The Simca Chambord was the first ever car

Čar

Čar is a village in the municipality of Bujanovac, Serbia. According to the 2002 census, the town has a population of 296 people.-References:...

 to be built by Simca's factory in Brazil

Brazil

Brazil , officially the Federative Republic of Brazil , is the largest country in South America. It is the world's fifth largest country, both by geographical area and by population with over 192 million people...

. The first car, a direct copy

Facsimile

A facsimile is a copy or reproduction of an old book, manuscript, map, art print, or other item of historical value that is as true to the original source as possible. It differs from other forms of reproduction by attempting to replicate the source as accurately as possible in terms of scale,...

 of 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...

 built Simca Vedette

Simca Vedette

The Simca Vedette is a large car, manufactured from 1954-1961 by the French automaker Simca, at their factory in Poissy, France. It was marketed with different model names according to trim and equipment levels...

, left the production line in March 1959. It featured the customary 84 hp engine, 3 speed gearbox with the shifter located on the steering column and was assembled from parts imported from France.

Throughout 1960 Simca do Brasil

Simca do Brasil

Simca do Brasil was a subsidiary of the now defunct French automaker Simca and started out in the late 1950s assembling the Simca Vedette imported in kit form from France and selling it in three versions, the Chambord, Présidence and Rallye...

 gradually swapped to parts produced by local OEM parts suppliers. In 1961 the Chambord featured an improved engine with 90 hp and 15% more torque, a slightly shorter differential and 98% of the parts were already of Brazilian production. A special version, called the Tufão (whirlwind) featured some additional luxury items in its interior.

42,910 units of the Chambord were built up to 1966 and the engine performance gradually rose to 120 hp. These more powerful Chambords had an acceleration from 0 to 100 km/h (62 mph) in 14.3 seconds and a top speed of 160 km/h (99 mph).

In November 1966 Simca introduced the Esplanada

Simca Esplanada

The Esplanada was a large car designed by the Brazilian subsidiary of French automaker Simca. Launched at the 1966 motor show in São Paulo , it replaced the models Présidence and Rallye, and was manufactured until 1969 at the São Bernardo do Campo factory...

at the Salão do Automóvel, Brazil's sole motor show, as a replacement for the Chambord.