Citroën Type A Classic Cars for Sale

The Citroën Type A was the first vehicle ever produced by the company. It was built in the Citroën factory in Paris and sold from 1919 to 1921. Before and during the World War I the head of the company André Citroën had set up an operation that produced munitions. Around 1917, Citroën began looking into the possibility of developing a medium range 'light' car and used industrialist Jules Salomon for advice. The Citroën Type A was marketed as a 'Torpedo Sport' sedan. It had a petrol 1.3 Straight-four engine and a three-speed manual gearbox. During the three-year period that it was on sale, 24,093 were built.

The brief examination of the Citroën Type A

The Citroën Type A got its name because it was a designated 10 hp type 'A' vehicle. The Citroën Type A was water cooled and powered by a 1327 cc engine that had four-cylinders and an estimated output of 18 hp. For the time, the maximum speed of 40 mph was considered fast. The company chose to use a chassis that had inverted 'quarter elliptic springs in the front and double quarter at the back. The braking system of the vehicle was on the back wheels and controlled with a hand lever and foot pedal.

The Citroën Type A came with either a long or a short chassis. The shorter was only available on demand until 1920. After this year, the option to customers was withdrawn. This was due to Citroën wanting to standardise the vehicle and cut down on production costs. By offering too many variations of the Torpedo body, it was thought that production efficiency was being eroded.

The commercial success of the Citroën Type A

The initial price of the Citroën Type A, in 1919, was 7,950 French Francs. This was thought to be unsustainable by Citroën, so in 1920 the price went up to 12,500 francs, which represented a 57 per cent increase.

The Citroën Type A sold steadily in 1919 but surprisingly it was in 1920 with the car at a more expensive price, when sales began to grow rapidly. In the 12 months of 1920, 20,000 cars rolled off the production line in Paris. At its peak, the production line produced 100 cars a day and the Citroën Type A went into the record book as the first 'mass-produced' vehicle in Europe.