24 Nov 05
The 7A was the first of the new generation of big Citroens: sold in the UK as the Super Modern Twelve, it cost from £250 in saloon form, with coupes £275 and soft-top roadsters £270. Its four-cylinder, overhead-valve 1,302cc engine was rated at 7hp (around 32bhp) and it had a three-speed gearbox.
This was followed by 1,628cc and 1,910cc engines, the latter badged Fifteen and costing from £315; going increasingly further upmarket, 11-series Big Fifteen models with wider bodies and longer wheelbases, in "Familiale" and "Limousine" bodystyles, were offered.
Over 88,000 Traction Avants were built prior to and during World War Two, including special-bodied ambulances and vehicles for military use, and Comerciale models with a hatchback-style rear boot.
The ultimate Traction Avant - the 22CV, displayed at the 1934 Paris Motor Show - never made it to production, however. This had a 3,822cc V8, developing around 100bhp and said to be good for 88mph. Instead, the six-cylinder 2,866cc (22.6hp, 77bhp) versions available from 1938 proved successful.
Post-war, Citroen's focus turned to the launch of the 2CV - a whole different story - but production of the Traction Avant resumed in 1947. There were few other changes bar a new louvred bonnet and minor specification upgrades and, aside from repositioning of the boot-mounted spare wheel, the range - by 1951 the official cars for the French government - remained little modernised.
With one exception. In 1954, another key Citroen feature was introduced: hydro-pneumatic suspension for the rear wheels. This combined gas-charged spheres and liquid to continually self-level and adjust the ride height for the optimum comfort and reduction of body roll.
Effectively, fitting this at this stage of the Traction Avant's life-cycle was a try-out for the car that was to follow - the DS of 1955. The Traction Avant remained in production until July 1957, having been one of the best-selling European models for a number of years, with over 759,000 made during its 23-year career.
