The French PSA (Peugeot-Citroën) Group and the Renault Group are the large automotive conglomerates that represent France today. Peugeot is a company with a long history, starting with the iron factory of the Peugeot family, founded in 1810, Renault is also a traditional automobile company, which has been in business since the inception of the automobile industry in 1899, and has demonstrated a variety of technological innovations.
Citroen is also an automaker that has tried several technological innovations in the history of automobiles. In 1934, the world's first sedan with a modern front-wheel drive system, the 11CV, was introduced. Citroen also achieved the world's first brand to commercialize hydraulic suspension, and the first company in the world to implement an automotive after-sales service system.
But Citroen has also experienced ups and downs for a long time. At the time of its founding, Citroen started with gears and grew into a vehicle manufacturer. During World War II, Citroen produced a number of famous cars, including the "H Van", which once swept the European commercial vehicle market centered in France, the "DS", which was reborn as a high-end brand, and the "2CV".
A "four-wheeled umbrella" for farmers
In 1934, Michelin, a tire company, bought the bankrupt Citroën, at which time Michelin renewed Citroën's management, making Pierre Jubuland vice president. Pierre Jubrajer wanted to develop new vehicles for Citroën's recovery.
The new car is not being developed for the city citizens that car companies have been targeting before. Their target customer base is "farmers" who live in rural areas across France. At that time, farmers in France transported their harvested produce to the market, still using horses and carts. At this time, Citroën management said that "we should make cars for people", "even if they are not very comfortable, they should be able to carry several people, they should be able to carry luggage, and most importantly, they should be able to make simple, economical cars".
Citroën will synthesize the results of the market research and grasp the concept of "4roues sous1parapluie" (1 umbrella, 4 wheels). Based on the data collected during the market research, the following detailed specifications were determined.
1.There should be 4 seats.
2.Luggage can be loaded up to 50kg.
3.No more than 2 horsepower (cv).
4.The maximum speed will reach 60km h
5.With a three-speed gearbox, it is easy for beginners to drive.
6.The drive mode is front-wheel drive.
7.Cheap and sturdy.
In addition, in consideration of the rural environment, there are additional conditions such as "it is possible to drive on non-paved roads full of mud" and "it should be possible to carry a basket of raw eggs intact in a freshly ploughed field".
Citroen named the new car "TPV Project" and began development. TPV means "TR S Petite Voiture" in French. The project is carried out in secret at the Citroën facility located in Paris. Because I think that if other manufacturers understand this project, they may steal the market. In order to maintain complete secrecy, they even purchased a separate plot of land in La Fertévidame, more than 100 kilometers from the city of Paris, completely surrounded by stone walls, for the development and testing of the vehicle.
In 1938, 49 test cars built for trial operation began on specially designed dedicated tracks. At that time, the production car of the TPV project used magnesium alloy for the suspension arms, and aluminum alloy was used for the outer body panels to reduce weight. The powertrain uses a three-speed gearbox for front-wheel drive, as well as a newly developed water-cooled horizontally opposed two-cylinder engine. In August 1939, Citroën's TPV project was approved by France, and it was originally planned to be unveiled at the Paris Motor Show in October.
The darkest period in the history of France].
But the timing was too bad. On September 1, 1939, Nazi Germany invaded Poland and World War II began. As a result, with the cancellation of the motor show that had been decided to be held in 1939, the TPV did not have a chance to be known to the public. The Nazi German army, which broke out in World War II and invaded Poland, turned its attention to France immediately after the Polish occupation ended.
The final result we also know is that due to the absurd and clumsy performance of the French army, they were unable to resist the German army, and finally on June 25, 1940, less than a year later, France, which was ruthlessly defeated by the Nazi German army, announced its surrender.
Under these circumstances, Nazi Germany decided to use the industrial power of France to obtain equipment and supplies for the army. In particular, pressure was put on enterprises engaged in the automobile business to produce trucks for land transport of the German army. Renault, the largest French automobile company at the time, believed that the war would not last long, so in order to maintain the employment of its employees, it agreed to Nazi Germany's request for truck production. In response, a large number of Renault trucks transported German troops and supplies to various parts of the front. Nazi Germany even asked Renault to produce tanks, but Renault refused.
In the case of Peugeot, although not as cooperative as Renault, it also did not directly resist the Germans. This is to maintain the employment of 60,000 employees at the plant in Sochaux. Of course, they often "sabotage", supplying about 6 out of every 10 trucks demanded by the Germans as defective products, and in order to protect the lives and safety of the residents near the factory, they also made their own decision to blow up the factory. In addition, after that, he provided German intelligence to British intelligence agencies and harassed the German army.
Citroën, on the contrary, actively rebelled against Nazi Germany. Citroën's management not only vandalized the cars produced by the company and made them unusable, but also hid some cars in unknown places. This was to prevent our cars from being used by Nazi Germany and to prevent them from stealing our automotive technology.
Of course, they also wanted to maintain the employment of employees, so they did not refuse all the demands of Nazi Germany. Nazi Germany, like Renault, demanded that they produce trucks, and Citroën deliberately sabotaged the truck production line.
Citroen completely refused to cooperate with Nazi Germany, and on the one hand, all 250 TPV production cars that had already been built were sent to the scrap yard so that they could not be used, and some of the prototype vehicles were dismantled and hidden in the corner warehouse of the company's test center and under the company's factory. It is reported that thanks to this, they were able to quickly resume mass production of 2CV after the war even if the entire territory of France except Paris was bombed.
But the project did not completely escape the gaze of Nazi Germany in laying the Gestapo throughout France. As a result, Nazi Germany demanded that Citroën's TPV project plan be made public. But Citroën rejected Nazi Germany.
They continued to test the performance of the new car under the watchful eye of Nazi Germany, and the TPV had been ramped up to mass production, but with more detailed testing. In particular, in order to achieve the goal of "low cost", the initial type used a considerable amount of aluminum alloy and magnesium alloy ** skyrocketed due to the war, so it was believed that these materials were no longer economical, and would turn to the development direction of "extreme cost reduction". As a result, the TPV was changed to an air-cooled engine instead of a steel frame with a steel body, as well as a newly developed water-cooled engine. In the case of the gearbox, for example, it will be equipped with a four-speed gearbox instead of a three-speed gearbox. As gear ratios become more compact, the loss in fuel efficiency due to increased weight can be compensated. Then in 1944, in order to improve the ride feel, tests of hydraulic suspension were also carried out.
After a long time, it was finally born!】
In the dark conditions of World War II, the surrender of France and the occupation of Nazi Germany, Citroën continued to develop, but after the war, freedom came to France again, and Citroën accelerated the final development work. For this reason, at the Paris Motor Show, which was reheld in October 1948, Citroën will unveil its new car, the 2CV, which was developed through unforgettable efforts throughout the publication period and during the occupation of Nazi Germany.
The 2CV completed in this way is simply the terminator of "cost reduction". Not only did it use the bent iron plate made by stamping, but it also used the way of turning the crank by hand without starting the motor, and even the design was very funny, so the Dutch ** gave the car a mocking nickname: "Het Lelijke Eendje".
Freedom of movement in a ruined Europe].
In the end, Citroën succeeded in achieving its original goal. Inexpensive, easy-to-maintain vehicles. It has a design that includes extreme simplicity, and reliability is also high due to the extreme reduction of electronics. Not only that, but since the steel body is not welded, but made by bolting together, users can also pry open the steel ring panel and cover it with roller plastic or canvas.
Not only that, but unlike the form, the 2CV keeps all the elements extremely simplified but heavy as possible as low. Thanks to this, the center of gravity is also quite low, and the stability of the body when cornering is excellent. In addition, all four wheels are equipped with drum brakes to improve control and stabilize driving.
The Citroen 2CV's 375cc horizontally opposed two-cylinder engine delivers a maximum power of 9 horsepower, paired with the aforementioned dedicated four-speed manual transmission, and the drive method adopts a front-wheel drive system. With the early application of this powertrain, the 2CV can reach a top speed of 70 km/h. In FY1970, it was equipped with a new 602cc engine with a maximum output of 28 hp, which improved traction and increased the top speed to 113 kmh.
As a result of these characteristics, the Citroen 2CV was popular not only with farmers who were targeting the target layer at the beginning, but also with city citizens who were eager to own a car in the ruins of war, and even in enemy Germany, where orders skyrocketed. The Citroen 2CV began full-scale production in 1949, and orders poured in, far exceeding Citroën's production capacity at that time. At that time, it is said that the number of orders for 2CV was at least 7 years. However, as the factory's production line began to get on track, production gradually caught up. Just the following year, in the 1950s, thanks to the characteristic extremely simple construction, production times were greatly accelerated, with an average of 400 units per day.
In addition, Citroen also unveiled a VAN model that emphasizes the practical features of the 2CV. "As soon as the 2CV van model was announced, demand for utility vehicles poured in across France, and orders poured in. The car, named "2CV AU", has been in production since 1951 and is not only in demand for delivery vehicles throughout France, but also popular with small businessmen and farmers. In 1958, a 2CV Sahara model with four-wheel drive with two engines was introduced, and in '59 a Radioen model with a detachable radio appeared.
Citroen has maintained its commerciality while keeping 2CV cheap** while continuing to improve its engines and details. Citroen produced this car for more than 40 years, until 1990. In France, production was halted in 1988 and in 1990 at the Mangualde plant in Portugal, bringing the TPV project to an end of more than half a century of history.
The Citroen 2CV became a useful means of transport in a dark time, in a country that was born in suffering and in ruins due to war, and is now considered one of the top national cars in Europe, along with the Volkswagen Beetle.