Simca 1501 'Special' from Heuliez. A beautiful and unique concept

In 1967 the new 1301-1501 series from Simca appeared. The French coachbuilder Heuliez took full advantage of this. Heuliez was allowed to build the platforms for the series. The French were delighted with it. Moreover, they saw in the 1301-1501 series a very good starting point to develop a prototype based on the 1501. That became a three-door hatchback coupe. They wanted to present this together with the Simca 1100 Saharienne (a convertible prototype, also called Plein Air). The idea for the 1501 'Speciale' was born. Together with the aforementioned open Simca 1100, it showed off in the fall of 1968 on the Heuliez stand at the Paris Salon.

The idea for the sporty design came about when the new 1301 and 1501 replaced the predecessors (1300 and 1500). In 1963, these middle class teams in turn ended the careers of, among others, the Aronde. And based on that bestseller, special versions had appeared - in collaboration with Facel. The Plein Ciel and the Grand Large were fine examples of this. There was also a smaller sports car in the Simca program, the 1000 Coupé with Bertone's signature. Simca did not have a sporty design variant in the middle class. That is also why Heuliez saw the opportunity to come up with a coupe based on the Simca 1501.

Especially heavily modified rear

The designers at Heuliez constructed a car that was particularly striking at the rear. This deviated completely from the 1501 sedan. The front doors were enlarged, the windshield and a-pillars became slightly more slanted, the rear doors of the 1501 disappeared and the car got a third door. The back was made of glass fiber reinforced polyester, the front remained made of sheet steel.

Different interior

Heuliez also made the necessary changes within the interior. The emphasis was on understated chic. For example, the dashboard will have an instrument panel consisting of several round dials and a wood veneer finish. The Simca-Heuliez project was given chassis number HZ 1968-1 and, as mentioned, was exhibited at the Paris Salon in 1968. The 1501 Spéciale stood together with Heuliez's other Simca prototype on the small but tasteful stand: the 1100 Saharienne (or: Square Air). For the occasion, the three-door 1501 coupé was painted in a yellow shade.

Citroën impressed

The reception of the Simca 1501 Spéciale was positive. There was, however, criticism of the rear of the car. This one was considered easy. Yet the car also attracted the emphatic attention of competing French car manufacturers. Pierre Bercot (Citroën) was impressed by the Heuliez creation. It is often claimed that Bercot and Robert Opron were inspired by Heuliez's 1501 coupe when developing the Citroën M35, which took place in collaboration with…..Heuliez. BMW was probably also guided by the creation, because the rear of the -02 Touring series also had the necessary similarities with that of the proto-Simca.

Further developed after Paris Salon 1968

The adventure of the Simca 1501 Spéciale from Heuliez did not end with the presentation in Paris. After the Paris Salon, Heuliez further developed the car. The coupé received the specifications of the equally new 1501 Special. It received the strong 342S engine with 1475 cc with an output of 81 DIN hp. Heuliez also stripped the car of its yellow color and replaced it with a white coat of paint.

Strike through project

While the coachbuilder from Cerizay hoped for series production, Simca pulled the plug on the project in 1969 at the insistence of major shareholder Chrysler. This also applied to the 1100 Saharienne (Plein Air). It brought Heuliez back to the memory of the cancellation of the small '1100' van, which Heuliez developed in collaboration with Simca. That, too, was scrapped a few years earlier.

Simca continues with Bertone coupé

After Heuliez's veto for the Simca 1501 Spéciale, the prototype remained in the reserves of the Cerizay coachbuilder for years to come, just like the aforementioned open 1100. As far as the coupes are concerned, Simca therefore opted out of necessity and emphatically for the Simca 1200 S assembled in Rotterdam. In addition, Chrysler Europe had also added the sporty Matra to the brand portfolio just before the start of the 1501s. And that was yet another reason not to continue with a sporty designed Simca 160 variant. In addition, it was not long before a new Chrysler mid-sized car would present itself. That was the 180/2/1970-Litres series that eventually became the result of the cooperation initiated by Chrysler Europe between Rootes (from XNUMX Chrysler UK) and Simca (Chrysler France).

1501 makes way for 160, an important reason not to build the Heuliez coupé

And the 160 from this one C-car series followed - again at the instigation of Chrysler Europe - the 1501, at least temporarily. Not that the 1501 was already out of favor, on the contrary. The 1501 was regarded as a competitor of the 160, and the Chrysler Europe offices were not interested in that. Investing in a 1501 coupé variant was therefore not an option for Simca a few years earlier, insofar as there was already permission from the Chrysler corner. As said, the arrows were aimed at the new 160/180/2-Litres series. The 1971 disappeared in 1501. And remarkably enough, the 1501 returned in 1973, also because the 160 had to contend with a considerable lack of success, especially in France.

Auction in 2012, 12.504 kilometers driven

During Mans Classic in 2012, the Heuliez one-off was auctioned by Artcurial, along with a number of other Heuliez prototypes. Remarkable: despite the prototype status, the odometer shows 12.504 km, so the 1501 Spéciale has indeed made kilometers. Moreover, Heuliez took good care of the car. The French regularly carried out technical and cosmetic maintenance on the 1501 Spéciale. The auction experts estimate the proceeds of the Simca 1501 Spéciale to be roughly between €15.000 and €25.000. Heuliez's Simca was hammered down to an amount of €10.127. That was a disappointing value. Fortunately, the car has always been preserved. It is now part of the collection of the Musée National de l'Automobile in Mulhouse.

The photos come from the Heuliez archive