I’ve been on sort of a Citroën 2CV kick lately, allowing myself to indulge my usual obsessions with the famous French tin snail, and thankfully the internet is a pretty welcoming place for people who choose this path in life, providing wonderful deux chevaux treats like this little video shared by our pals at Hagerty UK.
It’s exciting to see a humble little 2CV scramble so tenaciously and determinedly up that dirt hill, a crude and clever little machine managing a feat that vastly more complex and expensive hardware would struggle with.
Still, this 2CV isn’t exactly stock; see if you can spot what may be different:
Send this to all of your friends with expensive, complicated 4x4s, who bought them for their off-road prowess… ????
Now THAT is impressive… ????
Via @2cv.clubbadajoz pic.twitter.com/lepUE1odBz
— Hagerty UK (@HagertyUK) April 30, 2025
Aside from the body modifications (the cutaway fenders, what seems to be a metal instead of canvas roof, removal of the trunklid, etc) this 2CV seems to have a 4WD system! Now, it does not appear to be Citroën’s only production 4×4 2CV, which used the clever method of shoving a second engine in the rear to get all those wheels driven:
No, there’s no second flat-twin at the rear of this one; I think what’s going on here is that it’s using the single-engine/transfer case 4WD setup as used on the 4×4 Mehari. They may also have the larger flat-four engine from the Citroën GS, too, but I can’t confirm that. Whatever engine is in there, I do like seeing that exhaust pipe peeking out from the side of the engine bay, too:
And here’s how the Mehari-type 4×4 setup looks; as you can see, there’s a transfer case and driveshaft to a rear differential, and note there are still inboard disc brakes at the rear:
I got to drive one of these 4×4 Meharis a few years back, though I didn’t attempt anything nearly as demanding as those kooks scrambling up that hill:
There’s something inspirational about watching that 2CV get up that hill, isn’t there? I think so.
When the Fisker Karma first came out, I was impressed, until I saw where the exhaust was.
Jason, I think you’re right about the engine, it does not sound like the original 600cc 2 cylinder. It is possible to fit the 4 cylinder boxer from the GS, they installed this same engine for the James Bond movie For Your Eyes Only. That movie is from the 80s, meaning that the stunts were filmed, not computer generated, and the regular 2CV was too slow for an action-packed pursuit.
Pretty sure “pipe” is French slang for blowjob, which makes the caption on that picture pretty funny
As a French I confirm
A Pipe : a tuyau
Une pipe : either a blowjob or an actual slicking pipe. (the context will tell)
Edit : the 2CV doesn’t seem to be a regular 2CV, not even a 2 engined 4WD one… I’md even doudting the engine comes from a 2CV of any kind.
The front suspension looks different from the normal leading arm setup of the 2CV.
I think young Otto meant mows grass when he said ‘lawns grass.’ Also, what’s that weird bird on the hood about… it’s not factory, is it? Did Citroen adopt him as a mascot for the Mehari? He reminds me of Drinky Crow. 😉
Never saw a Mehari before. Thanks Jason!
Cool. Let’s go 100 years back in time: https://youtu.be/jaNgYhvmtzA?si=xqlRJXThc8ntNNYf&t=79
When I was in college at UW Madison in the early 90s there was a big snow storm, 30″+ that basically shut down the city. While walking around campus a friend and I heard this strange “put, put, put” noise and soon saw a Ford Model-A making its way down the street. It was the only thing moving.
This could be SWG if he would shoot me a text and we get to work on his!
There was a kit (kit Voisin) homologated to transform your 2CV in 4×4.
https://2cv-legende.com/2cv-series-speciales/2cv-4×4-marc-voisin
This highlights one of the best parts of off roading is that it is a combination of hardware and skill. All the fancy hardware will help a bit but not if you have no skills and skills can take you far without fancy hardware, but you need a little bit of hardware.
And the eggs still didn’t crack!
Performance like this is why the Afrikar used 2CV running gear. Light and agile is an excellent formula for off reading. The Baja Bug is a related case
I bought the Afrikar book a couple years ago. It has pride of place in my garage bookshelf. I like building plywood composite boats and weird underpowered cars. Perfect combination.
the car is literally named “To Climb Verticals”. What did you think 2CV stood for?
Ceci est une Franco-Jeep.
I 100% agree. Tres Magnifique!
We’ve neglected articulation for traction control in modern cars. This shows that while they are both effective, flex lets you do more with less.
That’s quite a flex, indeed.
See: Ford Model T. Which was designed to drive off-road, because there weren’t many roads!
In this instance then, 2CV would stand for Deux Chèvres.
It’s the GOAT!