The term traction avant is literal French for pull from the front or front wheel drive.
In late 1933/early 1934 when the Traction Avant was designed by André Lefèbvre it was an incredible move for André Citroën to move from rear wheel drive to front wheel drive. The car also had:
- “monocoque”, or integrated chassis and body, arc welded
- independently sprung front wheels and torsion bar suspension.
Remarkable for a car designed to go 100 km/h (62.6 Mph) and use 10 litres of petrol per 100 km.
The cars were built in three European factories, Paris, France, Forest, Belgium and Slough, England. The English cars were built in a right-hand drive version.
The original models were a small sedan with a 1303cc engine. Later models had a 4 cylinder 1911cc engine with the "big six" having a 2867cc six cylinder.
Michelin owned the Citroën company from 1934 until 1976, so it is not surprising that they used the Traction Avant as the test bed for their radial tyress.
By 1955 Citroën had moved on to the DS. Which used the same engine. Production of the Traction Avant ended in July 1957. 760,000 being build.
