From Dec, 2010
Smart cars always make me smile and so does the Deux Chevaux. Both suit interesting treatments. I love the red check tablecloth idea! Very appropriate since apparently the seats could be easily removed for a picnic. And I love the simple convertible concept where you just rolled back the canvas. Bill Vance had an article on them in the TC recently and concluded with:
" Over more than 42 years almost seven milliion of these fascinating little French flivvers were built. With nicknames like "rolling garden shed" and "tin snail" they were loved by millions for their basic simplicity, toughness, versatility and economy, all leavened by a lovely air of French whimsicality."
From Wiki:
The Citroën 2CV (French: deux chevaux or deux chevaux-vapeur, pronounced [dø ʃ(ə)vo (vapœʁ)], lit. "two steam horses", "two tax horsepower") is an air-cooled front-engine, front-wheel-drive economy car introduced at the 1948 Paris Mondial de l'Automobile and manufactured by Citroën for model years 1948–1990.[1]
Conceived by Citroën Vice-President Pierre Boulanger[4] to help motorise the large number of farmers still using horses and carts in 1930s France, the 2CV has a combination of innovative engineering and utilitarian, straightforward metal bodywork—initially corrugated for added strength without added weight.[5][6][7] The 2CV featured low cost, simplicity of overall maintenance, an easily serviced air-cooled engine (originally offering 9 hp), low fuel consumption, and an extremely long-travel suspension[8] offering a soft ride and light off-road capability.
Often called "an umbrella on wheels",[9][10] the fixed-profile convertible bodywork featured a full-width, canvas, roll-back sunroof, which accommodated oversized loads and until 1955 reached almost to the car's rear bumper.
