France was a pioneer in the automotive industry and is the 11th-largest automobile manufacturer in the world by 2015 unit production and the third-largest in Europe (after Germany and Spain). It had consistently been the 4th-largest from the end of World War II up to 2000. It is 16% of sales of French manufactured products.

France is home to two major automaking companies: Stellantis (owner of the Peugeot, Citroën, DS and Opel/Vauxhall marques which were originally part of the PSA Group). Renault Group (owner of the Renault, Alpine, Dacia marques and 43% of Nissan) the 3rd-largest automaker in Europe and the 10th-largest of the world in 2015. Additionally, Toyota operates a factory in France for production of small-class passenger vehicles.

Lower volume French automotive manufacturers include: Bugatti, a luxury marque of Bugatti Rimac headquartered in Molsheim. Venturi, a small sports car manufacturer and Formula E team sponsor. Aixam and Mega, microcar marques of Polaris Industries headquartered in Aix-les-Bains. Microcar and Ligier, microcar marques of DrivePlanet headquartered in Abrest.

The France-based Renault Trucks is a major producer of commercial vehicles and is owned by Volvo. Both PSA and Renault produce a large number of vehicles outside France. French automotive manufacturers were long dominant in francophone Africa, but beginning in the 1970s the Japanese were making inroads due to lower prices and the availability of suitable light offroad cars and trucks.

French-designed cars have won the European Car of the Year and World Car of the Year awards numerous times. The Citroën DS took third place in Car of the Century award and has been named the most beautiful car of all time by Classic & Sports Car magazine."This Just In: Model T Gets Award", James G. Cobb, The New York Times, December 24, 1999

18th and 19th centuries

1769 – Nicolas-Joseph Cugnot builds the first self-propelled mechanical vehicle.

1807 – François Isaac de Rivaz invents a hydrogen-powered internal combustion engine.

1859 – Jean Joseph Étienne Lenoir develops an internal combustion engine.

1884 – Edouard Delamare-Deboutteville is credited in France with building the first gasoline-powered automobile.

1885 – Amédée Bollée begins manufacturing steam-powered vehicles.

1887 – Léon Serpollet begins building steam-powered vehicles.

1887 – Panhard et Levassor established as a car manufacturing concern by René Panhard and Émile Levassor, with the first car produced in 1891.

1890 – Armand Peugeot produces a four-wheeled car powered by a Daimler gasoline fueled internal combustion engine.

1894 – Albert de Dion and Georges Bouton produce a single cylinder gasoline-powered engine and in 1898 produced a four-wheeler. They had previously built steam-powered vehicles beginning in 1883.

1894 – Delahaye is founded by Emile Delahaye. The company is bought by Hotchkiss et Cie in 1954 and discontinues auto production.

1896 – Armand Peugeot starts to build and fit his own engines to his cars.

1896 – Léon Bollée builds gasoline-powered cars.

1898 – The Renault brothers, Louis, Marcel and Fernand, sell their first car.

1900–1950

1903 – France remains the world's leading automaker, producing 30,124 cars (nearly 49% of the world total) as against 11,235 cars produced in the USA.

1903 – Hotchkiss et Cie is founded. The company is bought by Peugeot in 1950, but discontinues auto production by 1955.

1905 – Delage is founded by Louis Delage. The company is bought by Delahaye in 1935 but ceases auto production in 1954.

1910 – Ettore Bugatti started the Bugatti company in Molsheim (then in Germany, now in France). Production ends in 1956.

1911 – The French branch of Hispano-Suiza is founded. Auto production is ended in 1938.

1919 – Avions Voisin is founded by Gabriel Voisin. Production ceases in 1939. After the war, Voisin designed a microcar, the Biscuter.

1919 – Citroën founded by Andre Citroën.

1920 – Darracq (founded 1896) merges with Sunbeam and Talbot, creating what eventually became Talbot-Lago in 1935. The company is bought by Simca in 1959.

1921 – Amilcar is founded. The company merges with Hotchkiss et Cie in 1937 and ceases production in 1939.

1921 – Salmson begins auto production. In 1957, the company is bought by Renault.

1922 – Leon Paulet begins auto production.

1929 – French annual automobile production peaked at 253,000 passenger cars, a level that would not be matched till after the Second World War.

1933 – With French passenger car production at 140,635 units, France lost its place as Europe's top automobile producer to Great Britain 220,775. The French roads nevertheless reflected three decades during much of which the French auto-industry had led the world, with a "car parc" of 1,448,000, ahead of Britain which had 1,210,880 cars registered and of Germany with only 510,680 cars.

1934 – Simca established by Henri Pigozzi to build Fiat cars.

1934 – Citroën introduces the Traction Avant, featuring front wheel drive and unitary construction. Citroën becomes bankrupt and is taken over by the Michelin Tire Company.

1934 – Matford begins building Ford cars, but ceases in 1939. In 1947, the company is reorganized as Ford SAF and sells cars under the Ford name.

1936 – While the British and German economies powered ahead during the 1930s, growth in the French economy was at best tentative, with a period of destructive strikes and economic paralysis during the middle years of the decade. In Germany the Hitler government treated the German auto-industry to a central role in a radical economic strategy driven by what can be seen as a Keynesian approach to "fiscal stimulus". In 1936 France fell from second to third place among Europe's auto-producing nations, recording production of 204,000 cars, while Germany's production amounted to 213,117 passenger cars.

1945 – Renault becomes state owned and is called (RNUR).

1945 – The Pons Plan reflected government determination to structure the French auto-industry according to priorities identified by politicians and civil servants. A select group of auto manufacturers is favored. A punitive fiscal horsepower tax is imposed on larger engines leading to the demise of most of the Grandes Routières such as Bugatti, Delage, Delahaye, Hotchkiss et Cie, Salmson and Talbot-Lago by the mid-1950s.

1946 – Renault introduces the Renault 4CV model.

1948 – Citroën introduces the Citroën 2CV model, a small front-wheel drive saloon marketed as a "people's car" in the same vein as Germany's Volkswagen Beetle.

1948 – Peugeot introduces the Peugeot 203 model.

1950–2000

1954 – Facel Vega established.

1954 – Simca acquires Ford SAF.

1955 – Citroën introduces the Citroën DS model, equipped with disk brakes and self-leveling suspension.

1955 – Alpine (car maker) is founded by Jean Rédélé and develops a series of sports cars. Launch of the Citroën DS, flagship saloon car in the Citroën range.

1957 – End of Citroën Traction Avant production after 23 years.

1960 – Launch of the Peugeot 404 saloon models.

1961 – Launch of the Renault 4, a small estate car which is aimed at the lower end of the market dominated in France by the Citroën 2CV, as well as foreign competitors like the Volkswagen Beetle and BMC's new Mini.

1963 – American automotive giant Chrysler takes a 63% ownership stake in Simca.

1964 – Closure of Facel Vega after just 10 years of car production due financial problems.

1965 – Matra begins automobile production. Citroën takes over Panhard, phasing out the marque on passenger cars. The Renault 16, a large family hatchback (the first production car with that bodystyle), is launched and voted European Car of the Year.

1968 – Citroën takes over Italian sports and luxury car maker Maserati. Peugeot launches the 504, a large rear-wheel drive family saloon, which is voted European Car of the Year.

1969 – The Renault 12 medium-sized saloon and estate range is launched, but it missed out on the European Car of the Year award, which goes to the Fiat 128 from Italy.

1970 – Citroën introduces the Citroën SM, a large coupe featuring a self-leveling suspension, self-centering speed-sensitive power steering, hydropneumatic brakes, and engine technology from Maserati. It also launched the new GS family car, which is voted European Car of the Year. Chrysler launches a new French-built, British-designed flagship saloon model, the 180.

1972 – Launch of the Renault 5, France's first small hatchback. It features a three-door bodystyle and front-wheel drive.

1973 – Launch of the Chrysler 2 Litre, a larger-engine version of the 180 model.

1974 – Despite its new CX (successor to the 19-year-old DS) being voted European Car of the Year, Citroën files bankruptcy. Maserati is then sold to Alejandro de Tomaso. Peugeot launches its first hatchback model, the three-door 104, which is launched two years after the original saloon.

1975 – The Simca 1307 (sold in Britain as the Chrysler Alpine) is launched and is voted European Car of the Year, making use of a hatchback bodystyle and front-wheel drive. Citroën is saved from collapse by merging into Peugeot. Renault moves into the luxury car market with its 20/30 range, which unusually for this sector of car features a hatchback and front-wheel drive. Launch of the Citroën LN, which features a 652cc two-cylinder engine and a three-door hatchback based on the Peugeot 104. The last Citroën DS is built after 20 years and more than 1.4 million sales worldwide.

1976 – Renault launches a new small family hatchback model, the R14, which is similar in concept to the Volkswagen Golf from West Germany.

1978 – PSA Peugeot Citroën takes over Chrysler's European division, the former Rootes Group in Britain and Simca in France. Shortly before the sale is completed, the new Horizon mid-sized hatchback is voted European Car of the Year. Launch of the Renault 18 saloons and estates, which feature front-wheel drive and will eventually replace the long-running R12 models. Renault begins financial involvement with American Motors. Citroën launches the Visa, a small five-door hatchback. Peugeot launches the 305 saloon, which will eventually replace the smaller 304.

1979 – Peugeot launches the 505 saloon, replacement for the 504, which will remain in production for a few years in Europe. The Simca marque is discontinued after 45 years by the company's new owner Peugeot, who revive the Talbot badge for the entire former Chrysler Europe model range. The Citroën GS is updated after nine years to become the GSA, and gains a hatchback.

1980 – Demise of the Renault 12 after 11 years in production and the Renault 16 after 15 years. New to the Renault range is the Renault Fuego coupe, which is similar in size and price to cars like the Ford Capri. Peugeot launches the Talbot Solara, a saloon version of the Alpine hatchback, and a new flagship saloon, the Tagora, which was actually developed by Chrysler as a replacement for the 180/2 litre models.

1981 – The Renault 9, a small family saloon, is voted European Car of the Year on its launch. Launch of the Talbot Samba, a reworked version of the Peugeot 104, which is built at the former Simca factory in Poissy.

1982 – Citroën launches the Citroën BX, which will eventually replace the smaller GSA.

1983 – Peugeot launches the new 205 supermini, styled by Italian designer Pininfarina. Renault has a new competitor in the mid-sized hatchback sector with the new 11. French production of the Peugeot 504 ends after 15 years. At the end of the year, Renault replaces its 20/30 flagship models with the R25.

1984 - Renault launches the Espace - Europe's first volume multi purpose vehicle. The R5 receives a complete redesign but its styling is still recognisable as an update of the 1972 original.