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| It was a new corrugated steel building - empty parking lot |
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| This was my favorite Citroen. It is a Mehari - that means camel. Plastic body - air cooled 2 cylinder engine |
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| This was Lulu's favorite - a garnet colored 2CV |
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| This is a pig-nosed Type H van. The made it 40 years straight same design |
One of my first goals was to get to this exotic car museum. It is on the campus of where they made Citroen Automobiles for years. The Citroen is a very popular car here - along with the Renault and Peugot. Their cars are different in design - sometimes they look overdone. But with some basic design features they led the way - front wheel drive - adjustable suspension - independent suspension - and roll-back convertible roofs.
My favorites were the 2CV's - which meant deux chaveaux - two horses - an engine with 2 cylinders. Also one time long ago - Lulu and I tried to purchase a Mehari - a small plastic bodied jeep. They had stopped importing them in 1971 - the year we married. Once you see one - you can never forget the pig-nosed van - with a corrugated steel body and a funny snout. They built them from 1948 to 1981 - with no changes. The 2CV had front wheel drive - a two cylinder air cooled engine - a roll back convertible top - and seats of woven wicker. It had high independent suspension that could climb across a plowed farmer's field with a full load of eggs and not break a one.
We left our apartment at 8 am - we took a subway - then a long crowded bus ride. It was so crowded - they were not checking tickets. By 10 am we were at the museum. We went to a local Ikea for lunch - then back to the museum. I spent nearly two hours looking at all 400 Citroens. Lulu burned out after an hour - but was happy to let me roam.
The garage and all the cars were spotless. I am guessing most of them would start right up. I estimate some of the cars had six figure prices. Some were one of a kind.
After all these pictures - and maybe only about 10 other people in the museum - I was ready to go. We used our iPhone to get an uber car - that drove us door to door in about 45 minutes.
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| World famous logo |
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| Charles DeGaulle in the movie "Day of the Jackal." |
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| A wooden model of the D19. |
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| 1920s frontt wheel drive - 10 hp engine |
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| Clay designer models |
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| Some very odd car |
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| Three wheeled city car |
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| the raindrop car |
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| A tiny electric car |
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| Inside of the new electric Mehari |
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| New electric Mehari |
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| President Pompidou's Car |
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| Classic up and down suspension |
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| President DeGaulle's bullet proof car |
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| President's car |
My favorite the Mehari - in 1971 they were $1699
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| Mehari - plastic interior - just hose it out |
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| Seats fold flat to make a truck |
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| It has a full canvas top |
Body made of ABS plastic - no paint
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| Windshield folded down |
the shifter was on the dashboard
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| Lowrider |
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| Early desert race |
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| 2CV - the roof rolled down |
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| They made these 50 years |
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| A half track desert car |
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| This one made for Iraq with full steel plating underneath |
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| Iraq exterior design |
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| Formula race cars |
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| Wankel rotary engine for helicopter |
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| Citroen helicopter |
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| race car |
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| Modern pig nosed van |
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| Type H Van |
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| Smaller pig nosed van - very low for milk delivery |
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| 4WD tractor |
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| Front wheel drive bus |
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| They were packed to tight - I do not know how they move them. I am guessing on coasters. |
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| Another Mehari - on the 2 CV frame |
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| My favorite |
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| Spare tire on hood |
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| 2CV's - this was the French VW Beetle |
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| I loved this gray 2CV |
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| the 2 cylinder engine |
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| The 1939 2CV - only one left |
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| Ben's favorite |
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| 1922 transmission |
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| Tiny 10hp engine - 4 cylinder |
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| 400 cars in all |
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