Another Citroën as a Prime Find just a few weeks after the Traction Avant we featured? Yes, and what a Citroën this is!
The Citroën DS that shook the motoring world when it was launched in 1955 was always going to be a hard act to follow for the company. In production for two decades, the DS was not only Citroën’s flagship model, but practically a logo for the company – ask the average motorist what they think of when you say Citroën and the odds are they’ll mention the DS. As it was also used for official duties, the DS practically represented France to the outside world.
However, by the start of the 1970’s the DS – while externally timeless – was beginning to feel a little cramped for such a big car and other aspects of the design were beginning to feel a little old-fashioned. Replacing such a much-loved car was going to be a challenge, but Citroën rose to it with the introduction of the CX at the Paris Motor Show in the Autumn of 1974.
The CX was a DS for the next 20 years, every bit as advanced for its time as its predecessor was. Stylistically a bigger GS – itself launched in 1970 – the CX boasted very aerodynamic styling, kept the hydro-pneumatic self-levelling suspension, and added the speed-sensitive steering from the SM – essential in a car that had 70/30 front/rear weight distribution – and perhaps most controversially, a dashboard that featured rotating drum speedometer and rev counter and no light, indicator or wiper stalks, since all the controls for these were located on the single spoke of the steering wheel.
The CX was originally intended to have a Comotor three-rotor engine, which would have added further to its status as a technically advanced car, but it proved to be uneconomical and development was halted. Combined with the launch of the CX at a time when the company went bankrupt and was acquired by Michelin, this resulted in power coming initially from the same four-cylinder 2.0-litre and 2.2-litre engines as the DS, with one of the 2.0-litre versions gear ratios adjusted to make the car more economical – after all, this was the era of the oil crisis. The models on offer at launch were the CX 2000, the CX 2200 Super and the CX 2200 Pallas
Body styles were a four-door saloon – the CX was not designed with a hatchback even though it looks like it should have had one – and replacing the 7-seat Safari, the Familiale, also with seven seats, 25cm longer than the saloon.
Press reception was generally positive, with praise for the ride (perhaps unsurprisingly), visibility, high seed cruising ability and the seats, though the instrumentation and steering were less acclaimed. Indeed, it won the 1975 European Car of the Year award, beating the VW Golf into second place.
Citroën improved the CX gradually over time, for example with the introduction of the 2.4-litre engine that replaced the 2.2, a GTi version and in 1985, a GTi Turbo that had a top speed of 220kmh. In 1985 the Series 2 was introduced, which visually differed from the Series 1 by having plastic bumpers, and internally, although the steering column switches were retained, the revolving drum instruments were replaced by more conventional dials.
The CX was launched into a very competitive market sector, with a number of alternatives competing for access to buyers’ bank accounts throughout its life. Alternatives included the Austin Princess/Ambassador range – itself with unconventional styling and suspension, as well as front wheel drive – Rover’s 2000 and 2300 SD1, the Ford Granada, Audi 100, Renault 20/30, the Volvo 240 series, Lancia Gamma and from within Citroën’s parent group, the Peugeot 504 and later, the 505. Nevertheless, despite such strong competition, over 1m CX’s were built in a seventeen-year production run, 400,000 fewer than the DS, but a pretty respectable total.
Moving on to our Prime Find, what we have for your delectation this week is one of just two examples on the road – in the UK – of the Citroën CX Prestige (there are anther 18 SORN).
The Citroën CX Prestige is a BIG car – created as a result of complaints from French government officials that the rear was too cramped for official use as a chauffeur-driven car. 10 inches/25cm were added to the wheelbase of the CX, making an already long car (4,666 mm /183.7ins) a full-on limousine, at 4910mm or 193.3inches. It was also given a raised roof for added headroom. After all, it would not be OK for the French government to have to resort to using the Mercedes-Benz W114 limousine, now would it?
For a car built with such a specific purpose in mind, a surprisingly large number – 4000 – were built. The engine is the largest that was made available for the CX – as it needed to be for a car so big – the 2.5-litre, though not the most powerful, which was reserved for the CX Gti Turbo.
As you might expect, the Prestige is a very nice place to sit especially by the time you get to our Prime Find, which is a Series 2 model from 1986 with automatic transmission. The upholstery is plush buttoned beige leather, which complements the car’s exterior paint finish of metallic gold with black vinyl roof very well, and there’s enough room in the back for a party.
This CX is a serial prize-winner, having collected a number of Citroën Car Club awards over the years, but was taken off the road back in 2008. The vendor acquired it earlier this year, had the car recommissioned and detailed, after which it won yet another prize, taking home the 2021 Citroën Car Club National Rally award for the best CX at the show. The new parts included six new spheres for the suspension, a replacement water pump, new battery and various other consumables. The only obvious fault based on the photographs looks like the headlining in the rear compartment, which is sagging quite a bit.
According to the vendor, the car is completely standard and drives “faultlessly”. Despite its many awards, it’s had quite a lot of use, with the odometer reading 141,682 miles. It comes up for auction with Anglia Car Auctions over the weekend of November 6th and 7th, and has an estimate range of £9,000 to £11,000 which, based on other CX’s currently for sale, doesn’t seem unreasonable. The cliché that it’s “a lot of car for the money” rings true with this big Gallic classic; it’s probably not suitable as a daily, though I can imagine it being used as it was originally intended i.e. a chauffeur-driven car for the senior executive who wants something a little less common or indeed as a wedding or ceremonial car with a difference.
As usual, we have borrowed some photos from the auctioneers’ website and you can see the full lot entry here. Also as usual, should you consider bidding for this big limousine, we recommend you arrange an inspection if possible before you log your bid.
With our Saturday instalment of Prime Find of the Week, we’re offering our services to the classic car community, by passing on our favourite classic car for sale from the week that passed. This top-tip might help a first-time-buyer to own his first classic, or it could even be the perfect motivation for a multiple-classic-car-owner to expand his garage with something different. We’ll let us be inspired by anything from a cheap project to a stunning concours exotic, and hope that you will do the same.
Just remember – Any Classic is Better than No Classic! We obviously invite our readers to help prospective buyers with your views and maybe even experiences of any given model we feature. Further to that, if you stumble across a classic which you feel we ought to feature as Prime Find of the Week, then please send us a link to primefindoftheweek@viaretro.co.uk