Ford Crown Victoria

Quite discreetly, Ford has recently pulled the plug on the very last of the “real” American cars, when the final Ford Crown Victoria left the assembly line. So more than a simple post, here is an homage of sorts to an era now over.

A little history

To say the truth, even when the Ford Crown Victoria and its rival the Chevrolet Caprice appeared twenty years ago, there were doubts about the future of these huge dinosaurs, still built with separate frames and fitted with transmissions to the rear wheels. Somehow, they succeeded in surviving longer than many may have thought, thanks to the faithfulness of many Floridian or Californian seniors, who have never driven anything else than this type of cars for their whole lives, but whose market was getting smaller year after year; and even more significantly due to the high demand from law enforcement agencies and taxicab operators.

In March 1991, both the Ford Crown Victoria, which dropped at this point its traditional “LTD” name, and its fancier counterpart the Mercury Grand Marquis received a brand new body, more rounded and aerodynamic than their dated predecessors, but still based on the “Panther” chassis used for full-size sedans since the late Seventies. This followed a similar move by General Motors, which had just updated its line of full-size models – Chevrolet Caprice, Oldsmobile Custom Cruiser and Buick Roadmaster, and the earlier introduction of Ford’s luxury model, the Lincoln Town Car, also based on the Panther platform. Despite its older underpinnings, the Crown Victoria enjoyed a brand new 4.6-litre “modular” engine, and optional ABS and traction-control systems. Its styling was an apt balance of modern and conservative, and this proved perfect as the bathtub-like body of the Caprice had been poorly received. Within months, the Crown Victoria led the market well ahead of its GMC rival which, after a botched restyling, disappeared following the 1996 model year. From then on, the Crown Vic’ became the only option for a traditional V8 automobile in its price range.

For the 1998 model year, the styling of the Crown Victoria was largely revised, and the car benefited from an improved suspension. While the general public was less and less attracted by the heavy car, it was still hugely popular with policemen – to whom Ford proposed the Crown Victoria Police Interceptor version – and taxi drivers. It also enjoyed a healthy following in the Middle East, which actually had soon become its only export market. At the end of the 2007 model year, the Crown Victoria stopped being available to private buyers in America, those being redirected towards the Mercury Grand Marquis, and remained only available for fleets and export markets.

In 2008, Ford decided to concentrate the production of all its Panther-based cars in its St. Thomas plant. The Canadian unions were rather anxious about the future of the car, or more specifically those of thousands of workers at this Ontario factory. Ford reassured them by announcing that large amounts of money would be invested to update the car. This was nothing but a lie. The last Mercury Grand Marquis was produced in January 2011, the brand being discontinued. It was followed by the last Lincoln Town Car in August, the car not being in conformity with new safety regulations imposed by Washington on all cars built for model year 2012. Though the Ford Crown Victoria was also affected by these new rules, it was maintained in production until September to fulfil foreign orders. On September 15, 2011, the very last Crown Vic’ left the assembly line of a factory due to close.

About the models

Model: Ford Crown Victoria Police Interceptor
Year: c.1997
Maker: Motor Max
Scale: 1/18
Distributed by: Motor Max, ref. 73125
Acquired: brand new, in February 2005, in Manila, Philippines

A nice surprise among Motor Max range of traditionally poorly assembled and painted die-casts. Their Crown Victoria certainly isn’t outstanding, but very few reproaches can be made to it. A rare feature for a model in this price range, it offers four opening doors. My rating is 13/20.















Model: Ford Crown Victoria
Year: 1998
Maker: Ixo
Scale: 1/43
Distributed by: Altaya as no.52 of its Taxis du Monde press series
Acquired: brand new, in March 2004, in Souillac, France

Altaya could hardly avoid proposing a Crown Victoria in its series about world taxies and cabs, as the large Fords have replaced the traditional Checkers as the iconic transportation of the New Yorkers. Its die-cast has been provided to the Italian distributor by Ixo. Again the rendition of the large car is accurate enough to be worth 13/20.







Model: Ford Crown Victoria
Year: 2002
Maker: Ixo
Scale: 1/43
Distributed by: Altaya as no.70 of its Taxis du Monde press series
Acquired: brand new, in December 2004, in Souillac, France

In its pursuit for more money pocketed from its faithful customers Altaya has extended its taxi series by offering new decorations to models already proposed earlier in different forms. The Crown Victoria was one of those, being sold a second time as a Dubai taxi. Decoration is somewhat simpler than its New York’s counterpart’s, but overall level of quality still deserves a 13/20.

Citroën Type H

Though by the Fifties Citroën had given up the first rank among French vehicles manufacturers in favour of Renault, there’s rarely a French movie from that era in which you don’t spot either a 2CV, a Traction Avant or a Type H van in the background – all Citroën products. Today we’ll discuss about the latter.

A little history

We have seen how Renault hid the studies of its 4CV from the Germans during World War Two; Citroën did the same and discreetly developed both the 2CV and the Type H. Though the little passenger car existed as pre-series models even before the conflict, the Type H was studied from 1942 on. Design was supervised by engineer Pierre Franchiset, which followed CEO Pierre Boulanger’s instructions: a simple vehicle, cheap to build and to operate, that would use as many existing components as could be. The resulting van looked as a wheeled box made of corrugated metal, a choice made because of the possibility it offered of building a rigid monocoque body out of thin sheets of metal. The Type H carried over all of the TUB’s characteristics: front wheel drive, cab-over design, independent suspension, unibody construction, lateral sliding door for loading and unloading, etc.

When first unveiled at the Paris motor show in October 1947, the Type H was using the 1.9-litre four-cylinder engine from the Traction Avant 11CV, and was rated at 1.200 kilograms of cargo. The very first Citroën vans had to wait until June 1948 to be available to the public. Most of these brand-new Type Hs were painted grey, and this colour would remain, by far, the most common throughout the vehicle’s lifetime.

The Type H remained basically unchanged for thirty-four years. Various wheelbases, an elevated-top van, diesel-powered variants became available, but the basic H, later called HY, was virtually identical until December 1981, when the very last one left the factory. Almost half a million had been built, quite a feat for a commercial vehicle.

About the models

Model: Citroën H
Year: c.1957
Maker: Norev
Scale: 1/43
Distributed by: Hachette as no.46 of its Police et Gendarmerie press series
Acquired: brand new, in July 2006, in Brive, France





Model: Citroën H
Year: 1958
Maker: Ixo
Scale: 1/43
Distributed by: Altaya as no.37 of its Nos Chères Voitures d'Antan press series
Acquired: brand new, in May 2006, in Souillac, France







Model: Citroën H
Year: c.1958
Maker: Ixo
Scale: 1/43
Distributed by: Altaya as no.2 of its Nos Chères Camionnettes d'Antan press series
Acquired: second hand with stand and box, in October 2007, through mail from a fellow collector from Rouziers de Touraine, France





Model: Citroën H
Year: c.1958
Maker: Ixo
Scale: 1/43
Distributed by: Altaya as no.5 of its Michelin press series
Acquired: brand new, in November 2007, in Souillac, France





Model: Citroën H
Year: c.1958
Maker: Eligor
Scale: 1/43
Distributed by: Atlas as no.21 of its Les petits utilitaires des années 50-60 series
Acquired: second hand with neither stand nor box, in October 2007, in Brive, France







Model: Citroën HY
Year: 1964
Maker: Universal Hobbies
Scale: 1/43
Distributed by: Atlas as no.2 of its Véhicules postaux d'hier et d'aujourd'hui press series
Acquired: brand new, in April 2007, in Souillac, France





Model: Citroën HY
Year: c.1964
Maker: Ixo
Scale: 1/43
Distributed by: Altaya as a gift to subscribers of its Nos Chères Voitures d'Antan press series
Acquired: brand new, in April 2004, through subscription in France





Model: Citroën HY
Year: c.1964
Maker: Norev
Scale: 1/43
Distributed by: Hachette as no.1 of its Police et Gendarmerie press series
Acquired: brand new, in August 2004, in Brive, France

Austin 1800 and 2200 (ADO 17)

A little history

Shortly before the merger that would create the unfortunate British Leyland conglomerate, BMC was still a very successful carmaker. The company had released the Mini, then the 1100, two very strong sellers on the home market and, at least for the former, in foreign lands. BMC’s staff supposed that the basic recipes which had make these cars the hits they were could be applied throughout the range. This is how the ADO 17 was born.

The larger family saloons offered by BMC had been rather conventional up to then. When introduced, the ADO 17 proposed an incredibly roomy passenger compartment - thanks to the fact that it had all four wheels pushed to its corners -, front-wheel-drive and Hydrolastic suspension. Even with the help of Pininfarina, Alec Issigonic seems to have struggled to make the car presentable: it appeared as a ridiculously outgrown Mini, not exactly the kind of things BMC’s conservative customers wanted to be seen riding in.

The ADO 17 was unveiled in September 1964 as the 4-cylinder Austin 1800 and 6-cylinder Austin 2200. Despite its many qualities (comfort, handling, extreme structural rigidity), the car’s look played against it. While the Austin 1800 received the coveted European Car of the Year award in 1965, its sales were disappointing and it soon gained the ungraceful nickname “landcrab”.

Morris stuck for a time to the conventional Oxford model, but an ADO 17-based replacement was scheduled for it too. It appeared in 1966 as the Morris 1800 and 2200. During the following year, the Wolseley 18/85 and Six were launched, featuring higher quality standards and the traditional Wolseley front grille, but few other differences whatsoever. An automobile’s development spanning years, BMC was the victim of its programs’ inertia and the same mistakes were repeated again in the 3-Litre, its new top-of-the-line saloon presented at the London motor show in October 1967. Despite the fact that it retained a traditional rear-wheel-drive transmission, the 3-Litre inherited the central section of the ADO 17 and its Hydrolastic suspension arrangement – it ended in complete disaster and was soon removed from the market.

Another failure was to adapt the car to the Australasian market. After producing a virtually unchanged ADO 17 in Australia, two heavily modified Austin Tasman and Morris Kimberley were introduced in 1970. Unsurprisingly, the technologically refined cars couldn’t do much in a country which liked antiquated, American-style gas-guzzlers. These models disappeared in 1974, shortly before the British company’s Australian operations were definitely closed down.

If the luxury 3-Litre had been scuttled early on, BMC didn’t have such an easy way out with its more mainstream ADO 17. The company did what it could to improve the car, facelifting it in 1968 (Mark II version), adding further modifications in 1972 (Mark III), and trying to address the quality problems that were beginning to plague the British motor industry. All its efforts were to no avail. The whole ADO 17 range was retired in March 1975, when the wedge-shaped Princess on which rested most of BLMC’s hopes was introduced.

About the models

Model: Austin 1800 Mark II
Year: 1968
Maker: Corgi
Scale: 1/43
Distributed by: Vanguards
Acquired: brand new, in February 2008, in Manila, Philippines.

A very acceptable model of the Austin 1800. Rear lights are simply painted, but it’s so nicely done that no one will probably mind. The front end’s rendition is excellent. A Vanguards’ touch is the photo-etched wipers, a rarity in this price range. My rating is 13/20.





Model: Austin 1800 Mark II
Year: 1968
Maker: Corgi
Scale: 1/43
Distributed by: Vanguards
Acquired: brand new, in August 2007, through a friend from Shanghai, China.

Same model as the above, with a different decoration: 13/20 again.

Renault 4CV

After the rebadged thing, here is the original.

A little history

Designed during the war, the Renault 4CV became the symbol of the return of peace and prosperity. It also was the first really popular French car, giving access to motorization to the country’s working class which up to then had to content itself with motorcycles and bicycles. As a matter of fact the 4CV became the first French car to be produced in more than a million copies.

In 1940, the German invaders put their hands on virtually all of the French industrial facilities. Renault was a jewel among the booty. Not only was it the second automobile manufacturer in the country after Citroën, it was one of the main trucks producers, and was heavily involved in aeronautics (the company had built aircraft engines since the birth of aviation and had bought airplane manufacturer Caudron during the late Thirties) and armoured vehicles (Renault was a main tank producer since the introduction of the FT17, the first modern tank, back in the Great War). From then on, Renault had no other choice than support the Third Reich’s war effort.

Nonetheless, as soon as 1940 the company’s designing team started to imagine what a postwar Renault would look like. Working in utter secrecy, far from the preying eyes of the Germans, the engineers were able to produce a prototype in December 1942. After miraculously escaping from an Allied air raid which flattened most of the Billancourt factory, the car was able to undertake its first discreet road tests shortly after New Year’s Day, 1943.

A very compact car, the 4CV prototype was a rounded two-door saloon built in aluminium. It was fitted with a rear-mounted four displacing 760 cc and, despite its modest output, the lightweight car can achieve a correct level of performance. Many have noted a strong resemblance with the Volkswagen Beetle which, considering the Renault Juvaquatre-Opel Olympia connection, was probably not a coincidence.

Several prototypes saw light during the long and difficult development of the car, which had to be suspended every time the German officials supervising the factory suspected anything. The main evolution of the 4CV during this period was the addition of two more doors, making it a tiny (3.66 meters long) but practical car. When this last prototype, now very close to the production model, appeared in November 1945, the war was then over. Many changes had taken place at Renault, the new French authorities, eager to grab the huge factories of the manufacturer, having thrown into jail its founder Louis Renault, charged with collaboration with the enemy. The old man had the good taste of dying while behind bars, allowing the government to make its plans come true. Well, he was actually helped by the poor sanitary conditions within the prison and the regular beatings of the wardens. Indeed, the circumstances in which was born what was to become the pride of the French state-owned industry for many decades to come was tantamount to murder.

The 4CV was ready for production in 1946 but, by that time, the company was still rebuilding its widely-destroyed factory, so the launch had to be postponed. Despite being formally introduced during the Paris motor show in October 1946, no 4CV could be produced before August 1947. Nonetheless, it became the first brand-new car thrown to avid French motorists since the end of the conflict, easily beating the Citroën 2CV, still under development despite being on the Javel’s drawing boards since the late Thirties. The head of the newly-formed Régie Nationale des Usines Renault (RNUR), Pierre Lefaucheux, insisting on concentrating all efforts on a single model, the 4CV became the only passenger car produced by the company, another wartime project for a large, American-styled 11CV saloon being abandoned, except for its roomy estate variant that would be introduced as the Colorale.

Despite a tricky handling due to a combination of a heavy tail, a very direct steering and a sensibility to crosswind, the 4CV immediately seduced most people thanks to its low price and the practicality of its four doors. Having not seen a new car in years, the French public didn’t mind either if the very first 4CVs, owing to the take-over by Renault of large stocks of paint abandoned by the German army in retreat, were only available in Afrikakorps sable or Wehrmacht kaki green…

Success immediately greeted the 4CV’s introduction. Some new models were progressively introduced, such as the “découvrable” (convertible saloon) or the “commerciale” (commercial saloon loaded and unloaded through the rear doors, as a hatchback couldn’t be added to the rear-engine car). Another evolution was the replacement of the original R1060 type (760 cc, 17 hp) by the R1062 (747 cc, 21 hp). As you probably noticed the newer version received a smaller engine than its predecessor, a rare occurrence as engines are generally enlarged as time goes by. The reason was that the 4CV’s block had found a huge popularity in motor racing, and the new R1062 engine allowed competing in the 750 cc class, in which the car soon had no worthy competitor. A version specially designed for racing, the R1063, was even created. With 35 hp, the R1063’s road version could reach 120 kph, but a track-prepared R1063 would be good for 140 kph. Still, when Renault decided to enter a large factory team in the 1951 Le Mans 24 Hours, it would take brave men to drive such cars which, rushing through the night at this pace on the Mulsanne straight, could be rammed at any time by Jaguars, Ferraris or Talbots going at almost twice this speed…

By the early Fifties, the 4CV had been improved to such an extent it wouldn’t evolve much for the remainder of its career. A huge success within France, it started attracting interest abroad. Renault’s Spanish branch Fasa launched its automobile production in 1951 with the 4CV. Hino built it under licence in Japan from 1953. Large quantities were exported in the whole of Latin America and, more surprisingly, in North America. Another large export market for the tiny Renault was Australia.

The 4CV was extremely popular as a base for many a little manufacturer constructing small series of special coupes or convertibles. A few among them were Alpine, V.P., Rosier or Autobleu. It was also adopted as a patrol car by the Parisian police. Such cars were soon nicknamed “voitures-pies” because of their paintjob (“pie” means magpie in French, so the expression is quite similar the English “Panda car”). A voiture-pie would receive special doors allowing for quick exit, a two-way radio set and a 30 hp engine.

Though an electromagnetic “Ferlec” clutch, purchased from Ferodo, was available as an option from 1956, and an improved heater introduced two years later solved one of the car’s main problem, the 4CV wouldn’t change much as Renault’s attention now focused on the new Dauphine, a larger rear-engine saloon. The very last 4CV was built as late as in July 1961, when it was succeeded by the ground-breaking hatchback, the Renault 4.

About the models

A big “s” at the end of the word “model”, as there are plenty of them this time!

Model: Renault 4CV R1060
Year: 1947
Maker: Eligor
Scale: 1/43
Distributed by: Hachette as no.1 of its 4CV Renault press series
Acquired: brand new, in December 2008, in Souillac, France

Eligor designed this scale model of the 4CV well enough, though nothing about it is truly extraordinary. Unfortunately the manufacturing’s standard of quality is far from great. I’ll give 11/20 to this model.





Model: Renault 4CV R1062
Year: 1950
Maker: Ixo
Scale: 1/43
Distributed by: Altaya as no.1 of its Nos Chères Voitures d'Antan press series
Acquired: second hand with stand but without box, in December 2008, in Brive, France

A nice 4CV overall but lacking in details. My remark about the door handles is obviously the same that the one I made about Ixo’s Hino, built with the same mould. Pleasant but probably not worth more than 12/20.







Model: Renault 4CV R1063
Year: 1951
Event: 1951 Le Mans 24 Hours, driven by François Landon and André Briat (finished 24th overall, class winners)
Maker: Ixo
Scale: 1/43
Distributed by: Altaya as no.59 of its Les Plus Belles Voitures des 24 Heures du Mans press series
Acquired: brand new, in May 2006, in Souillac, France

Certainly an original car, though unfortunately Ixo doesn’t reproduce any other Le Mans 4CV than this one. My rating is 12/20.





Model: Renault 4CV Commerciale
Year: c.1952
Maker: Eligor
Scale: 1/43
Distributed by: Atlas as no.26 of its Les petits utilitaires des années 50-60 series
Acquired: second hand with neither stand nor box, in October 2007, in Brive, France

It’s basically a poor-quality 4CV with a “BIC” decal glued to it. Fine, there are many collectors of commercial vehicles out there, but are they gullible enough to buy such a model car? (I mean, to buy it new at 22.50 euros - I got mine for 2 euros, and I would have had regrets if I had spent more.) My rating is 7/20.





Model: Renault 4CV Découvrable
Year: 1952
Maker: Ixo
Scale: 1/43
Distributed by: Altaya as no.68 of its Nos Chères Voitures d'Antan press series
Acquired: brand new, in December 2006, in Souillac, France

The open roof revealing a pleasant dashboard and the (uncomfortable) seats of the 4CV allows to distract from the flaws of the Ixo reproduction of the little Renault. My rating is this time a good 13/20.





Model: Renault 4CV Commerciale
Year: 1954
Maker: Solido
Scale: 1/43
Distributed by: Solido, “Pompiers” series
Acquired: brand new, in February 2004, in Brive, France

A simple reproduction, Solido-style some would say. It suffers from the very low ground clearance which totally changes the appearance of the car, and the absence of any decal on the registration plates. My rating is 8/20.





Model: Renault 4CV
Year: 1955
Maker: Ixo
Scale: 1/43
Distributed by: Altaya as no.66 of its Taxis du Monde press series
Acquired: brand new, c.October 2004, in Souillac, France

Ixo reproduced its 4CV as a Tunis taxi, not only changing the decoration but altering its mould to represent the new, simpler front grille introduced in 1954. Sympathetic, though not necessarily indispensible: 12/20.





Model: Renault 4CV “Voiture-Pie”
Year: 1956
Maker: Ixo
Scale: 1/43
Distributed by: Altaya as a subscribers’ gift to its Nos Chères Voitures d'Antan press series
Acquired: brand new, in March 2004, through subscription in Souillac, France

A rather pleasing rendition of a Paris voiture-pie. Ixo correctly reproduced the front side windows, which present an overhang over the cut-out doors - a detail I never noticed on pictures of the real car until I got this model - and enlarged the rear window. My rating is 13/20.





Model: Renault 4CV “Voiture-Pie”
Year: 1956
Maker: Eligor
Scale: 1/43
Distributed by: Atlas as no.3 of its Les petits utilitaires des années 50-60 series
Acquired: second hand with neither stand nor box, in October 2007, in Brive, France

Same car, different reproduction. Eligor’s mould is older and this cannot be hidden. Many omitted details and several mistakes justify a 6/20 rating.





Model: Renault 4CV “Voiture-Pie”
Year: 1956
Maker: Eligor
Scale: 1/43
Distributed by: Hachette as no.2 of its 4CV Renault press series
Acquired: brand new, in January 2008, in Souillac, France

Eligor again, but this time with a brand-new mould. Following the popularity of the voiture-pie among Paris policemen, the tiny principalty of Monaco wanted the same car for its own constabulary. Here is the result, reproduced well enough to deserve a 13/20.