Panhard Dyna Z
Encyclopedia
Mid-size car
A mid-size car is the North American/Australian standard for an automobile with a size equal to or greater than that of a compact...
made by Panhard
Panhard
Panhard is currently a French manufacturer of light tactical and military vehicles. Its current incarnation was formed by the acquisition of Panhard by Auverland in 2005. Panhard had been under Citroën ownership, then PSA , for 40 years...
of France
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...
. It was first presented to the press at a Paris restaurant named "Les Ambassadeurs" on 17 June 1953 and went into production the following year. In 1959 it was replaced by the Panhard PL 17
Panhard PL 17
The Panhard PL17 was a motor car made by the French manufacturer Panhard from 1959 until 1965.Presented on June 29, 1959, as successor to the Panhard Dyna Z, the PL 17 was a development of the older car, but with an even more streamlined body than its predecessor...
.
Background
Panhard was one of the world's oldest auto manufacturers and since 1945 had become known for producing economical cars. Panhard, like CitroënCitroën
Citroën is a major French automobile manufacturer, part of the PSA Peugeot Citroën group.Founded in 1919 by French industrialist André-Gustave Citroën , Citroën was the first mass-production car company outside the USA and pioneered the modern concept of creating a sales and services network that...
, considered itself a leader, not a follower of automotive trends, and the Dyna Z had an impressive array of unusual engineering choices.
In 1955 Citroën had taken a 25% holding in Panhard's automobile business and during the next two years the national dealership networks of the two businesses were integrated. This gave Citroen and Panhard dealers an expanded market coverage, incorporating now a small car
Citroën 2CV
The Citroën 2CV |tax horsepower]]”) was an economy car produced by the French automaker Citroën between 1948 and 1990. It was technologically advanced and innovative, but with uncompromisingly utilitarian unconventional looks, and deceptively simple Bauhaus inspired bodywork, that belied the sheer...
, a medium sized saloon and a large car range
Citroën DS
The Citroën DS is an executive car produced by the French manufacturer Citroën between 1955 and 1975. Styled by Italian sculptor and industrial designer Flaminio Bertoni and the French aeronautical engineer André Lefèbvre, the DS was known for its aerodynamic futuristic body design and innovative...
. It gave the Panhard Dyna Z, during its final years in production, a level of market access that its predecessor
Panhard Dyna X
The Panhard Dyna X was a lightweight compact saloon car designed by the visionary engineer Jean Albert Grégoire and first exhibited as the AFG Dyna at the Paris Motor Show in 1946....
had never enjoyed. Sales benefitted.
Model development
The Dyna XPanhard Dyna X
The Panhard Dyna X was a lightweight compact saloon car designed by the visionary engineer Jean Albert Grégoire and first exhibited as the AFG Dyna at the Paris Motor Show in 1946....
was replaced by the more streamlined Dyna Z in 1954. This was later developed into the similar PL 17
Panhard PL 17
The Panhard PL17 was a motor car made by the French manufacturer Panhard from 1959 until 1965.Presented on June 29, 1959, as successor to the Panhard Dyna Z, the PL 17 was a development of the older car, but with an even more streamlined body than its predecessor...
, launched in 1959, in an attempt to conform to the styles of the time.
The Dyna Z's body was originally aluminium, like that of the preceding Dyna X, with steel tube subframes front and rear, joined by steel plate reinforcements in the sills. The aluminium was gradually replaced by steel during 1956 as the cost differential between the two materials became unsupportable. The suspension was modified and the shock absorbers changed to cope with the extra weight. By 1958, only the bumpers, the fuel tank, the engine cooling shroud and most of the engine and transaxle cases were aluminium, but the weight was still quite low for a relatively comfortable six-seater saloon, when compared with narrower competitor models from Peugeot
Peugeot 203
The Peugeot 203 is a medium sized car which was produced by the French manufacturer Peugeot between 1948 and 1960.The car was exhibited at the Paris Motor Show in 1947, but by then had already been under development for more than five years...
and Simca
Simca Aronde
The Simca Aronde was a family car manufactured by the French automaker Simca from 1951 to 1963. It was Simca's first original design , as well as the company's first unibody car...
. Its unusual and very modern design gave it a unique combination of space, ride comfort, performance and fuel economy at a very competitive price. But reliability suffered and fuel prices were not high enough, even in France, for people to put energy efficiency first. The car also suffered from some engine and wind noise. The Tiger version had a racing inspired engine and a full cooling shroud.
Specifications of 1958 Panhard Dyna Z Tiger
- Price (USDUnited States dollarThe United States dollar , also referred to as the American dollar, is the official currency of the United States of America. It is divided into 100 smaller units called cents or pennies....
): $2000 (comparable to a basic United StatesUnited StatesThe United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
car, and mid-way between prices of a Volkswagen BeetleVolkswagen BeetleThe Volkswagen Type 1, widely known as the Volkswagen Beetle or Volkswagen Bug, is an economy car produced by the German auto maker Volkswagen from 1938 until 2003...
and a Peugeot 403Peugeot 403The Peugeot 403 is a car produced by French automobile manufacturer Peugeot from 1955 to 1966.-History:The 403 made its debut in saloon body style on 20 April 1955 at the Trocadéro Palace in Paris...
) - Engine: 851 cc Flat-twinFlat-twinA flat-twin is a two cylinder internal combustion engine with the cylinders arranged on opposite sides of the crankshaft. It is part of the class of flat engines, sub-type "boxer", and shares most characteristics of those engines.-Motorcycle use:...
- — Four-stroke, air-cooled, concentric torsion bar valve springs on roller bearings, hollow aluminum push rods with hardened steel tips, roller main bearings and big end rod bearings of "Panhard Patent" design with an additional set of smaller rollers carrying the roller cage (separator); non-removable cylinder headCylinder headIn an internal combustion engine, the cylinder head sits above the cylinders on top of the cylinder block. It closes in the top of the cylinder, forming the combustion chamber. This joint is sealed by a head gasket...
s, removable steel cylinder liners. The cylinder "jugs" pulled off the crankcase and pistons like those of the VW air-cooled engines. Soft engine mounts to smooth the roughness of the two-cylinder four-stroke engine, radial flow fan bolted to crank shaft, full cooling shroud, aluminum structure and cooling fins.- Power: 50 hp. @ 5500 rpm Last years of Tigres, 24s rated 60 hp.
- Drive: front wheel drive
- — Drive shafts concentric tubes with rubber in the space between the inner and outer tubes. Cardan ("universal") joint at the inner end next to the transaxle, double cardan constant velocity join at the outer end at the wheel.
- Transmission: cable operated four-speed manual cast aluminum case transaxle with 2nd and 3rd synchromesh, transfer gears and second, third and fourth of "herringboneHerringbone gearA herringbone gear, also known as a double helical gear, is a special type of gear which is a side to side combination of two helical gears of opposite hands. Unlike helical gears they can sustain axial load smoothly...
" design, column shift.
- Transmission: cable operated four-speed manual cast aluminum case transaxle with 2nd and 3rd synchromesh, transfer gears and second, third and fourth of "herringbone
- — Unlike most front wheel drive inline engine transaxles, the gearbox is between the engine and the final drive. Engine-clutch-gearbox-final drive, direct drive through gearbox in third gear, fourth "overdrive." Final drive spiral bevel gear on primary shaft, step-down to differential gear through helical (not herringbone) pinion and gear.
- Clutch: conventional friction clutch, cable operated. Optional in some markets: magnetic clutch filled with iron "filings".
- — When a coil fixed to the casing was energized, the "filings" stiffened between the rotating casing on the crankshaft and the driving disc fixed to the gearbox input shaft. The electricity supplied by a special double generator, one set of windings supplying the battery and the rest of the electrical system, the other set of windings powering the magnetic clutch. As the engine accelerated above idle speed, the generator (not an "alternator" type) began energizing the magnetic clutch, gradually connecting the crankshaft with the primary shaft of the gearbox.
- Weight: 1800 lb (816 kg) - original 1954 Dyna 1430 lb (649 kg).
- Fuel mileage: 30–40 mpg
- Top Speed: 90 mph (145 km/h).
- Calculated: 40 pounds / hp., 58.7 hp./litre
- Steering: rack and pinion mounted behind front suspension, short steering shaft.
- Front suspension: upper and lower transverse leaf springs, curved downward to raise roll centre. Generous ground clearance and travel. No antisway bar, which resulted in the lifting of one rear wheel in hard cornering. Kingpins integral with the steering knuckles, turning in sockets pivoted on the leaf spring eyes.
- Rear suspension: Torsion bars acting on trailing link-arms and joined and pivoted (between torsion bar ends) diagonal semi-trailing arms, described as "semi-independent"; This gave similar geometry but less unsprung weightUnsprung weightIn a ground vehicle with a suspension, the unsprung weight is the mass of the suspension, wheels or tracks , and other components directly connected to them, rather than supported by the suspension...
than a solid (tube) axle. The axle a continuous tube between rear wheel spindles, V-shaped and fastened in the center by a rubber bushing mounted on the subframe cross member. The torsion bars in sets of three, one set for each side of the rear axle. No antisway bar. - Body: steel (earlier models had aluminum bodies), streamlined, four doors, low drag despite flat recessed side glass, front and rear window rubber gaskets, rain gutters
- Seating capacity: 6. Column shift and bench seats.
- Brakes: drum, all outboard, very light pedal pressure despite no power assistance. On later models, cast aluminium alloy brake drums with replaceable iron liners pinned in place, later cars' drums finned. The open centre rims bolted to ears on the periphery of the drums like older Volkswagens'.
- Most of the cars exported to the United States lacked the centre fog light shown in the photographs.
Driving impressions
The aluminum gas tank typically leaked where the sender unit for the fuel gaugeFuel gauge
A fuel gauge is an instrument used to indicate the level of fuel contained in a tank. Commonly used in cars, these may also be used for any tank including underground storage tanks.As used in cars, the gauge consists of two parts:...
was attached.
It lifted the outside rear wheel, on hard cornering with the trunk empty, like a Citroën 2CV
Citroën 2CV
The Citroën 2CV |tax horsepower]]”) was an economy car produced by the French automaker Citroën between 1948 and 1990. It was technologically advanced and innovative, but with uncompromisingly utilitarian unconventional looks, and deceptively simple Bauhaus inspired bodywork, that belied the sheer...
or a six-cylinder Porsche
Porsche
Porsche Automobil Holding SE, usually shortened to Porsche SE a Societas Europaea or European Public Company, is a German based holding company with investments in the automotive industry....
going backward, in spite of the downward slope of the front suspension leaves. This must have been caused by the weight distribution and spring rates. (The rear needed stiffness to support full load.) The suspension dealt with large bumps and dips wonderfully. The handling
Car handling
Automobile handling and vehicle handling are descriptions of the way wheeled vehicles perform transverse to their direction of motion, particularly during cornering and swerving. It also includes their stability when moving at rest. Handling and braking are the major components of a vehicle's...
was very good, in spite of the wheel lifting. The steering was quick and light (without power assist). The passengers and driver tended to slide around on the plastic bench seats, with no seat belts, in spite of the patterning of the plastic.
The heater worked very well (unlike that of a better-known air-cooled car that burned more gasoline).
Double clutching was necessary for a smooth shift into 4th gear, but this was done at leisure because 3rd was quite high. Reverse was hard to find. The soft engine mounts made the clutch difficult for an inexperienced driver to operate smoothly.
The unusual engine had an unusual sound that led some people to think it was a two-stroke. Light bulbs burned out often, giving the impression that the company had gone too far in cutting costs. The brake lights also served as backup lights, so it could be started without the key in reverse with the brake on. It had no steering wheel lock but, in the U. S., its unusual controls appeared to make it almost theft proof. As an extra precaution, one could disconnect the battery with a pull knob on the steering column, labeled with a two letter French abbreviation.
Similarly to 21st-century cars, the turn signals, head lights, parking lights, high beams and two-tone horn were all controlled by the same lever. This made them all easy to find, but one could confuse the turn signal and high beam motions.
Lubrication required a more versatile lift than was available in many gas stations, at that time.
It was always cited as the example of car aerodynamics
Aerodynamics
Aerodynamics is a branch of dynamics concerned with studying the motion of air, particularly when it interacts with a moving object. Aerodynamics is a subfield of fluid dynamics and gas dynamics, with much theory shared between them. Aerodynamics is often used synonymously with gas dynamics, with...
(though the Kamm
Wunibald Kamm
Wunibald Kamm was an automobile designer, engineer, and aerodynamicist. He is best known for his breakthrough in reducing car turbulence at high speeds; the style of car bodywork based on his research has come to be known as a Kammback or a Kamm-tail.-Design:One goal of automotive aerodynamics is...
principle was not yet used).