THE CITROEN 2CV

You've seen the Citroen 2CV in pictures and in movies. Even James Bond used one in a chase scene, although the car's top speed is only around 55 mph. I think this was the best car ever made, and it was made by the French. When it broke down, you didn't need a computer and specialized tools to fix it. Instead, you needed things like a bobby-pin, a paper-clip, a rubber band, tape, plywood, etc. The 2CV's top rolled back like a window shade, and, presto, a convertible. You could get into the trunk from both the outside and the inside. The glove compartment had no door; it was just a simple shelf. When you made a turn, the front wheels would lean over like a motorcycle's. The seats were made just from bent bars with rubber bands stretched across and pads lying on the bands. All the windows were flat, so were easy to replace. The doors also were flat, and, if need be, could be replaced with plywood. The back doors swung open like most cars, but the front doors opened backwards, and if both doors opened at the same time, they could smack into each other. The front side windows were split horizontally across the middle, and hinged, so to open one, you would push out the bottom half and slam it outside up against the top half, and a ball-and-socket would hold it in place. Yet, if you had the window open and were tooling along with your arm resting on the bottom of the opening and hit a bump, sometimes the ball-and-socket would pop loose and the window would swing down and hit your elbow. The headlights were fastened, sticking upwards, at the ends of a cross-bar; and to dim the lights, you would pull a knob on the dashboard which would tip that bar and make the headlights aim slightly downwards.
It was a sad day when they stopped making the 2CV. And it was a sad day that, because of safety standards, they stopped importing this wonderful car to the United States. It's one-of-a-kind. I feel better just looking at it.

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