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Little Boat: 1923 Citroën ZX Deluxe Drophead

Usually when a car is described as a boat you think of something about 20 feet long. This Citroen listed on eBay is not quite what you think of when you think of a boat-tail. Citroen has built some interesting cars over the years and been very successful despite naming their company “Lemon”. This Citroen appears to have been based on the Type C. It was custom built in Spain, on Majorca actually and imported 50 years ago and stored for 40 of those years..

The dash is very simple and the floor has a nice view of pavement.

This is the 11 HP 52 CID engine said to propel the little car to 37 MPH. The engine is is not seized.

This little Citroen would be a real challenge to restore, but you’d certainly have a rare and unique vehicle. Perhaps restoration wouldn’t be terribly expensive. Let’s hope someone saves this little lemon.

Comments

  1. Avatar Red'sResto

    If I remember correctly, removing the floor to utilize “le pieds” was a widely accepted means of increasing the performance of early Citroens…

    Like 1
    • Avatar '63 Lark Daytona ragtop

      Yabba Dabba Dooo!

      Like 0
  2. Avatar Kiwi Glen

    is that a dickey seat at the rear?

    Like 0
    • Avatar williamcleary

      Rear hatch for anchor stowage!? ;)
      More effective than “les pieds” for stopping!

      Like 0
  3. Avatar Cubs win

    This was High Performance in its day

    Like 0
  4. Avatar Brakeservo

    Isn’t the word you are aassociating with lemon “citron?” I have had dozens of Citroens with nary a lemon among them, most could be called a real peach.

    Like 0
  5. Avatar Mark S

    Very cool I like it I would restore it back to the time when it was first modified. There is something about a boat tail that is just make me smile, RR built one in the 30’s gorgeous car.

    Like 0
    • Avatar Brakeservo

      There have been many RR boat tails built. None by RR. Only after WWII did the Rolls factory build complete cars with bodies. Most boat tails you see today are re-bodies. I’ve had a few myself incl. one I built.

      Like 0
      • Avatar SarahW

        Are you not splitting hairs, since a very high percentage of RRs had bodywork by specialty coachbuilders? Are you trying to say that these weren’t really RRs? I happen to have two 1/24 scale diecast models of two of the early boat tails, one of them shown below full size. And while there have been modern conversions, the following link shows off a mixture from various eras:
        https://www.pinterest.com/torredeloizaga/rolls-royce-boattails/

        Like 0
      • Avatar Mark S

        Thanks Sarah for your input and clarification, aren’t they some of the prettiest cars you’ve ever seen.

        Like 0
  6. Avatar PebblebeachJudge

    Citroen is not the name of a Lemon, nor does it mean Lemon. Citroen is just the engineer, Andre Citroen’s last name which is spelled and pronounced different than that of the latin word defining Citrus. In french the word Lemon is Citron. The comparison of the fruit Citron aka french for Lemon to this brand car is an uneducated Faux pa. For any Citroen owner to explain that his car name means Lemon is quite silly to hear.

    Like 0
  7. Avatar Mike

    This car wasn’t made by Sardina. All spanish cars at the time had a plate like this with the name and address of the owner. So, the car belonged to Mr. A. Calafat Mesquida, Who lived in Can Font.
    I’m not sure about the balearic origins of the car either, since the plates are from Barcelona and Can Font is a village near Terrassa (Catalonia)

    Like 0
    • Avatar MikeH

      The car was sold to M Mesquida in Can Font and probably later sold to someone in Barcelona. I don’t know Spanish laws that well, but in most European countries, the license plate stays with the car unless the car is sold to a different region, in which case the plate must be changed. That’s not a stretch because Can Font is not that far from Barcelona. But–what does the S. Sardina signify? The only Sardina I can find in Spain is in the Canaries. Is that the sub region in which Can Font is located? I would love to have that car and know its history.

      Like 0
  8. Avatar John H

    Those horns are amazing!

    I’d love to have this in the garage.

    Like 0
  9. Avatar Brakeservo

    SarahW – what is your point? I was and am entirely correct.

    Like 0

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