The Simca Poissy engine, commonly known as the Simca 1100 engine, was a

four-cylinder The engine configuration describes the fundamental operating principles by which internal combustion engines are categorized. Piston engines are often categorized by their cylinder layout, valves and camshafts. Wankel engines are often categoriz ...

overhead valve engine An overhead valve engine, abbreviated (OHV) and sometimes called a pushrod engine, is a piston engine whose valves are located in the cylinder head above the combustion chamber. This contrasts with flathead (or "sidevalve") engines, where the v ...

developed by

Simca Simca (; Mechanical and Automotive Body Manufacturing Company) was a French automaker, founded in November 1934 by Fiat S.p.A. and directed from July 1935 to May 1963 by Italy, Italian Henri Pigozzi. Simca was affiliated with Fiat and, after Simc ...

for use in its

supermini The B-segment is the second smallest of the European segments for passenger cars between the A-segment and C-segment, and commonly described as "small cars". The B-segment is the third largest segment in Europe by volume, accounting for 15. ...

s and

economy car Economy car is a term mostly used in the United States for cars designed for low-cost purchase and operation. Typical economy cars are small (compact car, compact or subcompact car, subcompact), lightweight, and inexpensive to both produce and p ...

s, designed by the engineer Georges Martin ( V12 Matra Sports engine designer). In spite of its common name, the engine actually predates the

Simca 1100 The Simca 1100 is a series of France, French compact family cars – mainly C-segment hatchbacks, but also a Compact car, compact wagon and popular delivery vans – built for over 15 years by France, French car-maker Simca, from 1967 through ...

model, and debuted in 1961 in the

Simca 1000 The Simca 1000, or Simca Mille in France, French, is a small, boxy Rear-engine, rear-wheel-drive layout, rear-engined four-door saloon car, saloon, manufactured for 18 years by French automaker Simca, from 1961 to 1978. Origins The origins of the ...

. It was developed and produced by Simca (subsequently rebranded as Talbot) in the late 1960s at the manufacturer's factory in Poissy, hence its name. The engine was first designed in a form, but was reduced and stretched in order to be used in a variety of models and versions, by Simca, the

Rootes Group The Rootes Group was a British automobile manufacturer and, separately, a major motor distributors and dealers business. From headquarters in the West End of London, the manufacturer was based in the English Midlands, Midlands and the distribu ...

(its partner company in

Chrysler Europe Chrysler Europe was the American automotive company Chrysler's operations in Europe from 1967 through 1978. It was formed from the merger of the French Simca, British Rootes and Spanish Barreiros companies. In 1978, Chrysler divested thes ...

), Simca's final incarnation

Talbot Talbot is a dormant automobile marque introduced in 1902 by British-French company Clément-Talbot. The founders, Charles Chetwynd-Talbot, 20th Earl of Shrewsbury and Adolphe Clément-Bayard, reduced their financial interests in their Clément ...

and its last parent company

Peugeot Peugeot (, , ) is a French automobile brand owned by Stellantis. The family business that preceded the current Peugeot companies was established in 1810, making it the oldest car company in the world. On 20 November 1858, Émile Peugeot applie ...

, who used it until 1991 in its midsize model, the

309 __NOTOC__ Year 309 ( CCCIX) was a common year starting on Saturday of the Julian calendar. In the Roman Empire, it was known as the Year of the Consulship of Licinianus and Constantius (or, less frequently, year 1062 ''Ab urbe condita''). The ...

. The engine existed in displacements ranging from , the biggest one on both sides of the Atlantic, powering the United States-market

Dodge Omni The Dodge Omni is a subcompact, subcompact car that was manufactured by Chrysler, Chrysler Corporation from the 1978 to 1990 model years. Marketed alongside the Plymouth Horizon, the Omni was the first front-wheel drive Chrysler vehicle; the pai ...

Plymouth Horizon The horizon is the apparent curve that separates the surface of a celestial body from its sky when viewed from the perspective of an observer on or near the surface of the relevant body. This curve divides all viewing directions based on whether ...

. Peugeot eventually dropped the engines, replacing them with their own TU family.

Poissy engine

The Poissy engine was introduced in 1961 in the

, a small four-door saloon car. It featured a displacement of and had an initial output of , which would be increased over the years to a maximum of on the base model. The following year, the Type 315 was used for the first time in a two-door sports model, the

Simca 1000 Coupé The Simca Coupé 1000 and its successor, the Simca 1200S are small, rear-engined two-door coupés (described by one well informed commentator as “''Pseudo-sportives''”) which were produced by Simca between 1962 and 1971. Simca also provided t ...

, in a tuned form, with . The overhead valve engine Type 315 was a modern unit, with a water-cooled inline design with forged

crankshaft A crankshaft is a mechanical component used in a reciprocating engine, piston engine to convert the reciprocating motion into rotational motion. The crankshaft is a rotating Shaft (mechanical engineering), shaft containing one or more crankpins, ...

, alloy cross-flow head and five

main bearing A main bearing is a bearing in a piston engine which holds the crankshaft in place and allows it to rotate within the engine block. The number of main bearings per engine varies between engines, often in accordance with the forces produced b ...

s. An unusual feature on early models was the absence of a spin-on paper

oil filter An oil is any nonpolar chemical substance that is composed primarily of hydrocarbons and is hydrophobic (does not mix with water) and lipophilic (mixes with other oils). Oils are usually flammable and surface active. Most oils are unsatur ...

. Instead, the engine featured a form of centrifugal oil filter in the hollow rear crankshaft pulley, although all later versions used the more traditional disposable cartridge filters. One of its major innovations was the use of a swirl vortex on the

intake valve A poppet valve (also sometimes called mushroom valve) is a valve typically used to control the timing and quantity of petrol (gas) or vapour flow into or out of an engine, but with many other applications. It consists of a hole or open-ended ch ...

port which gave very good combustion, and thus both power and economy for this time. This engine proved cheap to build, and several models of different sizes and market segments used this displacement, which survived until 1982, as the ever-present entry level for the

. In later life however, when it was installed in cars such as the

Horizon The horizon is the apparent curve that separates the surface of a celestial body from its sky when viewed from the perspective of an observer on or near the surface of the relevant body. This curve divides all viewing directions based on whethe ...

and 1307/Alpine/Solara the Poissy engine was criticized for its poor mechanical refinement - in particular for its excessive

tappet A tappet or valve lifter is a valve train component which converts rotational motion into linear motion in activating a valve. It is most commonly found in internal combustion engines, where it converts the rotational motion of the camshaft into ...

noise, something which led to poor press reviews. It survived as the entry level engine in the

Peugeot 309 The Peugeot 309 is a small family car that was manufactured between 1985 and 1994 in France, England and Spain by PSA Peugeot Citroën. It was originally intended to be badged as a Talbot (automobile), Talbot and, as development progressed, to be ...

until 1991.

Smaller variants

The Poissy engine was reduced a few times, although it didn't have much use apart from the early and more compact models. In 1964, Simca developed an version for the Spanish market 1000, as cars over 0.9 L were in a higher tax bracket. This variant existed in two output levels, the most powerful of which, and two single-barrel

carburetor A carburetor (also spelled carburettor or carburetter) is a device used by a gasoline internal combustion engine to control and mix air and fuel entering the engine. The primary method of adding fuel to the intake air is through the Ventu ...

s, which increased power to . An even more economic version was created for the entire European market in late 1968, with only . These displacements were used in the Simca 1000 up to 1978.

Larger variants

In 1968, another version was created for the Spanish market, the displacement. This was the first sporty version of the 1000, with power rising to . A double-barrel carburetor was then used in the Simca 1200 S, a

coupé A coupe or coupé (, ) is a passenger car with a sloping or truncated rear roofline and typically with two doors. The term ''coupé'' was first applied to horse-drawn carriages for two passengers without rear-facing seats. It comes from the Fr ...

Bertone Gruppo Bertone, commonly known as Bertone, was an Italian industrial design company which specialized in Automotive design, car styling, coachbuilder, coachbuilding and Contract manufacturer, manufacturing. It was also a Automotive industry in ...

, and the CG

sports car A sports car is a type of automobile that is designed with an emphasis on dynamic performance, such as Automobile handling, handling, acceleration, top speed, the thrill of driving, and Auto racing, racing capability. Sports cars originated in ...

, and could reach . The regular version was later used in various models around the European market, and was even installed in the US-market version of the Simca 1100, known as the Simca 1204. It was in use until 1978. The variant appeared in 1967, initially in the 1100 and then in the 1000. This proved to be one of the most popular displacements of the 315 engines, powering the LCV version of the 1100, known as VF2, and the

Talbot Horizon The horizon is the apparent curve that separates the surface of a celestial body from its sky when viewed from the perspective of an observer on or near the surface of the relevant body. This curve divides all viewing directions based on whether ...

's entry level version. It survived until 1991, when it was used as the base model to the Peugeot 309. The variant debuted in 1972, and although it wasn't very popular in the 1000, it continued to be used in various Simca and Talbot models. It was famous in racing circles, by being used to power the Simca Rallye 2, a sporty version of the 1000 introduced in 1972, with two double-barrel carburetors and a maximum power of . Racing versions could be tuned well in excess of , and the three generations of the Simca Rallye using this engine are still used throughout Europe, especially France, in various national

rally Rally or rallye may refer to: Gatherings * Political demonstration, a political rally, a political demonstration of support or protest, march, or parade * Pep rally, an event held at a North American school or college sporting event Sport ...

championships for classic cars and non-homologated cars. The variant was first used in 1975 in the

Simca 1307 The Simca 1307 is a large family car produced by Chrysler Europe and subsequently PSA Peugeot Citroën from 1975 to 1986. Codenamed 'C6' in development, the car was styled in the United Kingdom by Roy Axe and his team at Whitley, and the car w ...

Chrysler Alpine Alpine may refer to any mountainous region. It may also refer to: Places Europe * Alps, a European mountain range ** Alpine states, which overlap with the European range Australia * Alpine, New South Wales, a Northern Village * Alpine Nationa ...

. On virtue of its size, it could reach with a double-barrel carburetor, but unlike the 1.3 L version, it was never used for racing in any capacity, Simca and Talbot preferring to use it in its larger models, including deluxe versions of the Horizon and the Solara. It also powered Europe's first soft-roader, the

Matra Rancho The Matra Rancho is a leisure activity vehicle created by the French engineering group Matra, in cooperation with the automaker Simca, to capitalize on the off-road trend started by the Range Rover. The Rancho provided an "off-road look" at a lowe ...

. The larger iteration of the Poissy engine was the variant. Like the 1.45 L engine, it debuted in the 1307/Alpine in 1975, and was positioned at the top of the range, initially only with an

automatic transmission An automatic transmission (AT) or automatic gearbox is a multi-speed transmission (mechanics), transmission used in motor vehicles that does not require any input from the driver to change forward gears under normal driving conditions. The 1904 ...

(the only version of the engine to feature one), necessary to ensure this engine could power the US-market versions of the Chrysler Europe models. It was notorious for its use in the

and

, and was dubbed Peugeot by the American media, despite the fact that Peugeot had nothing to do with its design. It was also used as the base engine for the three-seater coupé Matra Murena.

Different models

777 cc

This tiny model was a tax special introduced in late 1968 to fit the Simca 1000 into France's 4CV tax category. The engine code is type 359. * Simc'4 - 1968–1978

844 cc

This "tax special" was only offered in the Spanish market, where cars of over received a heavy tax penalty. It was called the Simca 900. The car was introduced in 1970 with a engine. In 1973 it was reintroduced as the 900 Special, now with a Bressel 32 twin carburetor and at 5800 rpm. * Simca 900 - 1970-1977 (Spain)

944 cc

Introduced for longitudinal applications (for the rear-engined 1000 range), this engine was called the 315. In 1968 a version for transverse installation (for the new front-wheel drive

1100 Year 1100 (Roman numerals, MC) was a leap year starting on Sunday in the Julian calendar. It last year of the 11th century and the first year of the 12th century. In the proleptic Gregorian calendar, it was a Common year starting on Monday, no ...

) called the type 352 was introduced. Some of its improvements were also applied to the original version, which now carried the 349 code. In 1973, Simca changed their engine coding system and the longitudinal engine now became the 1D1 while the transverse model became the 3D1. *

- 1961–1966 *

- 1962–1978 * CG 1000 - 1966–1974 *

- 1968–1976

1118 cc

When installed in Peugeots, it was called the E1A engine. Originally it was called the type 350 (for transversal installations) or 351 (for longitudinal ones). These became the 3E1 and 1E1 respectively in 1973. *

- 1968–1978 *

- 1967–1982 *

Simca-Talbot Horizon The Talbot Horizon is a Compact car, compact hatchback designed by Chrysler Europe, manufactured and marketed for model years 1978-1987 under the Simca, Chrysler Europe, Chrysler and Talbot (automobile), Talbot brands, succeeding both the Simca ...

- 1977–1987 *

Peugeot 205 The Peugeot 205 is a four-passenger, front-engine, supermini ( B-segment) car manufactured and marketed by Peugeot over a sixteen-year production run from 1983 to 1999, over a single generation. Developed from ''Projet'' M24 and introduced on 2 ...

- July 1987 - October 1988, some Spanish built XL/GL models *

- 1986–1989 * Citroen C15 - 1987–1988

1204 cc

The iterations received an increase in stroke over the 1.1 engine, to , while retaining the bore. Originally fitted to the somewhat sporting 1100 Spécial, it carried the 353 engine code. The rear-engined (longitudinal) version was called the 354. Later the engine code was changed to 1F1 (for single carburettor versions), and after PSA's takeover it was briefly installed in Spanish market 205s where it was called the F1. *

GT, Rallye GT, Special (Spain only) * Simca 1200S Bertone - 1968–1971 *Simca CG - 1967–1974 *

- 1967–1979 * Simca VF2 - 1973–1985 *

- 1987–1990, Spain only *

- Spain only

1294 cc

The iteration was introduced in 1971, replacing the earlier unit used. The bore was increased to , while the stroke remained . The engine code was 366 for transversal installations, while longitudinal engines were called type 371. In 1973, Simca changed their system and the engines became 3G (transversal) and 1G (longitudinal) instead. After

PSA PSA, PsA, Psa, or psa may refer to: Biology and medicine * Posterior spinal artery * Primary systemic amyloidosis, a disease caused by the accumulation of abnormal proteins * Prostate-specific antigen, an enzyme used as a blood tracer for pro ...

began to closer combine their operations with those of the erstwhile Simca corporation, the engine code was changed yet again, to G1A, for use in the 309 and late Horizons. The 1978-only Simca 1000 Rallye III had the most potent unit yet, the 1G4C. *

- 1972–1974 * Simca Rallye - 1972–1978 *

Special/TI - 1971–1982 * Simca 1307 / Chrysler Alpine / Talbot 1510 - 1975–1982 *

Matra Bagheera The Matra Bagheera is a sports car built by the automotive division of the French engineering group Matra from 1973 to 1980, in cooperation with automaker Simca. It was marketed as the Matra-Simca Bagheera until its final year of production, when ...

- 1973–1976 *

- 1977–1985 *

Talbot Solara Talbot is a dormant automobile marque introduced in 1902 by British-French company Clément-Talbot. The founders, Charles Chetwynd-Talbot, 20th Earl of Shrewsbury and Adolphe Clément-Bayard, reduced their financial interests in their Clément-T ...

- 1980–1985 *

- Spanish-built XR/GR models *

- 1986–1990 * Citroen C15 - 1987–1988

1442 cc

Introduced in 1975, this larger model carries the 6Y engine code. The 6Y1 has a single carburettor. while the 6Y2 has a double barrel one, and the 6Y4 has twin, double-barrel carbs. * Simca 1200 - Spain, 1979–1980 * Simca 1307 / Chrysler Alpine / Talbot 1510 - 1975–1983 *

- 1976–1980 *

- 1977–1982 *

- 1977–1987 *

- 1980–1986 *

GR - Spain, - 1985–1989 *Peugeot 205 - some Spanish built models

1592 cc

This engine was known as the 6J internally. 6J1 engines have a single carburettor, while 6J2s have a twin unit. The slightly more powerful version at fitted to the Murena is called the 6J2A. * Simca 1307 / Chrysler Alpine / Talbot 1510 - 1975–1984 * Matra Murena - 1980–1983 *

- 1983–1987 * Dodge Omni / Plymouth Horizon - 1983–1986 *

- 1980–1986 *Peugeot 205 GTX (Spain, 1987 - October 1991) *

SR - (Spain, - 1985–1989)

References

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