The Citroën 2CV in Brochures: 42 Years of Life in Glossy Paper

Opening a Citroën 2CV brochure is like holding a piece of France in your hands. A fragment of an era printed on paper — sometimes thick and satin-finished, sometimes as modest as the car itself. Over forty-two years of career, from 1948 to 1990, the 2CV produced as many brochures as it did versions: almost utilitarian leaflets from the early years to the colorful and inventive catalogs of the 1970s, right up to the elegant two-color documents of the Charleston. Each document is a small time capsule. And together they form one of the most vibrant paper collections in French automotive history.

A car born to be shown — and sold differently

When Pierre-Jules Boulanger launched the Toute Petite Voiture in the 1930s, he wasn't yet thinking about brochures. He was thinking about peasants in wooden shoes, potholed roads, eggs that shouldn't be broken. But when the 2CV A was presented at the Paris Motor Show on October 7, 1948, Citroën quickly had to compose its first commercial documents for a car that bewildered everyone — the press first of all.

The brochures from the early days were a reflection of the era: sober, almost austere, with black and white or two-color illustrations. They emphasized practical qualities — economy, robustness, affordability — and showed the car in its uses: countryside, delivery, country doctor. The 2CV wasn't yet an object of desire, it was a tool. The brochures stated this frankly, and that's entirely to their credit. Its mass production began on July 11, 1949 at the Levallois-Perret factory, with an air-cooled flat twin-cylinder of 375 cm³ and 9 hp — figures that the first technical sheets displayed without any hesitation.

The 1960s-1970s: the Deuche breaks free, and so do the brochures

In the 1960s, the displacement increased to 425 cm³ and power rose to 18 hp. The range was structured with the AZA and AZAM models. The brochures became fuller: color began to appear, light staging, a car that started to appeal to youth. The 2CV ceased to be exclusively rural and became the car of students, artists, free spirits.

In October 1969, the 2CV 4 and 2CV 6 arrived. The 2CV 6 produced 29 hp from its 602 cm³ flat twin-cylinder — and the brochures of that era now fully played up modernity: geometric typography, bright color backgrounds, full-page photos. The Deuche had become trendy without trying, and its commercial documents finally proclaimed it.

In April 1976, Citroën launched the 2CV Spot, the brand's first limited edition: two-tone bodywork in white and Ténéré orange, matching upholstery. For the occasion, a dedicated leaflet — printed in the car's colors, of course — laid the groundwork for a practice that would become systematic: each limited edition now has its own document, often printed in small quantities, today as sought-after as the car itself.

Tintin at the wheel — almost

This is one of the most delightful chapters in the history of automotive brochures. In 1988, Citroën launched a major advertising campaign for the 2CV with Tintin as the hero. Four leaflets, genuine 8-page comic books in A4 format, were produced with themes familiar to Tintin's world: treasure hunting, the abominable snowman, the moon… and above all, adventure.

It was Bob de Moor — long-time collaborator of Hergé, who passed away in 1983 — who created these brochures in the pure clear-line style. Citroën imposed one particular constraint: the 2CV could never be drawn, and had to be represented exclusively through photography. The result was quite singular: Tintin, Snowy, Captain Haddock and Professor Calculus moved through entirely drawn settings… aboard a photographed car. A graphic UFO that belongs only to the 2CV.

These leaflets — including The Adventures of the 2CV and the Haunted Cave or The Adventures of the 2CV and the Abominable Snowman — are today collector's items in their own right, sought after by both 2CV enthusiasts and collectors of the Hergé universe.

The Charleston and the end of a paper era

The Charleston, launched in October 1980 in 8,000 copies in Delage black and red, integrated into the range in 1982, featured the most graphically elaborate brochures of the entire model's career. Sophisticated two-tone printing, quality paper, retro-inspired page layout. A document you looked at like a poster.

On July 27, 1990, the last 2CV rolled off the Portuguese Mangualde factory — a Charleston in Cormorant gray and Nocturne gray, accompanied by a small fanfare. Over 5.1 million units produced, and several dozen distinct brochures over forty-two years, among French versions, export editions and limited-edition leaflets.

Leaf through the legend on Brochure Auto

The collection of 2CV brochures is the story of a car told by those who had the — not so simple — task of selling it in each era. Even by sending Tintin behind the wheel. Find all the Citroën 2CV brochures available on Brochure Auto, the Tintin leaflets included, and explore the entire Citroën catalog to continue the journey.