The major summer exhibition of the Belgian auto museum honours the 100th anniversary of the iconic French car brand Citroën.
For those who are not familiar with this car museum, Autoworld usually hosts four to six major thematic exhibitions a year, where several dozen thematic vehicles occupy the main gallery on the first floor. Last summer the gallery was populated by dozens of crazy French concept cars to commemorate the 120th anniversary of Renault.
These thematic exhibitions make Autoworld really stand out, and guarantees that an annual subscription will prove to be a well-spent investment. Since June they are honouring Citroën’s 100th birthday, and another major exhibition is scheduled to the end of the year, to pay tribute to the legacy of the British car industry. This was already announced at the Brussels Car Show, but the E type with the union jack is also parked here as a reminder.
Autoworld is not the only one to celebrate this anniversary. Citroën’s 100-year history became a major theme throughout the year at various events, from the Rétromobile classic car show in Paris to museum exhibitions. I also recommend having a peek at the Origins website for lots of interesting background and fun facts.
Iconic models, racing legends and concept cars for the 100th birthday of Citroën at Rétromobile
Autoworld adds its flavour by having recourse to contributions from Citroën Belux and the Belgian Citroën Clubs. Most notably however, there is a contribution from the famous Conservatoire Citroën, showcasing the most emblematic Citroën cars along with several spectacular and unique vehicles.
As usual, the ground floor hosts a set of contemporary vehicles of the current model range with a few classics by the stairs.
The stairs lead to the gallery, where visitors are greeted by an impressive collection of race cars.
First among them, the Xsara WRC and the C4 WRC of Sébastien Loeb, who accumulated a record 9 times WRC World Championship titles with Citroën (3 in a Xsara and 4 in a C4, and an additional 2 in a DS3).
The C4 is probably not the most spectacular car (and certainly not by Citroën standards), and the WRC does not even try to compensate its visuals, but the racing results speak for themselves.
Next up is a crazy monster ZX that won the Paris Dakar Rally 4 times building the Rallye reputation of Citroën. The Lartigue-Périn duo scored 3 victories at the famous Paris-Dakar in 1994, 1995 and 1996. The car was also piloted by legends like WRC champ Ari Vatanen and Belgian Le Mans ace Jacky Ickx.
The AX Superproduction seems like a children’s toy next to the giant ZX, but it is actually equipped with a 400PS V6, so beware of the caged animal.
Finally, the three blue rally specialist concludes the lineup with their elegant blue livery.
Even without any sponsor vignettes, the short wheelbase DS21 does leave an impression. Even without knowing its success (only 7 cars reached the finish line of the 1965 Marocco Rally, and five of them was a Citroën).
The lineup of race cars is followed by a set of Traction Avant models, with an own plateau with six different models.
My personal favourite is the elegant black coupé, but each of the selection is impressive, even without knowing the advanced front-wheel-drive design they streamlined into series production.
These cars were at the pinnacle of automotive at their time. With front-wheel drive, monocoque chassis and a modern independent suspension, it spearheaded what was to become the modern family car as we know it. And they also looked great too…
There is another line with series production cars, from the early models to the 70s (with DS and GS models).
My favourite here was the M35 concept, a coupé derived from the Ami 8, and equipped with a Wankel rotary engine and a hydropneumatic suspension.
A daring adventure into the new Wankel engine technology, that was to revolutionize the car industry but in the end, almost buried quite a few innovative brands. The commercial path chosen was also a reflection of French innovation: the model was not sold officially. Instead, it was delivered to selected Citroën customers to get their feedback on the technology.
A few years ago, I could witness a thematic exhibition in Ingolstadt, where the Audi Museum brought together an impressive show about the dawn of the then-new Wankel technology. It was centred around the Audi’s NSU brand but featured many others, including the M35.
NSU’s demise was closely related to the fact the German brand’s strategists bet in much higher stakes on Wankel technology, relying exclusively on a rotary engine for their groundbreaking RO80.
There was also a lineup of special bodyworks, with notable homage to the work of Henry Chapron. Chapron was a French coachbuilder and DS specialist, working with French luxury brands, like Talbot, Delage, and Delahaye.
In the 50s, he built over 1300 cars for Citroën distributed via the factory dealerships worldwide. His work was also appreciated by the presidents of France, as it was well illustrated by PSA’s 2018 special exhibition showcasing presidential parade limos of 50 years.
I also recommend having a peek at the Retrómobile report linked above, as a stage dedicated to Chapron’s work showcased over a dozen small series cars from posh short wheelbase cabriolets to presidential limos.
The DS Cabrio was accompanied by a few unique designs like an AX minivan with glass cabin and a lovely red beach car, but the most impressive car of the special models, related again to Chapron.
The massive, over 5 m long limo was developed by Coachbuilder Henri Chapron based on the standard SM. Initially developed for state parade of French Presidents, Chapron also offered convertibles (SM Mylord) and sedans (SM Opéra). In the end, only a handful were sold, rendering them some of the most desired French classics.
These are just a handful of my personal favourites, but the list is quite long, and fans of the iconic French car company will find their preferences among the ones showcased. The exhibition is open until 3. September, so there is ample time to catch up even after the school holidays.
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