MT Detroit Editor Todd Lassa explores the wide range of French cars showcased at the 2008 Paris Auto Show.
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00:00 So we're here at the Paris Auto Show, we ought to take a look at some French cars.
00:14 Over the years, French design has been known as quirky, charming, and odd.
00:21 What's French design like now?
00:22 Let's take a look.
00:32 This is Citroen's design study for a sports racing car.
00:36 Citroen's never been known for racing cars, and now you see why.
00:41 Environmentique is kind of the main theme of the 2008 Paris Auto Show.
00:45 One of the things that's happening is that the French like to try to find a way to do
00:50 a luxury MPV, four-seat, monospace, big sedan, crossover, whatever.
00:57 This is Citroen's example, the Hypnos.
01:02 This is the RC High Motion, this is Peugeot's take on the sport luxury coupe-like four-door
01:08 sedan.
01:09 I mentioned earlier that Environmentique is kind of the main theme of the Paris show.
01:14 Well, this one's got a 1.6 liter engine with hybrid power.
01:20 One of my favorite cars at this show is the new Renault Megane.
01:22 If you remember the old one, it was kind of a prosaic-looking car with a bustle trunk.
01:27 The new one, especially the coupe, has very flowing, nice lines.
01:32 This is the coupe behind me, of course.
01:34 Great-looking car, it'd be nice to see something like this back in the States.
01:39 What would Charlie Parker and Dizzy Gillespie drive?
01:41 How about the new Renault Kangoo Bebop?
01:46 The Andalus concept, this is Renault's answer to the idea of a luxury monospace two-plus-two.
01:51 It's good to see that after all these years, perky, charming, and odd are all alive and
01:57 well in France.