Peugeot 205 Turbo 16 mock-up and Prototypeīudget for developing the Group B car was almost without limit. The design and build of what later came to be known as the 205 Turbo 16 came together very quickly. From their Coventry home, O’Dell and his team would nonetheless provide crucial input as to how a proper rally car should be developed, especially by keeping ease of service at the forefront.īack in France, Jean Todt took charge of a team of twenty engineers led by Bernard Perron, André de Cortanze (chassis) and Jean-Pierre Boudy (engine). However, the complexity and scale of the project would soon see it move to France. Initially coded “M24-Rally” project, the design of the rally car originally started in late 1981 at Talbot’s HQ in Coventry England under team boss Des O’Dell. Peugeot Talbot Sport (PTS) was formed under Todt’s leadership. He appointed Jean Todt: a man with extensive experience as a rally co-driver and with a natural knack for management.
However, it felt important to Peugeot’s then Chairman, Jean Boillot, that this very important motorsport project should be headed by a fellow Frenchman. To develop the Group B rally car out of the normal road-going 205, Peugeot first turned to the newly acquired Talbot brand (which was formed out of the defunct Chrysler Europe companies) since it already had extensive experience in rallying and had won the 1981 WRC manufacturer title with their Sunbeam Lotus, a similar small “hot hatch”.
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