Hip to be square – 70 years of the Citroën H Van (2017)

[quadcore]

When I was a kid I've been taken in one of those - by the police. All painted black with some white stripes. I wasnt alone in the truck, they use to arrest people by the half-a-dozen back in the day (drunks, wanderers, brawlers, etc). They'd also release everybody after a while at a street corner with a big kick in the but.

[RCitronsBroker]

LOL over here in Germany we got drunk-tanked in VW vans and Mercedes sprinters

[dieselgate]

I’ve seen one of these my entire life - parked around a residential neighborhood in Seattle. It’s certainly different and exciting.

Citroens are very rare to see in the states but always fun to spot. They’re usually vintage models. One funny part of traveling in Europe is seeing modern Citroen models.

Comedians in Cars getting Coffee had an episode with a Citroen.

[FirmwareBurner]

>I’ve seen one of these my entire life

In Europe these retro Citroen vans are used as mobile hipster food and coffee shops.

I also saw one retro American School bus here (very rare in Europe) selling overpriced American street food, mainly hotdogs and burgers. The retro van plus the server having a top-knot man-bun add an automatic 20% value to your burger.

Either way, it seems these old busses have found a second life in the posh mobile catering industry.

[lettergram]

I've seen a lot of Citroen in the EU, particularly in the UK & Ireland.

Never seen any in the US (where I live), which makes sense -- https://www.citroen.co.uk/about-citroen/citroen-in-a-few-fig...

[Doctor_Fegg]

Citroen still make interesting designs now and then. The current Ami, the C6, the C3 Pluriel.

[mc32]

There used to lots of specialty vehicle manufacturers till maybe the early ‘60s. Milk delivery, parts delivery, etc. Now they all pretty much have the same form regardless of role.

[drooopy]

That's the van that the monster from Jeepers Creepers drove, right?

[DerCommodore]

Great episode!

[drcongo]

Over the years Citroen have designed some of the most beautiful vehicles ever - the DS being the most obvious, but for me the SM is the pinnacle of car design, just stunning. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Citroën_SM

[yread]

From that period I would vote for Jaguar E-type https://cdn.i-scmp.com/sites/default/files/styles/768x768/pu...

[melenaboija]

Agree, my first ever car was a Citroën Visa from my grandpa (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Citro%C3%ABn_Visa) and even back then the design felt special to me.

I think these and the C15 (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Citro%C3%ABn_C15) will become desirable at some point in the future.

[dingaling]

They were in the doldrums for 20 years but seen to be fighting back to their old design-driven ethos. The new Ami is a cute design that perhaps only Honda would have attempted:

https://www.citroen.co.uk/ami

[Xenoamorphous]

My uncle had a CX and as I kid it was like getting into a spaceship, loved the steering wheel.

A different uncle recently got a second hand C6 and despite all its reliability issues it’s a pretty cool car.

[TacticalCoder]

> but for me the SM is the pinnacle of car design

I raise your french with some italian, german and american designs:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Maserati_3500_GT#/media/File:P...

https://fr.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ferrari_250_GT_Lusso#/media/Fi...

https://fr.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ferrari_288_GTO#/media/Fichier...

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ford_GT40#/media/File:1965_For...

https://fr.wikipedia.org/wiki/AC_Cobra#/media/Fichier:Shelby...

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ford_Mustang#/media/File:Ford_...

https://fr.wikipedia.org/wiki/Porsche_356#/media/Fichier:Por...

https://fr.wikipedia.org/wiki/Porsche_911#/media/Fichier:196...

I find that Citroen SM just horrible. You see it and think it cannot get worse but then you see its back...

But as the saying goes: to each his own bad tastes.

[fosk]

> Over the years Citroen have designed some of the most beautiful vehicles ever

Like the Romans say, de gustibus non disputandum est.

[quesera]

I don't love the SM body style, but the interior/dash is brilliant.

[hristov]

I always thought the XM was very pretty.

[uniqueuid]

Yes the SM is awesome, but to be fair, it is more of a Maserati than a Citroen.

[huytersd]

I mean you have to have a certain mindset while looking at it. I bet it’s not beautiful to many people.

[bloomingeek]

Most all the mid size vans look alike here in the states. I guess that's why I think the H Van looks so appealing. We own a Chrysler Pacifica to haul the grands around in and it's a fantastic car.

As a side note, the stigma on the mini-van is unwarranted, they are very utilitarian and, unless the snow is too deep(8 inches or higher), gets around better than my truck.

[NoPedantsThanks]

Not to mention that all the new "small" trucks force you to get a giant four-door cab, which results in a puny bed. I guess the manufacturers have determined that everyone who wants a small truck is a poser.

Look at Ford's own picture of two hapless hipsters struggling to fit any furniture into a Maverick. They're not even going to get the couch in there, let alone all that other crap: https://www.thedrive.com/content-b/message-editor%2F16461598...

You're way better off with a minivan.

[mytailorisrich]

I believe that this is from 2017. The H Van launched in 1947.

So this is now 77 years and it's still hip.

[palmfacehn]

Here's the 2cv that completed Dakar this year.

https://www.dakar.com/en/news//stage-2/classic/the-duck-ar-g...

>It was a bold move, to say the least. But Barbora Holická and Lucie Engová were not afraid. The two Czech friends decided to take on the challenge of the Dakar Classic, but they also had to pick a vehicle. A 2CV was far from the obvious choice to tackle the Saudi desert, but their decision to start their project by buying the car was based on a sound analysis: "I usually compete in the Czech championship and always in a Citroën", explains Barbora. "So my first thought was to drive a ZX in the Dakar, but it was too expensive, so I came up with the idea of the 2CV, which everyone loves."

>The "Tin Snail" certainly offers incredible bang for buck in terms of charisma, but it looks like a fish out of water in a rally raid and, especially, in the dunes. As a result, they had to come up with a technical plan and make some modifications...

[jonasdegendt]

I'm surprised a ZX was more expensive than a 2CV. Over here in Belgium you can get a ZX for 500 bucks no problem, whereas the 2CV is a coveted classic that sells for multiple thousands.

[paulmd]

it's always mildly funny how much engine power has increased over the years. my bottom-of-the-line SUV gets 184 BHP, these shipped with 35-50 BHP depending on model lol

[userbinator]

Passenger car engines are usually rated in peak power now --- and rarely need to output that number --- whereas they used to be continuous and run closer to their maximum power rating.

[1letterunixname]

<3

I want a US-homologation Citroën DS-21 (LHD). Currently, I drive a 1985 VW Vanagon GL Westfalia Deluxe (pop-top camper). NLA vehicles are fun.

[jillesvangurp]

There are a few companies doing electric versions of this car. Both conversions/restoration and completely new ones. Looks like a lot of fun to drive and as the article suggests, they are popular for using as street food cars. There's something about the design of these things that is just hugely appealing.

[WalterBright]

The corrugated sheet metal sides reminds me of a Junker:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2018_Ju-Air_Junkers_Ju_52_cras...

[tesin]

The article specifies those as the source

[tibbydudeza]

Like the Cybertruck only 70 years earlier - after WW2 there were lot of leftover stuff to be repurposed or a severe shortage of stuff that made for these utilitarian designs at the time.

[nightfly]

Morgana

[upmind]

Hip to be square just reminds me of American Psycho lol