Why French cruisers could not always disengage

If French cruisers were no faster than their opponents, how could they rely on disengaging after an attack?

They could not always do so; domestic machinery and production limits constrained the speed available to support the doctrine.

A cruiser cannot rely on disengagement when enemy ships are just as fast, and French cruisers could not always escape once caught. France strongly preferred domestically produced machinery, just as other naval powers favored their own industrial bases. Available engines, precision manufacturing, and the production system nevertheless imposed a ceiling on the service speed that could support the doctrine. The limits of domestic production therefore constrained an operational concept built around rapid attack and withdrawal.