Customer Reviews

Sixty Years of the Citroen 2Cv: 1937-1997

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The 2CV is chronicled and detailed from its design brief to the last model to roll off the assembly line in 1990. The title of this book implies that the history of the 2CV is an ongoing saga and of course it is, in fact we will be celebrating the 50th anniversary of the 2CV next year. The conception and birth of the 2CV was not an easy delivery. The gestation period was delayed by the advent of World War II, and the Citroen designers used this period to perfect a design that was being rushed for the 1939 Paris Auto Salon. Citroen 2CV documents the design considerations that were part of the 2CVs development and led to the birth of a 2CV, in 1948, that was quite a bit different from the 2CV that would have appeared at the 1939 Salon. The further evolution of the 2CV is detailed with model changes and special versions explained. The 2CVs family relations; the Sahara, The Mehari, and the Vans are presented along with the AMI-6 & AMI-8 and the Dyane. The Parentage of the 2CV is explored with an excellent chapter on Pierre-Jules Boulanger, André Lefebvre, Flamino Bertoni, and Walter Becchia. If you do not now recognize this names, you most certainly will from now on. The 2CV in the UK is well presented with great photos of the 2CV pick-up that was used by the Royal Marines and the most unlikely 2CV of all, the Bijou, a British attempt at an up-market 2CV. We next get a quick look at the 2CVs adventures, 2 CV advertising and to put the 2CV in context, its contemporary competitors Fiat, Simca, Renault and VW. The book concludes with a look at the last days of the 2CV production line. Citroen 2CV will be enjoyed by all. Review from Citroen Quarterly Vol 15#4, Oct 1997