Citroen 2CV: History, walkaround, road test. My own car!
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- Опубликовано: 6 сен 2024
- May contain bodyroll! I've owned 2CVs since I was 18, and was fascinated by them even before that. A war-interrupted development history, unique engineering and a joyous driving experience are all part of the fun.
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Excluding those who laugh at it still, it's a car you just can't resist and have to love, it outlasted its' "replacements", it got people moving, it made and delivered families too, it just makes people happy... :)
People laugh at this? Its a wonderful contraption
@@edward002gaming There's a long history of cheap, austere cars being made a running joke of because people are such judgemental so and so's...
We need this car back in production, with...
- aluminum bodies (re: lightness and rust
- fuel injection
- an aluminum roll cage.
@@hg2. There's a company building "brand new" (in quotes because they still use a donor car) EV versions of the 2CV, using the vast availability of new parts, but making it an EV instead of an ICE, so you have that option, but only if you have deep pockets, they're not cheap and cheerful like the original was...
@@twocvbloke
Right.
"No thanks" on the EV 2cv.
I want the whole 9 yards on production. ”Get Donald Trump to issue an executive order that designates it as motorcycle -- none of those stupid EPA, DOE, DOT regulations!”
"Put people to work."
Your passion for the 2CV shines through and I think it’s simplicity is it’s genius. Engineering at its very best.
Indeed, “Perfection is achieved, not when there’s nothing more to add, but when there’s nothing left to take away” (De Saint-Exupéry)
We need this car back in production, with...
- aluminum bodies (re: lightness and rust
- fuel injection
- an aluminum roll cage.
I've been driving around in a 2cv this year, and it's just such a fantastic thing for the modern world there should be far more of them again
I've said it before, you are the only person who has ever managed to swing my pendulum of opinion on the 2CV from totally laughing at them to wishing I had £8k or so to get a good one and a garage to store it in because they look an absolute blast to own and drive.
The competition is tough Ian because you release so much great content but I think thats one of your best videos. Its plain to see the love you have for that little car and you have such a easy going way of explaining things it makes for a really enjoyable experience.
I think I'll never get tired of hearing more about this car. what a friend you have
Fascinating stuff. I can remember them being a bit of a joke back in the 80s when I was young. Always seemed to be a popular car for a teacher, green peace activist, hippy or the like! Pretty sure the only time I've ever been in one was getting a lift from a teacher back in the 80s. Would love to have a go in one now though. They really do seem fantastic, maybe even more character than the other war time classic - the Beatle!
Hello Ian, my first car was a 2CV, some 50 years ago, I found your trip to Croatia a few years ago.
This made me sell my old Morgan, which I had for 21years. Now 67 years old I again enjoy my own 2CV.
Thanks for reminding me of these amazing cars.
I really enjoyed this video.
All the best from🇳🇴
You passion for Elly really shines through in this video.
Your Croatia trip led me to buying a Dyane and I now have a rhubarb and custard Dolly. Like you say, such fun cars and I love that they brighten up peoples day.
I FEEL THE SAME WAY ABOUT LAMBRETTAS HAD UM SINCE I WAS 14 IM 57 NOW COULDN'T BE WITHOUT ONE GREAT VID MATE
My favourite car of your fleet. Loved the 2cv to Croatia 🇭🇷 road trip. Only when I started watching you channel and realised how tough and simple to work on the 2cv is. Would love to have one myself one day 😎
Years ago when I lived in London but did not have a car, I would hire a 2cv from a company called Two Horse Hire in Kingston on Thames to visit my family in Wales. It was perfectly adequate on the M4 and enormously fun in the South Welsh lanes. Infinitely more capable than my friend's Beetle.
I always drove these when I was young. From 1983 through 1989 I went through four or five of them. They were the cheapest thing ever. The price I used to pay, corrected for inflation would be about €100,= ! I took long trips in those, it's a bloody miracle I can still hear anything at all. Having a radio or cassette player in one of these was useless, you couldn't hear a thing above the engine noise. All of mine but one rotted away in no time at all, the sheet metal on those is paper thin and there are lots of especially designed rust spots. The one that didn't rust out was the one I crashed in. A head on collision at about 50 mph. Not my fault. Car was split in two, engine had been catapulted out, I was ejected through the driver door. Yes, through the door. Don't remember much, except waking up in hospital. Got out in about a month, went back to my football team. Guy asks me 'what car you driving now'? I said: 'a leopard II, with the gun still on it.' That was okay, he laughed. In reality, it was when I bought my first saab, a nice burgundy 99 that I wish I still had. Haven't driven a 2 CV since. They are great fun, I had indelible moments in those. But they are not cars to crash in.
Great video. It is nearly 50 years since I last drove a 2CV. In the early 1970s a friend had one which had had an engine swap with an Ami 8! The complete engine, gearbox and drive train had been swapped, so it was quick. I once raced a friend who was driving an MGB GT down the A40 from Greenford into White City. At the time the road still had roundabouts at all the junctions. These were later replaced with flyovers. The 2CV more than held it's own because you pretty much didn't need to slow down for the roundabouts. Just lean over and keep going! It was such fun to drive. He blew the engine up eventually and lost interest. It had the little wire things which would hold the window open at a fixed angle. So clever.
Hello from 🇫🇷 Ian. I'm more a 4L person (dad's fault) but I enjoyed a lot of trips in 2CVs, ami6 and work in LNAs... I'm proud of "french technological prouesses" (😅), this car is our baguette on wheels. It's pure joy.
It's my honest opinion that pre-PSA Citroen was the most engineeringly innovative mass-production car company. The 2CV being a prime example.
The one that we've been waiting for and it didn't disappoint. Lovely review and super archive photos at the end. Long live Elly!
Utterly superb. This is going to be a widely watched video, as it should. You do Elly justice!
One of the best videos you've done Ian. Love the 2CV
45 years and 550,000 kms of 2CV adventures mostly in Australia, as well as Europe, UK, Ireland, Canada and USA....
Completely Addicted
Just bought another one after my last one 23 years ago, only had it a week and am smiling from ear to ear! Watching your videos helped encourage me to take the plunge again, so happy I did! A few small jobs to do, then tours and days out. Thanks Hub Nut!
Brilliant review Ian, really enjoyable. When you explained how to select the gears, it took me back to when I had an extra part time driving job at the local car auctions & drove a 2CV for the first time...my gear selections were more down to luck than skill!
Great video Ian! I’ve always been a car enthusiast, but I must say your videos have really convinced and inspired me to buy a Dyane. Such a delight to drive! So thanks for the great content all these years 😊
Yeah, the Dyane is really a bit of a forgoten gem. It is a 2CV with a hatchback when the 2CV didn't have one yet.
Three most resilient cars i’ve had an Ami6 2CV and a ex army 110 defender, all of them equal fun, all pushed to their limits, just loved the simplicity of each of them, i truly feel it would be greener to be running 2CV’s with all the tech that the last ones came with. Great video
Brilliant video Mr HubNut! This has been a long time coming to do justice to Elly and the 2CV in general. But well worth waiting for! Since I bought my own Dolly this year, I can totally agree and laugh along with your comments. Each journey is an adventure and brings joy to those unsuspecting pedestrians and other drivers.
My favourite video is still the one where you hoon around the Alps in Elly, and this is now up there at no.2 - will watch again for sure!
Keep on spreading the 2CV love!
"Corners of disappointment and triangles of doom"...🤣🤣 they get me every time!!!! Marvelous content as always!!!
Just came home some hours ago in my own 2cv and still enjoy your video. There is really an element of addiction in driving that car! Thanks for posting the video.
Oh..? As in: YOU ARE actually driving something?
^My xennial envy 😞
I can still remember the opening scene, when I just found your RUclips channel through TWC.
The 2CV and related remain fantastic cars.
My first car was a 2CV, also at 18. How I miss my old one. Keep enjoying yourself!
I love how your enthusiasm for this car really comes through.
My CDT teacher at school was a remarkable man who used to give me lifts sometimes in his Diane 6. It was a kind of dark turquoise colour and very noisy inside. He told me all about how easy it was to change the engine etc.
The idea of saving up to rebuild your car every few years rather than replace it seems a very sensible way to look after a favourite car that gets regular use. I'm considering this with my Morris Minor which I bought in the summer looking a little bit tired already. I wonder if I will still have it in 20 years?
Cheers
Andy
You’ve got to love this channel every time you watch learn something new👊🏻
Genuinely regret not buying one when they seemed to still be everywhere and dirt cheap, great demo of a very charming and clever little car
Back in the day I had a 1957 2CV Pipette: 425cc, traffi-clutch, and not much else. Clunking drive shafts, few brakes, no handbrake (wheel bricks). Briliant vehicle - from the UK to the South of France on £9 worth of petrol (those were the days). Rear seat came out to sleep on in my tent, rear seat out and it was a van. Scandalously, it cost me £45 to buy, and it lasted three years before most everything fell of it - so I sold it for scrap - for £45.
Ah, Happy Days!
Ian, I hope you take this as a compliment, because much like James May you could do a video about something as mundane as how to butter toast, and it would be completely watchable. But add in an interesting subject (as you do) combined with your deep automotive knowledge and excellent presentation skills and I know I’m going to have a very great video experience.
Thank you.
Always wanted one. I remember being little and my Dad took me to a Citroen garage to test drive one. I absolutely loved it and was gutted when he didn't buy it stating "I don't want a car with Dolly written on it" Humph!! ;)
I loved my Bamboo and it was the most fun i've had in a car, at very low speeds.
Simple cars are - usually - so much more fun to own, less to go wrong, and when something does, more often than not it isn't a nightmare to put right. So long as there are parts available. I recently ventured into the world of classic French machines, a 2CV was a possible but in the end I went with a rival. Roll on the better weather! Thanks for posting this vid.
You have a great way of presenting that makes me realise the my car knowledge isn't as good as I thought it was without making me feel inferior.
Great video
I've loved 2CVs for 35 years, my favourite teacher had one, it's amazing what triggers an affection for a certain car.
I remember climbing steep hills in snow while no other vehicle could.
I remember passing 50 crashed cars on a slow but steady drive to work over black ice on the old A55 road. Winter of '72. . .
Could not of been much of the A55 in 72
@@LOTPOR0402 It ran all the way across the North Wales coast. But it was an "A" road then. I once passed a Mini that had been hammered into a silver paper ball after it encountered a 1:15 downhill Z-bend sequence in wet subzero conditions.
BTW the world hasn't stopped changing since you came along. Soon there'll be no ICE cars or their private ownership.
This is one of the best of a fine selection of Hubnut videos.
Brilliant video Ian 👍 Your affection for Elly really comes through.
I drove one of mine to Greece and back amongst othe road trips. I've always needed practical and repairable cars and the 2CV is the absolute icon of this. I wish I'd been able to keep one but the first one was written off after being rear ended by a halfwit in a three hour old XR3 cabriolet which was also written off. Case of rich kid showing off what daddy had bought him not looking where he was going.
My Charleston was stolen, again, in Stoke on Trent a place I'd happily recommend for carpet bombing.
I'll just remember top down, sun shining driving through the former Yugoslavia. Happy days.
This was fascinating. I've have always admired the simple yet very clever engineering that has gone into the 2CV. Yes modern cars with their stupid computers and touch screens may seem clever but they really aren't. And to think this engineering took place many decades before technology effectively. A prime example of Engineering - Less is More! Brilliant video Ian, thanks for this - I started watching the channel because of Elly many years ago and what adventures have occurred since then! While the other cars are awesome - especially love Betty and Tuc, Elly is HubNut to me. I still have yet to ride in a 2CV - it's at the top of my Bucket List so one lives in hope lol
A classic HubNut video on the fleet icon. Thanks very much Ian!
The magic of the 2cv is that you really feel like you are operating a machine. Everthing works well but also feels mechanical. It had a design philosophy that was never really copied by other manufacturers, but is self evidently sensible and hugely successful.
Vive la 2cv!! No matter how many videos with Elly you do Ian...I still enjoy every one. My 2CV is the one automobile in my fleet that I cannot bear the thought of ever parting with...an absolute joy to drive and the most brilliant design ever!
Great Video Ian, can see why you're attached to Elly by the enthusiasm you show when you talk about and drive her. I'm all for adding the little touches that make her "your car". I know "purists" can be a snobby lot with certain changes, but it's your car not theirs and you use Elly and made her more practical, not just trailer her or only drive her to events.
8.20, Ians passion for 2cv,s overwhelms him!
My first car in 1985 was either a Viva, a 2CV or a Beetle, got the Beetle 1302S. Loved it, pulled the engine every weekend, 30 years in mechanics, it set me on the right path.
Roof down. Foot down. Legend.
Like the Beetle before it, the central carb, and very long inlet manifolds meant it was basically impossible to over-rev the engine, which very much contributed to its reliability.
It's charming to see how much you love your car. As I recall, you are in good company -- In the 70's I started buying CAR magazine off the newsstand, and every so often they would have comparison tests of "the cheapest cars in Britain"; the 2CV was inevitably among them. Their verdict on Elly's siblings? "We love 'em!" (They were crazy about the practicality, the driving dynamics, the economy, and most of all the character.)
Beautiful, wonderful, is all Ican say! Not only the car, but the way you put all together, with humour and love! Keep it up like that! The 2Cv and it's (lovely) noises made my smile and laugh like for a month. Partially because I also love small and underpowered cars, too. I have a 1990 2-stroke Trabant, another jewel of a cheap people car. I can't wait to make the MOT and take a ride. Believe it or not, the Trabant engine is simpler than of the 2CV, also rev-happy, but not as reliable.
Looked like fun, tempted to take Bamboo for day out to Aberaeron and New Quay next summer! Had mine for 7 years in January; its flown by! So much fun to drive and so comfortable! Thanks for a great video.
Isn't she lovely Ian! Citroen knew how to make a great small car all those years ago!
Good to see Ellie out again.
It was always fascinated by the 2CV, it's simplicity and ingenuity
And you and Ellie made me love them!
And of course also like them for their connection to the Greek Motor History, with the NAMCO Pony
I've only ever driven one 2cv
I just remember that it was very willing to drive and that it was so easy to work on
I would never have considered owning one till I started getting involved with your channel
Brilliant video keep making em like this
Thank you
I like the CND sticker in the rear quarterlight window, an essential 2CV accessory
Fantastic car.. and lovely to see you on that harbour side .. a spot we visited early in the summer
What a brilliant video Ian. Many years ago when I was learning to fly, a pilot friend of mine had an old Jodel taildragger aircraft which we regularly flew mainly around Yorkshire & the North East. Coming in to land one day he asked if I'd like to drive his car which turned out to be a 2CV. I was totally enthralled by it. I don't know what was more fun..........the Jodel or the 2CV which were both quirky, French engineering masterpieces and came in matching colours red/white. Stepping out of the Jodel into the 2CV was surreal.......almost as if we were still in the plane but driving it on the ground. Absolute fun!
I've owned many Citroens in my life. Two noticeable omissions, the 2CV and Xantia. But all brilliant cars.
Great little story, Walkaround and test drive of Elly, you can see the enthusiasm on why you love 2cv's a fun little car and the darling of the fleet.
602 M28 music - great 2CV overview, well done HubNut 👍😊
I love your car. It's like a little red ladybug and what road handling skills!
Old cars have so much character, from their quirks to the soundtrack of the engine.
That's pretty much why I started doing videos, because the written word doesn't do the sounds justice.
In the early 90s my friend's mum had a 2cv and we went to the Netherlands for a day trip with lovely wheather. It was so much fun!
I remember driving one of these in a video game called "Test Drive Unlimited 2", granted it was the 425cc model with a whopping 18bhp, but it was so much fun to drive, you had to collect wrecks in Hawaii to be able to drive it, and it was the slowest car in the game, but it was still really fun to drive. But one really cool thing was, like the real thing, you could take the roof off.
There was one in the Forza Horizon games. I think I had two, one completely tuned to the max and one pretty much standard for low power hooning
Full of character, you show the uniqueness of the car and your affection so well, I bet I wasn't alone in searching for 2cv's for sale, many more adventures and miles in Elly to come
Well I never knew the doors done that. Another great informative video cheers Ian.
Well done Ian. Your passion shines through. Is it getting a bit like Triggers broom?
Is there a car more charming than the 2CV? I'm so glad you're keeping this one going! May you have more happy adventures together.
I do like 2CV's now since watching this channel. They look so fun even with no power. Power definitely is less is more in this car.
TOP BANANA!!! The iconic engine note and roll!!!
What a lovely review of an even more lovely car! I like the way you talk about her. As if she is a living, long time friend. You are proud of her and it shows!
Good to see you do the "waggle for neutral" check before starting the engine. My instructor drummed it into me after I started his car in gear and *very* nearly hit the car in front. Forty years later I still do it - and also when I've stopped with the clutch down and I need to prove it's safe to let the clutch up.
The hockey-stick gear change of Renaults and Citroens is a delight. I've never driven a 2CV but I practiced driving (between lessons) on my mum's Renault 6. The only difference was that the R6 had a conventional layout of gears rather than (for the 2CV) R and 1 being in the same "column" of gears and 4 being out on its own. I assumed that the 2CV was that way because it was a 3-speed box, but now I learn that it wasn't, so goodness knows why they designed it that way. I got very adept at the old 4th-to-2nd change when turning into a side road and it's just a case of applying a bit of anti-clockwise pressure, pushing the lever forward into neutral and pulling straight back again into 2nd. The linkage under the bonnet is very primitive and (at least on my mum's R6) inclined to disengage the road from the gearbox lever if the rubber gromit drops out. If that happens as you reverse into a farm gateway to turn round when you're to drive, you do not (as my dad alleges I did) say "Daaaaaaaaad! Is it *supposed* to do that?"
Lovely to see Aberaeron, very close to where my Mother lives.
Sad we dont have such cars today. Simple, cheap and easy to repair.
Thanks Ian. i get the appeal, but my only journey in a 2CV was as an adult rear seat passenger. Not a pleasant experience, and it left me with a jaundiced view of them. And yes; I still chuckle, whilst empathising with their rear seat occupants, every time I see one with more than two people aboard. They look like a crazy, antiquated economy car, but their looks belie their practicality,
I've never driven a 2CV, but learned to drive in a Dyane.. UPP621L. It had a rod linkage throttle which had 2 delightful characteristics. When the engine mount rubbers went spongey with age, the engine would rock back and forwards... You'd boot it to get a move on (haha), and the engine would rock backwards and close the throttle on you, and then the engine would rock back, and the throttle would open again, which made anything other than the most gentle acceleration a series of Kangaroo hops... The other issue was that the ball joints in the throttle linkage would wear, and develop the nasty habit of popping apart, usually when fully laden, trying to pass a parked bus, uphill! In about 1984, I was regularly bombing around Berkshire with 8 of us in the car... 3 on the bench front seat, and 5 on the back seat... 2 sitting on the seat itself, and 3 sitting on the seat back, with most of their bodies outside the car, through the sunroof!! Never once got stopped by the cops for being silly.... ah, happy days!
I've been a subscriber since just before or around about the time you re done Ellie and the date said 2016 that time has gone fast this was a good hub nut old school style episode
The love of the 2cv is amazing but Elly is a special little wagon as you've been on such a journey and hopefully more to come
Last time you had me searching for a 2CV they started at £4k. Should have done it then! They are around £6k now!
Yup. Creeping up all the time sadly.
56 mph (actually 56.25mph/90kph) in top gear seems to be the sweet spot for good mpg and a quiet ride.
I think that it is not until one owns a 2cv, that one begins to appreciate them. Unorthodox in the extreme but strangely simplistic and ingenious design.
A Beautiful Characterful Car in the Beautiful Characterful Town of Aberaeron.
Good to see Elly Hooning around again.
I'm a child of the 1970's & so, I remember seeing a few different models back then, eg. Pallas, CX, Diane & of course the 2CV; ALL of which were very different to anything else on the road back then!! HOWEVER; it's only NOW; some 50ish years later that I'm learning (thanks to you!) that a 2CV is mot just a 2CV; that there are differences between a "Dolly," a "Charlston" & so on... In my "ignorance," I thought the full make & model was a Citroën 2CV Charlston & any name beyond that was just a nickname... "The longer you live...." etc. Maybe you showed & explained the differences in another vlog & I missed it because I found your channel in more recent times. If, however, you haven't done so; you might share photos of the different models & explain the differences, please, Ian for those of us who are, only now, realising that the 2V is more than a car with many nicknames... 👍🙂
I'd love to have the opportunity to drive one of these sometime. As well as other oddball classics like the Trabant.
If the 2CV was a Kickstarter product and this was the promo video I'd have backed it by about halfway through this video. I want one!
Fantastic video on "Elly" I've always loved 2cv's ,so few around now,I could watch Elly videos all day,the sound .
My mate had a black and yellow one when we were 17 (I’m 51 now. Fully loaded going round a roundabout was interesting. He had a scary moment when the bonnet opened on a dual carriageway and creased itself along the roof.
September 1969 for the first disc brakes on the Ami8 actually Ian, I've had one of them ;)
There's just something about a 2CV. Like a Moggy Minor, the minute you see one you smile. Yes, they won't do 0 -60 in the blink of an eye, it's not low slung and wide tyred, or what have you, but the fact that Ellie left the factory so long ago and is still providing comfortable transport all these years later is testament to how dependable and lingerie lived they can be. And best of all for me, they stand out wonderfully from the modern day anony-boxes that every company seems to churn out nowadays.
Clicked like before starting the video as I know I'll like it!
In 1996 you had your first 2CV. In 1995 I got my first car which was a British Leyland Mini 1000 HL with a top speed of 78mph indicated so I thoroughly understand the draw of power: Less is more. I may have had less body roll and slightly more rubber in contact with the road but I also had all round drum brakes so I was less confident in my ability to stop. My Dad taught me engines on that car and much like the 2CV the only way to work on that engine was to remove the front grille and both wings first.
Sounds like a blast!
The Mini always had welded on wings so that must have been a bit of a chore!
@@elliottpeters2996 Mine had badly repaired accident damage from a previous owner which may explain that. Let's just say I could tell when the repair was done by the date on the newspaper under the filler.
I think I’ve just realised I want one …
Well done, that has to be one of the best reviews I've seen on the 2cv. If anyone wants to join the 2cv owners, then this video should convince them. I particularly e njoyed the way you introduced the development history.👍
Hi Ian, That video was absolutely delightful. I don’t post many comments, so I’ll get my moneys worth by wishing you and the HubNut clan a great Christmas and Super 2023.
Merry Christmas.
Absolutely brilliant video Ian 👍thoroughly enjoyable nice back drop for Ellie there
Staggeringly good French design and so so beautiful...❤