on the left or right

The terms right-hand traffic and left-hand traffic refer to regulations requiring all bidirectional traffic to keep either to the right or the left side of the road, respectively. This is so fundamental to traffic flow that it is sometimes referred to as the rule of the road. This basic rule eases...

M530's have been built and no known RHD conversions exist.