Auto Express – August 07, 2019

24 7August2019 http://www.autoexpress.co.uk

INSIDE STORY Citroen’scentenary

tinytwo-cylinderenginetugsattheheartstrings.Butbein
nodoubt:thisisahighlyantiquatedcarand,onawarm
day,bepreparedtosweat.The2CViscute,butit’snot
aneasycartodrivesmoothly,andthosefamiliaronly
withmodernmanualgearboxeswillbebemusedbythe
umbrellahandle-likestickprotrudingfromthedashboard,
whichyoutwistandturnasyouwouldacoffeemachine.
Butregardlessofallthat,thisisacarthatradiates
charmthemomentyouopenoneofthebiscuit-tin-thin
doors.Sadly,though,it’saclassicthatyoureallyhave
tocommittoifyouwantone.Thesedays,Citroen’sonce
ubiquitous,sparseandcheaprunaroundnowchanges
handsformoneywaybeyonditshumbleimage,andyou’ll
needaround£4,000foranaverage,lateexample.
Forlessthanthatsum,youcouldbuysomething
representingatotallydifferentsideofthecompany’s
personality.Opentheclassifiedsbackhomeandyou’ll
findmanyexamplesoftheC6–thefirm’slasttrue
flagshipsaloon–sellingforpeanutscomparedtothe
handfulof2CVsstilldoingtheroundsinBritain.
Atlaunchin2006,theC6wasconsideredlessflamboyant
thantheCitroensaloonsthathadgonebeforeit,and
althoughitsadaptivehydropneumaticsuspensionwas
stilloutstandingandthesix-cylinderdieselsilkysmooth,it
neverwonoverthebuyersofGermanexecutivecarsitwas

intendedtotempt.Only23,384versionsweremadeduring

asix-yearlifespan,castingtheC6asasignificantfailure

comparedwiththecompany’shuge-sellingsaloonsofthe

previousdecades.Citroenhasn’tgonebacktothesegment

since,butitwill.Infact,oneoftheveryfirstnewmodels

we’llseeasthefirmentersitssecondcenturywillbea

brand-newexecutivesaloon,dueintheearlytwenties.

Perhapstogivethisnewcarthebestchanceofsuccess,

Citroenwillmarketitasaspiritualsuccessortothelikesof

theDSandIS19,theCX,andthesmallerGS.Afterall,these

carssoldbythebucket-load,millionsofthemleaving

Citroenplantsgloballyduringtheirtimeonsale.

We oftentalkaboutthetechnologyofthesecars,butit’s

thebrandimagetheydevelopedthatresonatesmostofall

withthemasses.Takeanyofthemforadrive,andthestyle

iswhatarrestsyou.TheCX’swonderfuldashboardand

instruments–althoughsomewhatunergonomic–leaveyou

wonderingwherethefunhasgoneinmoderncardesign.

ItalsomakesyouponderwhetherCitroencouldbea

littlemoreunconventionalwithitscontemporarycars.The

companyisinrudehealth,butithastoconformtotherigid

structuresofmodern,mass-producedgroup-friendlyand

crash-test-friendlyproducts.IfyouhaveatasteofCitroen’s

wonderfulhistory,andfollowthiswithadriveinacaryou

canbuytoday,you’llbeleftlongingforabitmoreofthe

brand’spastsparkle.Thecompany’scarsarewellmade,

comfortableandcoherent,butmaybeabittoosensible

whenplacedinthecontextofwhathasbeenbefore.

Perhapsthestartofthenext100yearswillseethebrand

findnewwaystoinjectabitofitspastintoitsfuture.But,

accordingtochiefexecutiveLindaJackson,it’sdifficultto

getright,andalltooeasytoslipintoretropastiche.“I’m

notgoingtoproduceanew2CV.Ithaditstime.Itwasright.

Itwassuccessfulthen,”shesaysondaytwooftheparty.

CitroenhastakenoverthecentreofPariswithaparade

of100carsfromthebrand’sveryownvastheritagefleet

andenthusiasticowners.It’sacelebrationofthefirm’s

centenarylaidonforthepublic,butbehindthescenes,

Citroen’sbossisgivingherinsightintowhatcomesnext.

“Weareconsideringmobilityandthewaycustomersrelate

“I’mnot going to produceanew

2CV. It had its time. It wasright.

It wassuccessful then. We are

considering the futureofmobility”

LINDAJACKSONCitroen chiefexecutive

IN CONTROL

Jamessampled famous

Citroens, including CX,plus

C6 (below, right),the Ami

(below, centre)and the

Traction Avant(below, left)