Peugeot 401 D Éclipse Type CE1
A dentist's clever roof idea turned this Peugeot from a closed coupé into an open car by hiding one big steel panel beneath the rear deck.
1935 Peugeot 401 Coupé transformable Eclipse — representative for the 1934 profile · Thesupermat · CC BY-SA 3.0
Research pending
A matching completed auction sale has not been verified for this exact year, body, trim, engine, transmission and market.
Joyride shows this gap instead of substituting an asking price, unsold bid or mismatched special vehicle.
More than a set of wheels.
Peugeot introduced the 401 D and DL at the Paris Motor Show in October 1934. The rare Éclipse used Georges Paulin's patented roof idea, coachbuilder Marcel Pourtout's engineering and early distribution through Émile Darl'mat. Peugeot's own heritage accounts differ between a 1934 presentation and a 1935 production label, so this page is explicitly the 1934 debut specification rather than pretending every surviving Éclipse was built that year.
Look a little closer.
The word Éclipse suggested a solar eclipse: close the roof and the sunlight disappears from the cabin.
Photos show an example of the model or generation. The pictured vehicle’s year, equipment, or modifications can differ from the specification described here.
A roof developed by three specialists
Georges Paulin patented the idea in 1932, Marcel Pourtout developed the coachwork and Peugeot dealer Émile Darl'mat handled early sales. The 301 prototype proved the system before the 401 and 601 put electrically retracting metal roofs into limited series production.
Source: Peugeot Media · 80 years of Éclipse production ↗Debut year and production year are not identical labels
L'Aventure Peugeot records the 401 D/DL debut at Paris in October 1934 and 79 Éclipse examples within the one-year 401 programme. Later Peugeot material often calls the production coupé-cabriolet a 1935 model. Joyride keeps both dates visible instead of collapsing them.
Source: L'Aventure Peugeot · Peugeot 401 & 601 ↗Where these facts come from
- L'Aventure Peugeot · Peugeot 401 & 601
- Peugeot Media · 80 years of Éclipse production
- Hachette technical sheet · 401 D Éclipse Type CE1
- L'Aventure Peugeot · 401 model record
Selected facts checked for this edition. Some source pages link to broader model families. Last reviewed September 30, 2026.