CITROEN

Méhari

The CITROEN Méhari is one of the most charming and unconventional vehicles France ever built — a lightweight, open, plastic-bodied fun-and-utility car that became an icon of sun, sand and 1970s freedom. Revealed at the Deauville golf course on 16 May 1968, the CITROEN Méhari took its name from a breed of fast Saharan racing camel, hinting at its go-anywhere, lightweight character. Underneath its distinctive skin, the CITROEN Méhari was pure Citroën economy engineering, based on the running gear of the Dyane and 2CV. It used the familiar air-cooled flat-twin engine of around 602 cc producing some 28–32 hp — never fast, but light, simple, durable and astonishingly capable off the beaten track. Its real party piece was the body: designed under aristocrat and wartime fighter ace Roland de La Poype, it was moulded from coloured ABS plastic, meaning it never rusted, shrugged off knocks, and came in bright, cheerful self-coloured hues. With removable doors, a fold-flat windscreen and a stowable fabric top, the CITROEN Méhari was equally at home on the beach, the farm or the campsite. It was embraced by holidaymakers, the French military, police, customs services and utilities alike, and even spawned a rare four-wheel-drive version (1980–1983) that gave the little car genuine off-road ability. Production took place mainly at Citroën's Forest plant in Belgium, alongside other sites in France, Spain and Portugal. Built from 1968 to 1987 with 144,953 examples produced (including 1,213 of the sought-after 4x4), the CITROEN Méhari has become a hugely collectable feel-good classic. Easy to maintain, impossible to dislike, and endlessly evocative of summers past, the CITROEN Méhari today enjoys a passionate following and strong values for clean, original cars.