Even if we'd found an ad for the actual Apollo 16 Lunar Rover, hauled back to Earth by a North Korean spaceship, burned up on reentry, scattered all over Nunavit, and then gathered into a shipping container and mixed with the remains of a burned-out pinball machine warehouse, it still wouldn't be as tough a project as a basket-case Citroën SM. For this reason, we're going with a pretty solid example, in this '73 (go here if the ad disappears), which is priced at only $5,250. It starts up and the hydropneumatic suspension rises, so you figure you can just do a little bodywork and you'll have a nice car, right? Sure thing… only first you'll have to do a little futzing about with the fuel system, because the car has "fuel delivery issues due to dirty fuel tank carbs could use a good cleaning." You know, nobody calls they call that Maserati V6 the "Mopar Slant Six Of Italy" because it's amazingly simple and dependable, so most likely it will work perfectly after just a few spritzes of carb cleaner down those Webers. How can you lose?

A Maserati engine is great, and that SM is a gorgeous machine… but you're looking for a full-on Italian Hell Project, and we don't mean some lame Biturbo or prole-grade Fiat Spider. It's got to be a Ferrari for your garage… no, wait- it's got to be many Ferraris, in your garage, down the driveway, and parked on the lawn. Did I say "parked?" Maybe that's not the right word here; let's say "dropped" instead, because that's what you'll do with these four Ferraris. The eBay price is $3,000, with an unspecified reserve, but they're on Craigslist for only $1,500. They're apparently 308s and 328s, and with the addition of a few incredibly costly parts here and there you'll be able to put together one perfect car! OK, scratch that- with the addition of four 1978 Pontiac Bonnevilles and some plywood body panels, you'll be able to slap together four fully drivable 301-powered machines, and they'll be registered as Ferraris! Thanks to A Benz Apart for the tip!

While Richard Milhous Nixon drove a man-of-the-people-esque '48 Mercury woodie wagon during his first senatorial campaign, once he got to be president, by God, he was going to roll in a vehicle befitting a man of his stature. A car that would show the doubters, the back-stabbers, the East Coast elitists, and- especially- the treasonous press that here was a man not to be trifled with! A man who would make you pay for trying to thwart him during his rise to power! For that, it pretty much goes without saying that you need a great big Cadillac Fleetwood, and that's just what Nixon got once he became president. His first presidential ride was a 1967 Fleetwood 75 limo, outfitted with the best in commie-bullet-stopping armor plate and- we're assuming here- a gold-plated Dilantin dispenser. Now, you'll need to add the presidential goodies yourself, but it's no sweat finding a suitable Fleetwood; take, for example, this 1967 Cadillac Fleetwood 75 limo, priced at just $1,250. That leaves you plenty of cash left over to fix the rust (the seller says "needs body work," which- given that the car is in Minnesota- we're interpreting as "more air than metal") and have the interior done in leather embossed with the presidential seal. Throw a microfilm-stuffed pumpkin in the trunk and you'll be ready to roll!

Sure, Nixon had a lot of power, but de Gaulle had style! Not only that, when you're choosing a President Grade Hell Project, you need to ask yourself: did a Cadillac ever save Nixon's life? The battleship-like construction, hydropneumatic suspension, and excellent handling of the Citroën DS saved de Gaulle at least twice, once when some right-wing dingbat tried to machine-gun him, and again when his DS drove right through a roadside napalm bomb explosion. Clearly, the DS is the way to roll like a president, but it's going to be tough to find one in the same price range as that super-cheap Caddy. Not to worry, though, because all tortures good things are possible in Project Car Hell; we've found this 1967 Citroën DS sitting with a price tag of just two grand! The seller (apparently suffering from the kind of Citroën Fatigue that renders one incapable of using punctuation or capitalization) claims the car is "nearly rust free"- which we're inclined to believe, given that this DS is in Arizona- but follows that statement with the less encouraging "needs new interior and a little work done its been sitting for some time." You figure maybe the hydraulics need complete replacement a little work, and possibly the engine is frozen solid requires some freshening, but so what? If it was good enough for de Gaulle, it's good enough for your garage!

The ID19 was a less expensive version of the luxurious DS, developed as a replacement for the Traction-Avant. This one's been picked over pretty thoroughly (I suspect that Henry Hanzel, who can smell a Citroën from the next county, got here first), but the emblem was still on the tailgate.


And now it's on my Civic! My poor Honda had all its emblems pried off (no doubt by roving bands of Honda hoodlums) while living in San Francisco, so it needed some new ones. I contemplated swapping the Citroën one-spoke steering wheel onto the Civic as well, but the factory airbag seemed worth keeping.


Now all the car needs is a huge portrait of Soichiro on the hood and maybe a rotating radar antenna on the roof. Hey, you have freedom to hack up your car when you know you'll be its last owner!


I also grabbed this beautiful instrument cluster, for use in a really stupid project I'm working on. Best $9.95 I've spent in a while. And, hey, the clock even works (after disassembly and oiling)!

I'd never seen this car in town before and I haven't seen it since, so it's either a one-time visitor to the island or an Alameda car that normally lives in a garage.


This is one of the few vehicles that could actually fit in one of the typical basement "garages" dug under Alameda houses during the very early days of the automobile. Back in 1911, everyone knew that cars would always be tall and narrow, with vast ground clearance, and they built theses garage accordingly (those who built huge "entertainment centers" into their living rooms based on the assumption that televisions would always be 4' deep CRTs are now learning the same lesson). These days, the only vehicles that can get down such a driveway are motorcycles and vehicles built on designs from the 1930s and earlier… such as the Traction-Avant, which was so technologically advanced for its time that it might as well have been from another planet.


Yes, front-wheel-drive cars can be cool. Just ask this back-seat passenger!


According to Citroënet's section on the Traction-Avant, the 11 was available only in black; the Légère was the "entry-level" Traction-Avant 11, but it was no stripped-down econobox. This hood ornament is rivaled only by the likes of the Pontiac Chieftan's!

As an American living in the Spanish part of the Basque Country, I have a certain curiosity about classic European cars that locals don't usually share with me. Cars like the Renault 5, Seat/Fiat 600, etc. are not head turners over here, so they're not really appreciated, but when I came across this thing in a small city named Zarautz I knew I'd hit jackpot.

This Citroën Palm Beach convertible was parked in front of a hotel and it had french plates, so its owner must be a French bon vivant who's not afraid of making a road trip with a classic and very rare French car.

For what I've read on the net, this Palm Beach is a model coach built by Henri Chapron, one of 32 made between 1964 and 1971, so it's pretty shocking (and great) that somebody has driven this thing on a long trip, and still managed to keep it in great shape.

As I said, this car was in excellent condition and it seemed to be either restored or obsessively well kept (I guess it was restored because the interior leather looked new).

2CV HERMÈS, A TASTE OF LUXURY

The 2CV celebrates its 60th birthday during the Paris Motor Show, on 7 October 2008. To celebrate the event, Hermes has designed a made-to-measure outfit that highlights the vehicle's ever-friendly and generous forms.

The 1989 2CV 6 Spécial, repainted in brown, gains a natural leather trim on the door facings, interior rearview mirror, gear knob, steering wheel and driver's sun visor. For an even more elegant finish, the two seats are upholstered in Hermès grey-beige cotton canvas and natural leather. As a finishing touch, the bonnet and interior trim at the rear of the vehicle also feature Hermès cotton canvas.

An exhibition celebrating the birthday of this legendary car opened at the Cité des Sciences et de l'Industrie in Paris on 15 April and is scheduled to run until 30 November 2008.

[via Arkitip]

Having recently moved north from my home town of Adelaide, South Australia to Brisbane, Queensland, I thought my days of seeing old beaters being used for daily transportation might've been over. Adelaide has a dry climate similar to Murilee's description of Alameda, and a lack of emissions testing or even regular roadworthies meant that I was able to drive around in almost anything I cared to pay a registration fee on, seemingly regardless of physical condition, provided it didn't prove a clear and present danger to other road users.

My old Sweeney-brown Mk I Grenada was a classic example. We'd stripped out the mouldy carpets and ratty door trims, and I drove it around for a month with a bare-bones steel interior, the cherry bomb on the RS2000-sourced four-pot reverberating all through the car with no NVH padding to muffle the noise, and brown gaffer tape that gave a close paint match covering up the more obvious rust around the base of the rear window.

I had been told by coworkers up here in Brisbane that Queensland has reasonably rigorous roadworthy inspections as part of their registration process, but to my pleasant surprise I've found that this may have been an exaggeration. Yesterday while I was having breakfast at the Northy Street markets in the city's inner north I spotted two beaten old survivors, both striking me as being DOTS:BE-worthy, even through I only had my cameraphone to hand.

In the 1970s before the introduction of bulk containerisation of shipping, Australia had a thriving industry in assembling CKD kits from other countries. Citroen, Renault and Peugeot all sold locally-produced versions of their vehicles, as did British Leyland. You could even buy Pontiac Parisiennes and other North American GM muscle through your local Holden dealership. I'm no expert de Citroen, but I believe that the smooth headlight covers mark this DS out as a post 1969 model. If this is actually a surviving Australian production model, it was kitted out with all sorts of niceties that were weren't even available as options to our Euro-brethren.

Based on the pattern of dropped berries surrounding it and the seriously underpressure front right, this 1960 Holden FB wagon might be better described as Broken Down On The Street, but these old 'Oldens are built in such a basic fashion that a hammer and a length of bailing wire are probably all that are needed to get it running again. In terms of styling, this generation of Holden was basically a 4/5 scale shoebox Chev. Note that at the time it was built these weren't called wagons - they were station sedans. These old FBs came standard with a fairly mild inline 'grey' six (named after the color the block was painted), but parts interchangeability is so broad within the Holden family from 1948 through to the mid 70s that there could be anything from a 68hp 2.1L grey six to 135hp 3.3L red six.

In the background of one of these shots you can see Ilsa, my 150hp Ford Fiesta XR4 (the local name for the outgoing Fiesta ST). She covered 2100 miles over my trip up north without skipping a beat, and every single one of them was a complete blast. But that's another story. I'll be keeping an eye out in the future for more DOTS:BE vehicles up here in the subtropical north, but I'm also wondering - do we have any other Brisbane-based Jalops?

We all thought it was a pretty good score when Seatbelt123 picked up two Alfa Romeo Milanos for his 24 Hours Of LeMons team for just $299. No doubt many an Alfa lover started eyeballing that empty spot in the garage and began a search for similar deals. Guess what? We've found what (at first glance appears to be) an even better Alfa deal, and it will not only fill up your garage but the driveway and maybe front yard as well! Would you believe an '87 Milano, a '78 Alfetta, and a '69 Duetto (go here if the ad disappears) for the incredible price of $750? No, and we didn't, either; of course it's really a classic Craigslist bait-and-switch arrangement hiding a $9,850 price tag. But still, with the economy melting down and the value of project Alfas melting like reserves in a bank run, we're pretty sure the actual selling price will be much, much lower. There is no information about running condition or any problems these cars might have (other than the ominous statement "Needs a little attention" applied to the Alfetta), but you can count on decades months of Alfa torture fun when you take on these projects! Thanks to Narf, BZR, and UDMan for the tip.

You like those Alfa Romeos but the scam-esque nature of the phony price has you refusing to do business with the seller for ethical reasons? We understand. Besides, Italian cars are so obvious, what with all their histrionics and castor-oil-down-the-throat machismo. French cars! That's what you need! In fact, forget about those Renaults and Peugeots and even Simcas and go straight for the clear-quill, 200-proof goods: Citroën. Normally, even a pretty rough, hasn't-run-in-years Citroën goes for at least two grand, but magical things happen to project-car prices during a Financiapocalypse- how about four 1960-66 Citroën ID19s (go here if the ad disappears) for just one thin grand? The seller doesn't bother to provide any real description, other than "Between the 4 there are 3 engines. You could probably make 2 complete cars or make 1 with lots of spare parts," but who cares? You could make one quasi-nice runner with all this stuff and the first-ever 24 Hours Of LeMons Citroën with whatever's left over! Please, one of you Oregon readers needs to buy these cars!

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Remember the Lancia Zagato? Of course not, and you Europeans are probably totally confused about that name slapped on what's obviously some kind of Americanized Beta, but enough of them were sold on these shores that it's now possible to obtain two of them (go here if the ad disappears) for just $1,500. One of them doesn't run, due to a "sticky" clutch arm, while the other one runs just fine, other than a slight problem with the fuel pump ("Sometimes you have to jiggle the fuel pump fuse to get it going"), which shouldn't raise even the tiniest red flag among those with experience working on Italian cars. You got lots of extra parts- in fact, sufficient parts to completely fill the bed of a full-sized pickup truck- and that means you should have enough stuff to get at least one of these fine Italian thoroughbreds back into tip-top shape. Right?

Just because a Citroën SM has never lost a PCH Superpower Challenge, does that make this matchup unfair to Italy? What if the Romans had had that sort of defeatist attitude? Why, they would have allowed those barbarians from the north to conquer them in that case... oh, wait. Anyway, we figure two Lancias might have a hope against a car built by a shotgun marriage of Maserati and Citroën, under the administration of two of the best-organized and efficient organizations the world has ever seen: the French and Italian governments! So here we go! My fellow LeMons judge, Herr Lieberman, has found this 1973 Citroën SM for us, and check out that price! Pick your jaw up off the floor, because we're talking about an SM priced well below four figures, and the auction ends in just a few hours. Unless the reserve is set at some absurd height, this might be the cheapest SM in the country! It doesn't quite run, but it's really, really close; once you deal with the engine- which "may be stuck"- and find a new transmission- which is missing- and then hunt down some new hydropneumatic suspension spheres and some other parts, and then deal with all the stuff that goes wrong when an insanely complicated car sits for close to two decades (a car built by the French and Italian governments, remember), and then fix the rusted-through body panels… well, at that point you'll find that you're only capable of composing really unwieldy run-on sentences full of digressions and tangents and you'll need a good stiff shot of absinthe just to drag yourself out to the garage and face your future, each day, until the warm embrace of eagerly anticipated death enfolds you. OK, fine, we know the SM is going to crush the Zagatos, but vote anyway.

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GTbyCITROËN: TAKING SPORTSCAR DESIGN INTO A NEW DIMENSION

The amazing GTbyCITROËN is the first ever car to be specifically designed to bring the virtual and real worlds together. The car makes its global premiere at the Paris Motor Show where visitors can actually drive the car in a true to life simulator on the Citroën stand.

GTbyCITROËN, a joint venture between Citroën and the makers of Gran Turismo, was created for the eagerly anticipated 5th game in the multi-million selling Playstation series.

At almost five metres long, GTbyCITROËN packs the latest hi-tech racing equipment into an exaggerated sporty frame. Planted on 21-inch, diamond-effect, aluminium wheels, the car’s gullwing doors, over-sized rear end with mobile spoiler, gaping air intakes and flat underside exude the qualities of an accomplished racer.

With chrome chevrons on the smooth, aerodynamic, front end asserting the car’s Citroën identity, the GTbyCITROËN is bursting with styling cues typical of the Company’s creative flair. The sharp lines and sculpted body are emphasised by the white-to-grey flared paint work which gives the car a forceful look and an impression of speed - even when it’s standing still.

The sleekly muscled racer sports a large wraparound windscreen adding to the impact of the car’s size and dynamic appearance. Penetrating blue LED headlamps and slim-line carbon fibre rear view mirrors - which appear to be suspended in mid-air - add to GTbyCITROËN’s futuristic racing style.

Premium materials used throughout GTbyCITROËN’s hi-tech interior reflect the car’s distinguished and refined personality. In contrast to its light body work, the cabin features a darker, more brooding colour scheme with two padded racing seats finished in black leather and fitted with four point harnesses. The dark leather, along with copper and steel touches inside the cabin and a low-slung driving position, create an opulent and powerful racing environment. Important on-board data is displayed via a red LED head-up display, allowing drivers to maintain focus on the track.

In the game, the GTbyCITROËN showcases Citroën’s dedication to the environment with an electric drive train powered by a fuel cell, totally eliminating pollutant emissions.

Kazanori Yamauchi, President of Polyphony Digital Inc and creator of Gran Turismo, commented, “GTbyCITROËN shows how the worlds of virtual and real-life motoring can join together to create a truly innovative partnership. To see the GTbyCITROËN take shape in our game studios and then for real has been a truly unique experience - as our work normally stays in the digital world.”

Bank customers opting for the cars do so in lieu of interest. So you’re locking up to $235,000 away for three years with no growth. We’re also presuming the cars are leased, and need to be returned at the end of the two- or three-year period. So we’re not actually sure if this is a good deal.

Let’s assume you can earn 3.5% interest a year on your money. On $235,000, that’s $685 a month. A C4 diesel can be leased from $300-400 a month, we’ll assume another $200 for insurance, which still brings us in a little under that $685. Of course, the bank is probably getting some kind of bulk discount and doing the financing itself, so won’t be paying interest on its own vehicle loan. In other words, Banesto is making a healthy profit by offering cars instead of interest. Don’t have $235,000 to invest? Piaggio scooters are available to customers stashing away fewer Euros. [via Money.co.uk]

[LeBlogAuto (Translated badly)]

Something To Dance About: The Citroen C3 Pluriel Charleston

Citroën has released first details of a special edition of its funky convertible supermini, the C3 Pluriel - The Charleston. The limited edition model will be unveiled at next month’s Paris Motor Show and is expected to go on sale in the UK in early 2009.

The C3 Pluriel Charleston fashions a contemporary reinterpretation of a design theme that once decorated Citroën’s famous 2CV - a stylistic nod to one of the most iconic cars in history, which this year celebrates its 60th birthday.

With a blend of nostalgic and contemporary styling the C3 Pluriel Charleston should strike a chord with both 2CV fans and buyers looking for a vehicle with individual design flair. With its bold two-tone colour scheme of black and Bordeaux red, the sophisticated Charleston special edition will be positioned at the high-end of the Pluriel range with premium touches throughout such as gloss-black fittings, leather upholstery and chrome trim. Also fitted as standard are stylish 15” aluminium wheels which feature red embellisher centres that add elegance and definition.

[Source: Citroen]

CITROËN’S HYPNOS - A SPELL-BINDING NEW CONCEPT CAR FOR THE PARIS MOTORSHOW

With the 2008 Paris Motor Show just a few weeks away, Citroën is unveiling the Hypnos. An exceptional and elegant cross-over vehicle, Hypnos draws on a range of creative technologies to deliver outstanding performance and environmental efficiency, combined with subtle but powerful motoring sensations.

Hypnos is an impressive vehicle, combining the dynamism of a coupé with the elegance of a saloon and the space of an SUV. Powerful, flowing and expressive, the exterior styling identifies the car as one to rouse the emotions.

The initial appeal of the exterior styling is echoed inside the cabin, with the imaginative use of colour and the ability to make technology more human and approachable. A powerful sensory experience awaits the driver and passengers, taking them into the realm of pure magic.

The special hybrid technology used on Hypnos highlights Citroën’s commitment to the environment and shows once again that driving enjoyment and efficiency are not compromised by this strong ecological focus. With its 200 hp engine, Hypnos combines dynamic performance with low fuel consumption and emissions (60+mpg and 120g/km of CO2).

We've already had one French DOTS Bonus Edition today, but what's wrong with having a DOTS Bonus Bonus Edition? This wagon really is Henry Hanzel's daily driver; we're talking about a man who grew up going on road trips across the United States in a Traction-Avant, who drove a 2CV in high school, and whose parents owned Oakland's Citroën and Panhard dealerships back in the day. Yes, I totally want a Citroën now!

(Citroëns) Here are some pictures of the 4 Citroens always parked by my office here in Portland, Oregon.
I only know the exact year and model of one of them because he has it printed out on the window (1978 2cv Fourgonette).
I swear he might have at least one more but on this day I could finally get a picture with more than 2 in the frame.

(Renaults) I love the DOTS series on Jalopnik and took a few pics of my own. I found dos Renault Fuegos a few blocks from my house. The yellow 164 is my girlfriends' and mine (now with 4 speed and functional brake booster! - it's been a true PCH). The junky blue bus is - of course -mine. Take care and keep the DOTS coming - you're doing God's work!

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Here's Franzouse's report:

For my birthday I went home this weekend to my quaint little southern french town of St Geniez D'olt (yup try pronouncing that) in the beautiful Aveyron region and got a real nice present: race day! They wouldn't let me enter the mehari in the "course de cote" (road climb, 46 turns in 6 miles of beautiful asphalt with guard rails...), but I did get to see the vintage racers that were parked on the plaza during the racer's big sunday lunch. It being bastille day, so here are the French cars

Perhaps the cleverest feature is the three-part windscreen, which helps eliminate the blind spot caused by thick A-pillars. Combined with a tall glasshouse and huge glass roof, it should make for a really light and airy cabin, a good thing in general, but especially for a small people mover trying to make the most of its small interior volume. That interior is reasonably attractive and clever as well, with rear seats that split, fold and slide independently.

Motivation will come in the form of two gasoline engines offering either 95 or 120hp; or two diesel engines with 90 and 110hp. None will be what we'd call fast, but equipped with a manual transmission, should be more than capable of carrying the little Picasso over 100mph, at which speed it'll be perfectly stable and competent because, well, it's European.

Just where do we draw the line between a project car and a parts car? Always a tough call, but we've found an even tougher question: when does a single part become a car? Because of the near-impossibility of reading the huge, CAPS LOCKED, red-and-blue font used by the seller of this 1925 Renault Type 45, it took me a while to realize that this auction is for just the hood of a Renault 45. This seller deserves the Most Unreadable eBay Listing Ever Award, and there's some tough competition for that prize (those of you who wish to wimp out and attempt to extract information from the description can go here). Once you've got the hood- I mean, the bonnet- you're pretty much home free; as the seller states: "AS THE BONNET IS MOST SALIENT AND DIFFICULT PART TO REPRODUCE OF THE TYPE 45, IT IS AN EXCELLENT STARTING POINT FOR A GROUND UP RECREATION." You see? It's a restoration project, not a hopeless parts chase that will take you from Hanoi to Abidjan. The reserve on this auction hasn't been met, but we can assume it's fairly high, since "ACTUAL VALUE OF THIS ITEM IS $20-40K USD." Don't worry about that stuff, however, because having a finished Model 45 will be worth all the pain.

That Renault would be quite a car, all right, but maybe you're more of a Citroën driver at heart. Admit it, you've been lusting for a Traction-Avant for years now, but perhaps the difficulty of finding one in North America has forced you to give up on your dream. Hey, you'll be doing front-drive French burnouts before you know it, once you buy this 1951 Citroën Traction-Avant (go here if the ad disappears). The seller wants four grand for it, which is quite a deal when you consider you get a "heavily customized" project. First thing is the engine, which came from a Renault 5. Le Car power in a Traction-Avant! Naturally, you'll need to ditch that Malaise boat anchor and install the Maserati V6 out of a Citroën SM- hey, if they can put a man on the moon! The seller says "currently not running, needs clutch, body work, paint, interior etc," and that "etc" part covers a lot of scary ground when you're talking about a massively modified 57-year-old French car. As we say so often here (thanks to Kevin Hoover), what could go wrong?

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Maybe you could use this Citroën DS from Toronto for your DOTS. My girlfriend had just graduated from university, and somehow I got put in charge of taking pictures. Although her family is now wondering why their camera has pictures of her graduating interrupted by pictures of a weird French contraption, but I couldn't help myself. This was by far the most exciting part of the whole ceremony. It rained later that day, and I was wondering to myself how well that canvas roof held up against the weather.

I can't say for sure that this is a North American version, but according to the picture at the Citroën club it seems right given the hub caps, grille and bumper. And since they were virtually unchanged the whole time they were imported, it's most likely from the 60s, unless it's an import, at which point it could be of almost any vintage from anywhere in the world. Enjoy!