The old battered Peugeot Cabriolet that Columbo drives is just as typical for him as his raincoat and his cigar.

 

Peter Falk was initially against the idea of making the car a distinctive subject of the series. William Link was able to persuade the actor to simply look around Universal Studios – maybe there was a car that suited him.

 

Unenthusiastically, Falk agreed to the idea of ??looking around the car park, and finally found the old, dented and rusted convertible, which we ultimately know from the crime series. Link was not very excited about his choice, but could be convinced by Peter Falk that this car would fit his alter ego, Inspector Columbo, perfectly.

 

The vehicle is a Peugeot 403 Convertible, built between 1957 and 1961, and whose body was created by the Pininfarina design company. Under the hood lies a four-cylinder engine at 65 hp. There are only 2,000 cars of this model and, in a well maintained condition, one would be worth about 15-20 thousand euro today.

 

Inspector Columbo's fear of getting his car stolen is, of course, ridiculous and completely incomprehensible. Such statements belong to the clumsy and weak impression that the inspector wants to make. He explains his fear of theft for such a car through the theory that people could use the spare parts. Given the battered and rusty vehicle, that statement naturally sounds preposterous.

 

According to Columbo, the convertible’s tachometer has long since been broken, so that he does not know the car’s mileage. He claims that he had bought the car with a mileage of 89,000 miles, but that it could be possible that the 5-digit counter had been rotated several times.

 

The car was first seen as early as in the first episode, Murder by the Book. However, this model did not follow through to the 69th episode. After the first convertible had broken down, the producers got hold of a similar model that was then given to Columbo.

 

Thus, the first convertible had a dark gray color with a black roof and the windshield wipers, and the edges of the windows were chromed. The license plate reading 044 APD was mounted on the front bumper.

 

As for the second convertible, neither the wiper nor the edges of the windows were chrome, the body color was a bit brighter and the roof was also brighter. The license plate, which was now attached to the bumper, bore the inscription 448 OBZ.

 

 

You may find all episodes of Inspector Columbo here.