So, guess what! I’m finally getting one of my dream cars, a Citroën 2CV. I don’t have it just yet – the car in question is the one our own Stephen Walter Gossin picked up late last summer, among a lot of old Mopars, and has been working on, off and on, ever since. I realized this was my best chance to get a 2CV and I’d be a fool, a miserable, sad fool, if I didn’t leap at this chance. So, leap I did, and pretty soon I should be the owner of a 29 horsepower corrugated French-plowed-field-traversing beast. The car is still with SWG at the moment, and I’ll need to tow it home (SWG got it like 95% there – I just need to put in a new fuel pump and check some ignition stuff) but I did go out there to pick up a massive stash of parts and documentation that come with the car, and I just want to show you something interesting from there.
I’m still sort of in shock I’m on my way to Deux Cheveaux ownership! I’ve wanted one of these absurdly and brilliantly minimal cars as long as I can remember, and it’s never really seemed possible. And now, here it is, looming Gallicly in the near future. I’ll have lots, lots more to say about the car once I get it, but for the moment, I want to show you a brochure that’s evidence of an interesting blip in 2CV history, from a short-lived attempt to bring 2CVs to America in the 1980s.
Before that, though, let me just show you a delighted me in this car that’ll soon be mine:
Soon! I can’t wait.
Anyway, while this 2CV is registered as a ’66, and I’m told it’s on a ’66 chassis, everything else seems to be from the ’80s, likely an ’82 or ’85 or so. I do not think this is an original Charleston 2CV – the name given to that rakish Art-Deco-style two tone paint – but I think it was converted to one. And I think this one is what is known as a Target 2CV, after the Dutch company Target Industries, which was re-manufacturing 2CVs in Belgium and sending them to the US. The “aging” process to get “new” 2CVs into America by using older frames (the 2CV was banned for import to the US around 1965) is written about here, if you’re curious.
Here’s an article from 1987 describing the company and what they intend to do; they wanted to import 300 2CVs a month by 1988! A Texan named Terry Keeton, who was well-known in the Citroën community in America, was their sales manager, and back in 1988 these started at $6,750 – about $19,000 today, so while not crazy expensive, not that cheap, either. I was excited to find one of the company’s brochures in with all the stuff I got with the 2CV – which was considerable:
There’s bumpers and another carb, two mufflers, an oil cooler, belts and hoses, a new taillight lens, eight extra wheels and tires, even! And, of course, brochures and owner’s manuals and other literature, which included the Target 2CV brochure. Here’s the cover:
As you can tell, the company was playing a lot on the obscurity and strangeness of the car, and having fun with that. Look at this amazing checklist for the 2CV’s features that was in the brochure:
That’s pretty funny, right? The 2CV has, of course, none of that frippery. Some entries are a little weird, though: “female voice control?” I think they may have meant the spate of talking cars in the ’80s, but it wasn’t really “control” and the voices weren’t even always “female” so who the hell knows what they were getting at. Still, it’s fun.
As you can see in the body copy here, the company was clearly trying to target iconoclasts and weirdos, which I think is admirable. The choices of Pintos and Delta 88s as “ordinary people” cars is an interesting of what the general American carscape of the 1980s was like. Also, this may be the only example I can think of where a brochure promoting a particular car describes it as “asthmatically wheezing down the freeway.”
The 2CV currently waiting to be pulled out of SWG’s crowded driveway seems to be one of these Target 2CVs, and was purchased in the 1980s by its former owner, Willie Shaw, who once had it written about, back in 2009, by the Garland, North Carolina paper:
Willie seems to have led a fascinating life (he was a motorcycle cop in NYC in the ’70s and ’80s, which must have been, um, something) and was a real gearhead with fantastic taste in cars. When I get it going and back on the road, I’d love to take it by and show Willie his old tin snail is back on the road and being appreciated.
After a few years, maybe very few, Target International had to stop selling 2CVs in America because the DOT began to crack down on the old pan/new everything else loophole that Target was using, and soon these cars were forbidden from being imported to the US once again.
I’m so excited about this thing, it’s distracting me. I find myself looking up details and period reviews about 2CVs, looking at the strange minimal dash layout and pouring over these owner’s manuals and eagerly awaiting when I can finally be driving this thing on the regular.
Fantastique!
Jason, have you been following Jonny Smith’s 2CV project? I’m guessing you aren’t going down the same path of full restoration, but it’s fun to see how easily these come apart.
Between watching those videos and having the The 2CV Shop on speed-dial, I reckon even I could do the basic maintenance on one of these!
Speaking of features, Citroën jokingly describes the 2CV as having central locking because the driver can reach all 4 doors. I have briefly driven one and it’s pretty trippy with the odd suspension and push-pull gearshift. A 2CV or 2CV van would be fun runabout
In fact, the rear doors can ONLY be locked/unlocked from inside. There’s no keyhole on the door.
I’ve never owned or seen a car that had keyholes on the rear doors.
No rear doors, and the old Saab 93s (and probably 92s) did have keyholes in the front doors. But IIRC if the door had been locked from the inside, you couldn’t unlock it from the outside with a key.
2CV v. Changli drag race or GTFO!!!
The 2CV, especially in Charleston (or even faux Charleston) trim, is a low-key automotive love of mine. I’ve always wanted one, even though I have no idea what I’d do with it.
Happy for you, Torch! Always wanted one as well, but I just picked up my forever project car so I’ll content myself to live vicariously through you.
It Had to be! It was meant to be! It Had to be! Immediately conjured Jason giggling like SpongeBob as he views Gary as a best friend rather than just a pet, as implied by the musical number “Gary Come Home” from “Have You Seen This Snail?”.
I don’t know for 100%, but I would guess they were stopped from importing these because, “old pan/new everything else” actually meant, “old VIN and newer than can be legally imported at the time everything else”. This was an issue also for classic Mini’s, Defenders, Beetles, and a few other vehicles that were manufactured for a long period of time.
Carroll Shelby’s stash of rusted “1965” Cobra chassis stashed out behind the barn want a word as well.
The 2CV is one of those love to have if the opportunity arose but man I can’t believe how expensive they have gotten.
I do want to say I like what looks like to be period correct keyboard for the one ad. Brought back some old memories of playing with them when I was a lot younger.
While running errands with my kids yesterday I saw a red 2CV at the new Princess Auto. My 6 and 9 year old sons were in awe of it. Well, maybe confused. We took a good look and I was hoping that the owner would come out of whatever store they were in but it was still there when we finished our errands.
I’m so happy for you!
That’s fantastic, Jason – glad you’re realizing that dream! 🙂
I recall reading ages ago that VW folks were buying new Beetle bodies, etc. from the manufacturing facilities in Mexico and installing them on older VW floorpans, creating a “new” car with a much earlier title. Maybe the DOT missed that one – I don’t recall any sort of crackdown (which doesn’t mean it didn’t happen).
Boyd Coddington also got into trouble for this, he was doing full on new car builds with old VINs attached to them, restomod as it was becomeing a thing, but claiming all sort of exemptions for emissions and taxes becasue the cars were titled as much older vehicles. I think the model was basicly take the firewall and main cabin off and rool an enitre modern car underneath it, but kind of half ass modern safety and emissions compliance. Think C4 Corvette with no seatbelts or airbags, and will all the emissions equipment removed.
Some unknown page designer did a fantastic job on that newspaper piece. I hope he or she went on to an illustrious career.
Also, I never noticed how agricultural the wheels look. Truly, they would look at home on any piece of light-duty farm machinery or landscaping equipment. Faithful to the car’s mission.
Thought that Deux Chevaux looked familiar! I frequent that neck of the woods a lot
Just curious, am I the only one who wants to see Torch dressed in the multi-hued, sparkly, Solid Gold dancer outfit hanging above the spare muffler?
SWG wants that outfit back.
SVG: Please finish getting this running so Torch doesn’t use Clarkson techniques to ‘fix’ it.
A chainsaw to the Changli is one thing, but this is too cute to be modified by a hedge trimmer.
I have the utmost confidence in Jason’s mechanical abilities! His passion for the 2CV will guide him along the remaining 5% of tasks needed before this beauty hits the road.
I believe.
The stuff you’re down to is stuff he’s done since he was a child: carburetors and mechanical ignition switching.
As a former owner of a ‘79 2 CV (rectangular headlights!) I know you’ll love this objectively terrible car.
My favourite way to freak out passengers was to slowly accelerate to 70mph (with the throttle pedal buried on the floor and changing up at the little maximum speed gear markers on the speedo, but still slowly) then ask them if they could see the sky in the gap between the top of the door and the door frame. The tip of the driver’s door would move about an inch outwards at Vmax.
Handy tip from three winters in Yorkshire: when it’s cold and damp (all the time) and the screen mists up it won’t demist at all unless the engine is hot and doing high revs. To get the engine hot you can wind open the ventilation slot below the windshield and just about see out enough to drive around at low speed. Bang open the side windows and you can see pretty well all round despite misted up windows. Dress warm.
Please, please take off the horrific aftermarket headlight shades though. They add nothing but weight, drag and danger to a car that desperately needs to minimise all of those things. Also they are hideous. If nothing else think of the damage they’ll do to the next deer you hit.
Also make sure that the cardboard tubes that link the engine cooling fan to the “demisters” via the exhaust manifolds are secure, otherwise it’ll catch fire.
I am genuinely slightly envious.
When I got mine (here in the same town as Jason), I was a little sad that it didn’t have the round headlights, and thought I might even replace the rectangular ones. But now, 8 months on, I wouldn’t change out the yellow-painted square ones. I’ve grown to love the look.
My friend warned me to close the vent a bit at speed, since all there is between you and bugs is a metal screen. So when the vent inevitably gets hit by a large bug, it gets liquified and passed straight into the cabin 🙂
I can confirm. I hit a pheasant once, and stuff went everywhere.
If you hit a deer with this car and these headlights shades, it will nor be hurt. It will be pissed off.
Those headlight pivot about their single mounting bolt when hit, so fixing blades to the front of them is going to do some slicing.
The rest of the front of the car is easy to crumple, so there is a good chance that you’ll have a very angry deer bleeding heavily and looking for revenge.
My point is that you’ll have to struggle a lot to get enough mass and speed to even mess with the deer’s hairdo.
The image of the angry deer looking for revenge made me chuckle, though.
That’s awesome!
I sincerely hope you find a different tow company for this.
No need for a tow, these are light enough to just push by yourself and walk home.
It’s not even much slower than driving it.
Ha! Although, you’re probably right. That part of NC is quite flat…
No, no it isn’t quite. They don’t call it Chapel HILL for nothing. Signed, a guy who’s carefully selecting the right gear around town in a 2CV…
Well, true, but compared to Asheville, it’s flat.
If I still lived down there, I’d gladly help you push the car up 501. 🙂
Be careful what you offer around here…
It’s only 1100 to 1300lbs.
I never had to push mine because it just wouldn’t die, but I had to push my Citroen AX GT a lot, and even at 1400lbs it was light enough to push start by yourself.
Replacing the 2CV with the AX GT was a shock, nearly three times the power, but a third as reliable.
Yeah, heck, I can push it up a set of work ramps by myself. It is so nice to be able to move around when working on it.
Does it come with a beret or does one just grow out of your hair upon delivery?
Either way, make sure you have a beret. It’s important.
I feel like I should make another Top Secret joke here.
Wait, why was the 2CV banned for import in 1965? Were they threatening VW Beatle sales or something?
Dunno, but the 2CV makes the Beetle seem like a Volvo in comparison w.r.t. safety
This point caught my eye as well. Until the FMVSS went into effect on 1/1/1968, there were no real Federal regulations on cars, so I can’t see how importation of any car was blanket illegal before then.
Yeah, and emissions standards didn’t come into play until ’67. Wiki says it was not a big seller in North America because it wasn’t competitive on price, with no mention of being hit by any regulatory issues.
Oddly enough, the emissions standards that were introduced in 1967 contained an exemption for all cars with engines under 50 cubic inches of displacement, which would have included the 2CV. SAAB reduced the displacement of their 2-stroke engine for export to the US to 795cc so it could get the exemption.
Interestingly, the latter days of the 2CV’s production did get caught up in European emissions changes. The RTA (beautiful, French equivalent of the Haynes manual) book contains update sections for each model update and the 1970s-80s are mainly carburetor changes for emissions (move to double-barrelled, move away from user-adjustable idle mixture screw, etc). Mine looks like the idle mixture screw was designed to be tuned at the factory and then the deep “pipe” it was in be filled with epoxy or something. Thankfully, either the Spanish factory left out the epoxy or else some previous shop chiseled it out, as I’m currently tuning it myself.
Moving at escargot pace on a NC road sometime soon!
Those are delicious when drowning in seasoned butter. Drowning this in seasoned butter would definitely not be anywhere near as appetizing.
I particularly appreciate that the brochure is propped up on your Apple //c for the photo.
I recognized the keyboard as well.
SO happy to see you getting your dream Citroen! Mine would be a DS wagon.
So bold of the 2CV to proudly eschew the modern opulence of things like radiators and fan belts.
The fan belt thing is a LIIIITLE disingenuous… The fan may be on the crankshaft, but it does have a belt off of the crank for the alternator.
Oooh, Chattanooga-area tags. This would be perfect to troll the parking lot of the VW factory.
“How did that war work out for you? I fart in your general direction!”
First the Changli, now a 2CV. What’s the next most Torchinsky-esque vehicle he needs?
I am not sure a more Torchinsky-esque vehicle exists. It’s peak Torch.
Mehari. Like a 2CV but sillier.
Although also slightly Jeep-like, so maybe more of a red flag that Torch and DT are merging in to a gestalt entity.
DTorchcy?
Perhaps a Glenfrome Facet?
A replica of Cugnot’s steam car.
Citroen 2CV Sahara. Citroen gave it 4wd by, umm, adding a second engine for the rear wheels.
https://museum.revsinstitute.org/the-collection/1961-citroen-2cv/
Sadly, Saharas are now $100K territory.
Several; a Panhard 24, an NSU Prinz 4 and Ro 80, a Lloyd LP400 and LT600, a Glas Isar T600 an FCC a Hansa Kombi 1100 should augment the collection.