Queen of the Road: 1954 Citroen Traction Avant 11B
Andre Citroen was a gambler and an industrial engineer. What he was not, was an automobile enthusiast. Citroen had been making munitions for WWI and when the war ended, he cast about for a new assignment. Had the auto industry not been growing by leaps and bounds, he would have applied his considerable talents and floorspace to something else. His first cars were light and affordable. The Type A was introduced in 1919, with 18 bhp. After a stint making half-track vehicles and a few road cars, his company was in dire need of financial rescue, thanks to Andre’s profligate ways. The Traction Avant was his roll of the dice, designed to save the company by stuffing a selection of innovations into a single car. In typical French fashion, while Henry Ford was using a body on a frame, a solid rear axle, and rear-wheel drive, Citroen chose a unitary body, independent suspension, and front-wheel drive. Here on craigslist is a 1954 Citroen Traction Avant 11B with an asking price of $16,500. This car is located in La Habra, California. Thanks to Gunter K. for this fine tip!
The motor was unremarkable. Early Traction Avants were underpowered and that hadn’t changed much by 1954. This car has a 1.9-liter four-cylinder motor generating about 56 bhp. The speedometer, with marks reading up to 140 kph, was substantially optimistic. While Citroen wanted to offer an automatic, money was tight so he had to settle for a three-speed manual. The seller indicates this car has been sitting and thus does not run. It does come with many spare parts – an extra transmission, a new distributor, a new coil, and rebuilt drive axles, among other items.
The interior has been renovated to driver quality. Citroen is known for “boudoir” seating – even by the standards of the 1950s, these look comfy. The headliner is clean if not fitted perfectly. The shift lever is on the dash, that small stalk to the right of the steering wheel. This arrangement, plus the low, wide body, gave passengers plenty of legroom in the cabin. Related to the title above, the French called the Traction Avant la reine de la route – queen of the road.
Early cars’ trunks were flat against the body. While that was appealing from a design perspective, the lack of luggage space made customers cranky. Solving such problems along the way helped Citroen sell over 760,000 copies of the Traction Avant from 1934 through 1957. However, despite the all-out effort to save Citroen, the company was taken over by its largest creditor, Michelin, in 1934, just as the Traction arrived. As we know, that wasn’t the end of innovation from Citroen, with the wildly successful DS and its variants arriving in 1955. This tidy car needs a sympathetic mechanic who can bring her to life. She deserves it.
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Comments
Is it just me? The photo from the front on C/L, if that’s all I saw ,I would swear it is a 37 Chevrolet.
There is a rogue photo of a ’37 Chevy in the mix, currently the 4th photo in the ad’s photo gallery.
It makes me wonder where this dealer in La Habra, CA of all places found a car like this? It has newer CA vintage style plate and last registered in 2020?
Sorry should have read the CL ad.
Since this was a mass product and the ‘B’ means berline or
limo, then the ‘L’ for large provides even more room. Im my
opinion the long time period disliked familial and commercial
are more interesting as the first is a 7 seater and the second
have a rear hatch, the B and L models are just nice little drivers.
Something genius like the following DS/DSuper commercial.
The prewar models with the hood flaps and rounded bumpers
fit better to its contemporary style then the after war models
with straight bumpers and louvered hood. Or it was again a
question of profitability for Citroen. The lastest year of the
traction had standard the rear hydropneumatic suspension.
Citroen as an ingenious person was the first who offered
a car with a rear hatch as the rest of the world built these,
except Renault R4 and R6, decades later.
This is an 11B, which was the long wheelbase 5 seat sedan. The 11BL (The `L` means “Légère/light” not “large/long”” was the shorter wheelbase 5 seat sedan, a bit more sporting. These two models were the volume sellers, but as you mention, the range of tractions was very wide.- an early example of a modular approach to car engineering
The Commerciale and Familiale you mention were on an even longer wheelbase & as you say, the commerciale has a good claim to being the first hatchback offered in any volume.
The last year with the rear hydropneumatic suspension was to fine tune before
the new DS. That last year was very popular with the smugglers because they could load them up and the customs officials would not notice!
Very good write up, Michelle! Andre Citroën was an amazing person, a philanthropic employer, visionary manufacurer and expert publicist (as well as gambler, it is true). He made his fortune with hellical gears (hence the Citroen double chevron badge), munitions came of necessity in WW1. The Titanic steering gears are supposed to have been manufactured by Citroën. Producing this car and the factory to manufacture it in record time bankrupted him.
The Traction Avant was entirly André Citroëns concept, but the design work was carried out by other well-known genii. The car was probably an even bigger step forward in its time than the DS was 20 years later. The radial tyre was developed on the Traction Avant apart from its other innovations.
I studied in France in the early 70s and brought back a beautifully preserved 11BL which I kept for many years. The cars are fantastic to drive if you use the gearbox with respect; never lift and the car will follow its nose and corner flat like a Mini. Very good brakes and steering inspire confidence.
Looking at this one, I am sure that the interior you see are period seat covers, my car had the same and it was very typical in period. These were fitted new, and so thick that they were never removed. Under there, I think you will find an as factory cloth interior. The headlining is as should be. Water damage is main enemy.
The engine fitted here is the last 11D version, which gave over 60bhp. No fireball, but if you know how to drive one, able to surpise. Good historic rally cars. This is a great offer, someone with taste and money should snap it up.
Martin, you make an excellent point that this Traction Avant is the perfect car for access to any classic rally worldwide. Best still is you’ll do so on a very reasonable budget as getting it running and reliable, going through the brakes, suspension and related hydraulics (as it seems they are in working order) won’t break the bank. I’d wager one could be on the road for in plenty of time for the 2023 Alaska-Mexico Marathon held by Rally the World. Who’s with me?
….no “hydraulics” on this model! Torsion bar indépendant suspension, no power brakes, no power steering, only the brakes are “hydraulic”.
The french plates are different front and rear :
Front 78 : Yvelines county, west of Paris (Versailles)
Rear 14 : Calvados county, Normandy, DDay landing beaches.
This car was offered at an estate sale. According to prior owner Mr. Steven Woods present at sale, he was the second owner. During the time of his ownership car went through three transmissions and had several major engine repairs. At time of sale it didn’t run due to suspected broken rod
He was quoted an estimate of 25K to restore. A couple days after estate sale it reppeared on CL cleaned and detailed by a flipper with a big markup.
Good point! There should be no issue if the car has been imported and registered.
But I´m a bit curious as to why the car has a CA black plate. I doubt if this car was registered in CA in the 1960s. The rear French plate definitely is 30 years younger than the CA black plate…..
California DMV offers new retro style black plates for an additional fee. Looks like that is what this car has being last registered 2005.
I would refer to this fair looking Traction as “project”…..has not run and has not stopped (brakes) in years. It is a good base but not for the asking price. Also, I too am dubious about the different plates front and back. Lastly (intended for the seller): potential buyers of this type of car want more transparency about everything concerning their potential purchase…..pas de magouilles!
I like the style of this one, but I sure didn’t like several of the later models. This one has flair.
I’m reminded of James Bond in “from Russia with love”
As an American with a second home in South Africa, I own a 1946 11BL, the short wheelbase sedan, with right hand drive. It is now a non running project.A previous owner put it into a body shop for repaint and major parts were stolen from the engine. I bought it as a project. Another owner had a twin where he installed a later Citroen ID 19 motor. He rebuilt the original engine which I purchased to install into my car. I with Willy, a 85 year old Citroen mechanic pulled , in my sideyard the engine and trans. I had to return to the US and he recommend he check out the trans while I was away. A few months later I learned he had passed away and his daughter had sold all in his small shop including my trans. I finally found my trans but had to buy it back. I next took it to a mechanic who had it for a year and had dismantled it. Oh me! Luckily I also have a 1970 DS 20 which is my main transport vehicle while I am there.
Anyone remember the old movies of the PARIS Gendarmes (police) chasing the bad guys around the city with the Citroens Tractions corning at full speed?
Price is a tad steep for a nonrunner, although it is a cool looking car.