Tag Archives: Citroën

Putting the creative into “Créative Technologie”

Although Finland is often called the home of rallying, in recent years you’d be forgiven for thinking it was France. Since 2003, every year bar one has seen a Frenchman (two Frenchmen, in fact, both called Sébastien) crowned World Drivers’ Champion. From 2004 to 2012, Citroën extended this dominance to the Manufacturers’ championship, although Reddish Blue MOCs‘s depiction is from their leaner, more recent years. Nonetheless, it’s a superb model! It’s built to the same scale as LEGO’s Speed Champions line and would look right at home among them.

The C3 WRC, as it’s called, is packed full of detail, making it very faithful to real rally cars. A spare wheel sits in the trunk, and it can accommodate bonnet lights for night stages. By far the coolest detail is the ability to swap between a tarmac setup and a gravel or snow one. This isn’t done by just swapping out some pieces (although the custom stickers are swapped from Monte Carlo to Finland, which is a nice touch) – there’s a tool in the back to do it on the fly. How cool is that! This car may not have won many rallies in its three years in the WRC, but it’s certainly won our hearts.

A little Citroën for your evening

There are a handful of cars that are instantly recognizable the world over, like the Volkswagen Beetle and the Jeep. I’d posit that the Citroën 2CV belongs right there with them, having been in production for more than 40 years. This beautiful LEGO version of the classic French car is brought to us by Jonathan Elliott, and it’s just perfect at minifigure scale. The 1×1 and 2×2 curved tiles help fill out the curves on this swoopy post-war sedan.

2CV

Simply Citroën

Back in 1947, French automaker Citroën debuted its H panel van. At the time, it was one of the wildest looking commercial vehicles on the market thanks to its sharp angle-laden front end. Rendering this detail in LEGO bricks would seem quite daunting, but OutBricks has managed to pulled it off (and in minifigure scale, no less). His version features the iconic corrugated body, and the front end has been cleverly emulated through the use of 4×2 wedge plates positioned in unusual angles. Meanwhile, minifigure ice skates are tilted to form the Citroën emblem.

Citroën Type H 01

What makes OutBricks’ build all the more impressive is that he has included working doors. There’s a side-mounted sliding door and tri-folding doors at the rear. Believe it or not, that’s how they open on the real vehicle.

Citroën Type H 05

His H1 even sports working suicide doors, a term used for doors hinged at the rear. Opening it reveals an upholstered interior. No expense has been spared!

Citroën Type H 02

Build your own LEGO Citroën DS and then drive your minifig self through the Vézère Valley [Instructions]

The vintage French Ghostbusters-themed Citroën DS we featured here a few days ago was certainly adorable, but what if you want to build your own early 1970’s LEGO Citroën DS? Creator OutBricks comes to the rescue with step-by-step instructions for the DS on which he based his “Ecteau-un”.

Citroen DS

You can see the builder explain how to build your own LEGO Citroën DS, as well as what parts you need, in this tutorial video.

Continental curb hugging

Still a regular site across Europe, the Citroën 2CV or “Deux Chevaux” (lit. “two horses”) was a beloved lemon of a French economy car introduced in the 1950’s. Some could be forgiven for thinking that the name referred to vehicle’s horse power.

Polish builder and massive petrol-head Misterzumbi is no stranger to building LEGO versions of this and other classic cars, but he seems to have perfected his 2CV technique here, with a version that is an obvious nod to Nick Barrett’s larger model that we featured here last year.

The significance of the grandfather clock I can only guess at – perhaps itself an homage to the opening titles of the Antiques Roadshow. But I love that the builder chose to represent the vehicle in the full corner-hugging, wheel-screeching, teeth-clenching action of a 2CV going flat out at 8 miles per hour.

However, not satisfied with just one presentation of this idea, Mr. Z decided he should taunt us a second time with another high velocity 2CV vignette, this time featuring a Frenchman who is either very late for a picnic, or just more of a dog person…

Citroen car of the future

What would it look like if you crossed a Citroen car with a Tron Light cycle? F@bz answered just that with this concept build:

Citroen Ellipse (02)

I’m a total sucker for funky lit builds – and he has done a wonderful job using Lifelites inside the car to light up the wheels and the headlights. But it’s not just the lights that make this build super slick – check out some of the neat slope usage to round this baby out especially that 45 degree offset white windscreen in the back.

Citroen Ellipse (04)

Citroen 2CV Charleston

Making his third appearance on this blog of blogs is Nick Barrett (TechnicNick) who would like to show you his fine new automobile. From Wikipedia: “The Charleston was technologically advanced and innovative, but with uncompromisingly utilitarian unconventional looks, and deceptively simple Bauhaus inspired bodywork. All this simpleton knows is that I love dark red, and that curving pin-stripe is pretty slick. The builder thoughtfully included a grandfather-clock, at no extra charge to you, the viewing public.

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The Arvo Brothers boot a Citroën DS

That last post deserves an Arvo chaser.

Not only do the Brothers Arvo create a Citroën DS, they also add a funny little detail — a wheel clamp, or “boot” — that makes sure their gorgeous car can’t get away. Time to pay your parking tickets!

ImpreSariO takes flight in his Tin Goose

Reader John Rudy sends word of a great Ford Trimotor airplane from Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom by ImpreSariO

Don’t miss ImpreSariO’s other entries in the Klocki Indiana Jones Contest, including this great scene from The Last Crusade:

Citroen DS by MisterZumbi

Via Polish LEGO blog Klocki Lego dla dorosłych, here’s MisterZumbi’s adorable five-wide Citroen DS:

Naturally, MisterZumbi created some fashionable Parisians to go with the classic French car:

Check out that purse! And I’m no fan of real-life poodles, but what minifig Parisian would be complete without a brick-built pooch?