When Citroën introduced the “Traction Avant” (means front drive) in 1938, it was a radically different concept from the cars Citroën had been producing.
This bare chassis gives an unrestricted view of the inner workings of the famous Citroën 2CV, or “Deux Chevaux”, including its longitudinal suspension, air-cooled 602cc engine, unusual shifter linkage, and the in-board front disc brakes.
As far back as the early 1930s, Citroën teamed with Yacco, an oil company in France, for endurance testing on Citroën automobiles. These cars were tested at Montlhéry, a track outside Paris.
Twenty-five years after production began, the 2CV has been through minor changes. Compare the similarities and differences of this later model 2CV with the older grey 1954 2CV.
Citroën wanted to create a four wheel drive car for use in Africa to take the rugged terrain encountered during oil and mineral exploration. Instead of going with a standard configuration, Citroën mounted one engine in the front and one engine in the rear to create four wheel drive.
The 2CV “Fourgonnette” (or Truckette) played as important a part of the 2CV story as the car. Ultimately, over a million examples were built, which accounted for nearly a third of the total 2CV production.
This car started as a stock Citroën 2CV. As the 2CV was found to be affordable and easy to maintain, it was an ideal car for enthusiasts to create from.
The fire and rescue service in Cogolin, France, were using a Citroën 15-6 as part of their fleet. One night while on patrol, Colonel Hourcastagné found the narrow mountain road blocked.
The Citroën 2CV was designed to offer minimal-cost rural transportation. Designers were challenged to build a car that would carry two people and a 250 pound sack of potatoes at a speed of 37 mph.
The Citroën 5CV was shown at the Paris Salon in 1921, and production began in 1922. For the first time in France, the marketing was slanted toward feminine clientele, paying off handsomely for Citroën.
André Citroën introduced his first car to the public in 1919, and within two weeks received 16,000 orders for the Type a 10CV. The company steadily grew through the 1930s, and André Citroën became infatuated with front wheel drive automobiles and began developing a mental picture of the next car his factory would produce.
