I know I mentioned this before, but I’m now the proud owner of a Citroën 2CV. This is quite literally an automotive dream come true for me; I’ve wanted a 2CV ever since I first saw them in car books from the library as a kid. They had all of the strangeness and charm of the Volkswagen Beetles I loved and was familiar with, but were somehow even weirder, which just made them even more intoxicating to me. And the more I learned about them, the more I wanted one! All the lore of being designed to replace horses and carts for French farmers, the carrying the eggs over the plowed field, the fact you can’t roll one, the astounding austerity and cleverness – I love it, openly, unashamedly.
And now, somehow, I have one sitting right there in my driveway. I still can’t believe it’s real. I’ve gone out and sat in it like half a dozen times already, just obsessing over every strange little wonderful detail, delighting in all of the peculiar decisions that went into making this car what it is. When the 2CV was introduced in 1948, a reviewer for The Autocar was quoted as saying that the 2CV
“is the work of a designer who has kissed the lash of austerity with almost masochistic fervour.”
…and I absolutely love that description. It’s true. This is a car that doesn’t cut corners, it chews those corners off with a wild-eyed, ecstatic glee. You can almost picture how each little detail that made something simpler – the way the hood hinge is just a bit of metal bent into an extruded triangle, or how the windows just flip up or how there’s not really a distributor in the engine – was met with some designer or engineer letting out a ragged, long sigh of pleasure and then lighting up a cigarette.
Oh, and again I should thank our own Stephen Walter Gossin for rescuing this thing and taking care of all the hard stuff – new glass, new roof, lots of wiring, and, perhaps most importantly, sorting out the title – and then dropping it off at my house.
Stephen made this dream real, especially because there really aren’t any 2CVs in this ideal middling state available. Everything out there is either a basket case project made of rust and hopelessness or a completely restored beauty that I can’t afford if I want to remain someone who uses the plural when talking about his kidneys. SWG got this fixed up just enough that it can be a fantastic, usable, daily driver. By no means perfect, but perfect’s never been something I’ve found that interesting. I mean, look at me up there.
As an aside, I’ve also kind of wanted a Citroën because Citroën is the only major automaker that was founded by someone Jewish, Andre Citroën. As a Jew who has spent his whole life obsessed with VW Beetles, a car with a, let’s say, checkered family history when it comes to getting along with my people, it just seemed right that I should have a Citroën in my stable to, you know, maybe bring some balance.
This 2CV I now own has the big engine, a 602cc air-cooled flat-twin beast. That makes it the smallest-displacement combustion engine I’ve ever owned in a car, beating out my Pao’s 987cc inline-four. This got me thinking about engines and horsepower, as the 29 horsepower the 2CV makes is, I believe, the second-lowest hp car I’ve ever had.
I decided to make a little chart to see how it stacks up against every other daily-driver car (meaning that these were cars that I used, for at least some decent period of time, as my primary transportation). Incredibly, I’ve never quite reached that stratospheric 150 hp level:
Wow! It looks like the most power I’ve had at the tip of my right foot has been around 145 hp, a figure tied between my old Scimitar and my F-150. The Scimitar was much faster, though. The Volvo 1800S was fun to drive, too, and I think my ’73 Beetle, when I upgraded to a twin-carb engine, was pretty quick, too. The Yugo also, was a beast with 87 hp! And of course, the Changli is at the bottom, with a horse-and-a-horse-fetus 1.1 hp.
But 29! That’s going to be fun to wring out! I’m told a 2CV with this engine should be able to hit 71, flat out. My Pao can hold 70-75 on the highway without much trouble, but that is still about 20-something more horsepower, and with a fifth gear. The 2CV’s fourth gear is an overdrive, though, and if it can hold 60-65, I’ll be happy. I can do the occasional highway with that! But I’ll likely prefer to keep this on back roads.
Okay, now for the harsh reality. The 2CV doesn’t quite run just yet, but I’m confident it will soon. So, here are all the things wrong with it I need to sort out.
What’s Wrong
The Fuel Pump
It’s down there, just above that yellow wire nut. It doesn’t suck, which in this case is a problem. They’re $40 and two bolts, pretty much, and that’s the first thing I’ll do. It should start after that? I hope?
The Driver’s Seat
The rubber bands that support the driver’s seat seem worn out, and as a result, I sink down into the seat a bit too much, which, for a short homunculus like myself, is a problem. I think I can fix that. Also, I need to get these seat covers off and clean them, especially getting out all the broken glass – and at least one dime – from the crevices.
A Bit Of Rust Here And There
There is some rust, but overall, it’s not that bad. The hood “hinge” has a good bit, there’s one Kraft Single-sized patch under the mat on the driver’s floor, and really, other than some little bits here and there, it’s not bad at all. All of the crucial chassis bits are quite rust-free, so I think I can take care of these little rust colonies before they spread.
The Fuel Gauge Doesn’t Seem To Work
The earliest 2CVs just had a stick, so maybe I shouldn’t complain. I think it’s just the sender in the tank, which drops out with four bolts. Should be easy enough to fix.
The Headlight Aiming Adjuster Needs Fixing
There’s a knob under the dash to adjust how high or low the headlights aim, so if you have, say, a large meteor in the trunk or a full grown rhino in the back seat, you can make sure your lights don’t just light up the undersides of aircraft. I think it just needs a little clip thing to hold that cable in place.
The Wiring Needs Tidying Up
Stephen got most of the wiring sorted out, but I’d like to just make sure everything is where it needs to be and bundle up that mass of wires. There are only about 18 wires in the whole car, but it sure looks like more under here.
The Dome Light Is Pretty Janky
It’s very much an afterthought, no matter what – just something some Citroën engineer found in the first eight pages of a parts catalog and stuck on there. I can likely get a replacement one cheap.
One Headlight Must Have Gotten Water In It
I need to clean out this headlight really well and see where it may have had a leak. Also, likely new bulbs for both lights, which have full headlight bulbs and small “town light” bulbs, like on my Pao. Also, I’m going to get rid of those headlight visors, because I’m just not crazy about the look.
A Broken Taillight!
Oh no! There’s a broken taillight! The good news is, I already have a replacement! Which means I can hang the cracked one by my desk, where I can readily contemplate its beauty.
I Need To Put The Fan Assembly Back On After I Make Sure The Points Are Good
I have the fan and all related parts; the sorta-distributor is in here, behind that leathern sheet, where it fires both plugs at once, every time, because why not? Sparks are cheap. So I need to get that back together after I confirm I’m getting good spark.
Okay, I think that’s all the wrongs; what’s right?
I Need To Get Bolts To Install Those Side Panels
See those gaps under the hood and over the fenders? I have the panels that fit there, but I think I need a few more bolts. That should be easy enough.
What’s Right
It’s a 2CV!
It’s motherflapping 2CV! A Deux Cheveaux! A car I’ve wanted forever! That’s what’s right about this thing.
Really, There’s Hardly Any Bad Rust
Look in the spare tire well here, normally a bad rust trap. It’s pretty damn clean! As is most of the car. It’s not rust free, but who amongst us is? It’s very solid, overall.
The Bullet Hole
A bullet hole in a car just makes it look tougher. And, I checked, it missed the fuel filler pipe.
These Little Window Clips Are So Clever And Simple
When you flip up the windows, a little peg pops into that hole, pushing aside that spring-loaded rod. Pushing that little lever on top releases it. It’s so clever, I want to spit red wine.
The Fresh Air Vent Flap
A knob opens up this flap under the windshield. You could peek through it to drive if you had to, like, say, if you replaced your windshield with a nicely-sanded piece of plywood.
I Love The Ridiculous Dash And All The Strange Controls
That’s the headlight stalk; it has an O, a V (ville, town), and an R (route or rural or something, for main headlights). You push it for the horn. The turn signals don’t even have an on-dash blinky light, because what are you, a king? I love the moped-like speedo, the strange little push buttons, the crazy shifter, everything. I can’t explain or justify it, I just do.
The Windshield Washer Is A Squirt Gun, Basically
You know how much I love the VW Beetle’s use of spare tire air pressure to drive the windshield washer? Well, the 2CV has a system that’s about as basic and clever: the washer works by pumping, with your finger, a little plunger on the dash. Basically, a squirt gun. Who needs some fancy-ass electric pump when you have perfectly good working fingers? It’s fantastic.
I’m just thrilled I finally have one of these in my life. I can’t wait to get it going and sorted and just drive the the merde out of this thing. I think it’ll be a blast!
Stay tuned for more, lots more.
Damn when you stepped on the gas in that Scimitar the first time, you must’ve felt like Dave Bowman going through the wormhole!
If SWG has some stories to tell about fixing what he did (assuming he didn’t take it to a shop) I’d love to read it. Leave the visors, they make it look so, so French!
Oh, I promise SWG did the fixing. And yeah, we’d all love to see the article on what you did (plus the Jaaaaaaaaaaag article!)
The bullet hole means it’s AMERICAN now
*Eagle screeches*
*Gunshots*
That could be a European bullet hole. Does it smell like Gauloises?
Not really. The most dangerous projectile you’re likely to encounter there is buckshot.
I have friend who shoots deer in the UK, and they aren’t using shotguns.
Hand guns are illegal, but rifles just require a licence from the police.
The UK isn’t Europe 😉
It’s definitely part of Europe, and a part of Europe with relatively few firearms, with only 4.6 guns per 100 people, compared to France, for example, where it’s 19.6.
In France you can legally own handguns with a capacity of 20 rounds and semi-automatic rifles with a capacity up to 31 rounds. So it’s not all farmers with shotguns.
I do understand that compared to the US every other country in the world seems basically unarmed.
Not economically part of Europe at least.
They do have crime and stuff in Europe. I didn’t catch anything about the car’s production date. Maybe it was in Algeria during the war. Maybe it was a bystander’s car, shot by police trying to hit infamous French criminal Mesrine. Or maybe someone was assassinated near it.
How do we know the bullet hit the car? The bullet could have just been hanging out in mid air minding it’s own business when the car came speeding along and – oh, forget about it.
If it was in France the car and the bullet may have been overwhelmed with passion. Impossible to keep apart.
It wasn’t a shooting, it was an assignation.
It’s not a bullet hole, it’s a speed hole. It makes to car go faster.
But it can’t have too many speed holes because…well, 2CV.
“Also, I’m going to get rid of those headlight visors, because I’m just not crazy about the look.”
This is crazy talk, they look like French fireman’s helmets.
“The Fresh Air Vent Flap”
That’d be a great place to put a giant Larson scanner. Preferably done with a zillion little neon bulbs to suit the era of the car. Ooh you could make it kind of track the direction you’re steering. Going straight: scan across the middle third of the space. Turning: move the scan area toward the end of the space you’re turning toward.
The alternator was NOT designed for anything additional. After all, it’s a French car from the early 1980s; the “cigarette lighter” is in your pocket or purse (and likely has been since you were 12). I’ve been advised to switch to marker lights when I’m idling at a stoplight for a while !
Good point. Might be able to run off a rechargable lithium battery pack entirely separate from the car system, though getting enough juice to start the neons conducting might be difficult. Might be better to find LEDs that look kind of like orange neons.
That’s where the KITT sweeper light goes.
AKA a Larson Scanner. As in Glen A. Larson who created Knight Rider and Battlestar Galactica.
Randomly watched the Mythbusters where they converted one of these into a motorcycle tonight haha
I cannot wait to see you driving around chapel hill in this thing
This now means there are at least 4 different. 2CVs and 3 owners within a 16min drive of each other (by 2CV!) in Chapel Hill.
I’ve seen one of them at southern village once at one of the restaurants and was so excited. My wife who keeps stealing my autopian shirts, was more excited and she had no idea what it was. There’s something about those simple little cars that just sparks joy.
Was it bright yellow? If so, you saw the car that is now in my care in northern Chapel Hill
It used to live in SV
Oh wow! Yes it was the yellow one. Saw it outside of Market and Moss one evening. Really lovely car!
It is now frequently seen around Carrboro and NW Chapel Hill. The carburetor’s accelerator pump started squirting fuel in places it shouldn’t be yesterday on the way home. I nursed it home, but I have some debugging to do. I rebuilt the carb a few min ago and reused the old membrane because it looked okay. I’m hoping it huo went bad. That’s an easy fix.
Congrats! I’ve always liked the 2CVs too, but after a recent visit to the Lane Auto Museum I discovered they are not for me. I could have used your broken seat.
Interesting – sitting in the one in the Lane in 2022 is EXACTLY what finally got my brain rolling on what would become the purchase of one last Nov!
Will there be a test to see if it still transports eggs safely?
Oui! Trés bien! That looks like just the right amount of problems to deal with on a unique driver-project. Probably won’t even need to bust out the chainsaw.
Sweet! Now rip that ugly wiring out and do it correctly. I’m decent at fishing wires through spaces, pretty good at making it functional and okay at making it look pretty. Putting the headlights onto their own harness relayed directly from the battery and triggered by the switch would both make them brighter and prolong the life of the switch. I know DRL’s would look out of place but could be a lifesaver.
“the work of a designer who has kissed the lash of austerity with almost masochistic fervour.”
That is something only an Englishman would write about a Frenchman.
The funny thing is Sadism is French, Masochism is Austrian. Then again Chauvinism is also French.
Chauvinisme in French means jingoism, not the american meaning, somehow.
See also the English/American definitions of chips, biscuit, pants and fanny.
Language is weird.
Jingoism is also an assertion of superiority, so I continue to feel justified mangling the French language
That’s so cool! I’m so happy for you. If I ever manage to find a Fiat 128 for a fair price in similar condition, I’ll be geeking out at least as much.
You gotta get a striped shirt and a black beret to drive that around just for fun. Also, thanks for the actual, physical, belly laugh with those wiring pics! You’ve got a winner on your hands!
Even a “correctly” wired one is not exactly perfect-looking. At least none of the drivers I’ve seen are
Yeah, the factory wiring is, erm, very French.
Mine looked like I’d wired the whole thing up, but all I did was add an electric washer pump.
I used to own a Seat 133 with a similar squirt gun system for the washer. The button was literally a big rubber plunger that you had to squeeze. It was so much superior to anything modern! With current ones, if your nozzles are not precisely aligned, you end up squirting your roof or the car behind you. With the pump, you don’t squeeze as hard, and the stream goes exactly where you want it to go. The very top of the windshield has a big bird dropping? No problem, you can send the washer fluid precisely there. Human-powered smart windshield washing!
What did we gain with complex electronics for applications like this?
My 190sl and all old MBZ of the time were similar with a rubber sort of bulb you would step on and it had a metal ring around it that would activate the wipers for a swipe. Simple and just works
Can we get pix of the SL? Pretty please?
Oh my word, this is excellent. I can’t wait to read more about this epic journey you’re on with this 2CV! The 2CV is on my shortlist with a Volvo 1800ES for wish cars if I ever part with my VW T2.
Congrats, Torch! I can’t wait to see your new baby. I’m picturing the 2CV next to a vintage Beetle and that Trabant at the next Cars and Coffee as a trio of “people’s cars”. Unfortunately I don’t know of any classic Fiat 500’s in the area.
If you need some help with that wiring, hit me up! I own a multimeter and everything!
SWG, I will gladly trade you one TriangleRAD t-shirt for one Gossin Motors t-shirt. I propose we make the exchange at RAD Days of Summer in August.
Now if you’ll excuse me, I have to get back to making up-and-down motions with my hands trying to figure out that whole “both plugs fire at once” thing…..
It’s called a “wasted spark” engine; it’s fairly common.
If it’s more complicated to fire one cylinder at a time, screw it, fire them both. 🙂 It works because when one cylinder needs the spark, the other is in a place of
ambivalenceennui: fire, don’t fire, makes no difference.With that kind of engine, you measure its power output with an anodynamometer.
*golf clap*
I’d love a TriangleRAD shirt! Deal, my friend!
Congrats Jason, it’s adorable! (it really is)
I feel like you should dress up in your best Inspector Clouseau attire and drive around your neighborhood stopping to ask dog owners “does your dog bite?” 😉
Zat is not my dog.
🙂
Everyone knows Clouseau drives a bleu Feurd Esceurt.
I’m going to print up another batch! Hit me up on socials and let’s do it.
Imposter! That’s no Deux Chevaux, it’s a Vingt-neuf Chevaux!
Beautiful little car, though. I love the two-tone paint and the rest seems to be in remarkably good shape – I’m stoked for you! But in the list of things that are “right”, how could you not mention the gear shift? It’s so weird and inscrutable to most people who’ve never driven one of these. I look forward to seeing more of this project as it develops in all its 27-horsepower-too-much glory.
You probably know this, but the “deux chevaux” refers to a different kind of cheval. The “cheval vapeur” (literally “steam horse”) is a real measure of power (29 here). The “cheval fiscal” is some abstract measure of power for road tax / registration purposes. I don’t remember how those map to real HP, but there is a relationship in that a higher (real) HP car gets taxed more.
Im not 100% sure, but a fiscal horse is simply a measure of displacement: I think originally, 1 fiscal horse was equivalent to 200 cc, and since the original 2CV had 400cc of displacement, 2CV was the correct denomination, and then it just caught on. Technically, the later 600cc engines would make it a 3CV, but since the name 2CV was already well known, they just left it at that.
You may well be right. It rings a faint bell in the deep recesses of my brain.
Yes, I was just having a little joke. Even the first generation 2CVs had nearly 7 horsepower, rather than 2.
And we’re talking France here- of course taxes have to be involved!
Note: someone literally ripped every wire from the fuse box to the headlights out of this car (for some strange reason) as it sat from 2013-2024 in a field, getting shot at, in Garland, NC.
The alternator and starter were wired correctly by Yours Truly, but the rest of the wires you see in Jason’s shots are in very, very poor condition and need to be repaired correctly (solder and heat shrink).
The good news is that all those jank-ass wires/wire connections are solely for the parking lights, city lights, low-beams and high-beams (except for the oil pressure wire), so as long as the lights are off, Jason can address the wiring repair when it’s convenient for him.
I wanted to put this info out there, as using wire nuts and Mickey Mouse wiring such as you see in the photos is not my move/my style, ever.
I’m wicked pumped for my buddy Jason! Today is a great day in Autopia. Mazel!
I don’t blame you for the disclaimer SWG!
There’s NO WAY you would “wire” an electrical system like that 🙁
It is by far, the worst electrical hack job I’ve ever seen!!
I think I pulled more wires that started and went nowhere than that has total.
Maybe he can get painless wiring to sponsor him putting in a low end hotrod kit so he has new everything? I doubt they have a specific kit.
That’s a pretty good idea. I installed one of those kits once and it was pretty spectacular.
Fun and maybe helpful fact: Toyota part number 81110-60P70 is a complete, Japan-made, genuine Koito H4 headlight set and comes with a full wiring harness, relays and all. And you can get it for under $20 at most dealerships. Best upgrade you can make to anything that already needs either new headlights or wiring.
Wow! You’re not kidding! I just ordered this part number online for pickup at my local Toyota dealer. It was just $18.85 with California tax. I don’t own anything that it will fit, but it was too good of a deal to pass up. The wiring harness & relay package alone was more than the price paid!
Those koito lights kick ass, I put some in my Miata and the light output and beam pattern is fantastic for anything that needs a 7″ glass light but doesn’t want a goofy looking led. Thanks for the part numbers for spares, this is way cheaper than what I paid for them.
Full credit to the Autopian discord for this find. I asked for advice on replacing the headlights and wiring on my S130 and someone suggested this Toyota kit. Absolutely brilliant, and helped me replace a lot of shoddy wiring in that engine bay with something much better.
The number of wires actually NEEDED to make the car move (and even charge its battery) is comically low. The ENTIRE wiring diagram is one very sparse page, and the part needed to drive it is about 1/5th of that
Does the BFF status mean that we’ll see that Jaaaag article soon?
Jason has pledged to be an advocate in getting the Jag piece to see the light of day.
There is hope.
Thanks for carrying the torch!
Righteous shepherding SWG! You are Hope in the abyss.
I will walk with my people.
But not drive because the cars aren’t running yet. :p
I honestly don’t think any regular reader would have thought you did this wiring. In fact, when I looked at it and saw Torch mention you had worked on the car, I said “huh there’s no way this is SWG’s work.”
But the disclaimer makes sense. Good job getting that 2CV ready for Jason.
With that paint job, from 10 yards, it looks quite elegant. As in, “I’m driving this until I inherit Father’s Bugatti”.
Be careful, because the deer of central North Carolina are buffing their hooves as they wait in anticipation.
That’s “cerf” in french! 😉
In seriousness, a deer hitting a 2CV at speed ends very poorly for the car while the deer goes lol what was that as it lights a cigarette and runs off.
Vingtneuf chevaux. Sacré bleu!
Strangely, I think I want a bullet hole in my car now.
Well it’s not like they’re hard to come by.
My Camry has a BB gun dent in one of the doors – it was there when I bought it.
It is not nearly as impressive as a genuine bullet hole.
What?
No fins?
What would Inspector Clouseau say?
Dupond et Dupont would approve.
**! BOUM !**
Bah maintenant, elle va marcher beaucoup moins bien, forcément.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gnLj5Xo4zBc
Such a cool car. Love them. Good luck, and I’m trying not to comment on the use of wire nuts…
That wiring is nuts, though.
Those were present before we touched it. Agreed that the condition is wicked jank-ass.
I didn’t get a chance to get to the wiring before getting the car to Jason before the cross-country cab trip. The dude is literally running like a madman all day everyday!