The other day I had removed all the sill trim from the DS. I also re-routed the speaker wires so new trim can be fitted. Next step was to fit the silver trim that faces the outside of the car, but is only visible when the doors are open, and the inner weather strip. The trim is glued on, but needs to be...
I had originally tucked the wiring for the rear speakers in the DS under the marine carpet that was on the inside of the sills. However, I am now replacing that and gluing down the correct vinyl, so wanted a better solution. The DS wiring harness actually goes between the inner and outer sill, along with some hydraulic lines. This is not...
The sill trim on my DS was in poor condition – the rubbers were perished, the outer sill trim was cracking, and the trim on the inside sills had been replaced with Marine carpet. Most of the information I could find on the Internet referred to a DS Pallas, and I wanted to keep my car as a DS Comfort. The photo above...
I had the traction towed home a week ago as I was unable to select a gear despite the clutch being fully depressed. I didn’t think anything was seriously wrong, as I had been driving fine around that time. After doing some research on the Traction Yahoo Group, and looking carefully at the linkages, I was able to determine that they sometimes...
Today the JDCA organized a run up to St Albans, which is just north of Sydney. I hadn’t had a chance to take the E-Type on a long run, so thought it would be a good opportunity. It was one of the biggest car club runs I have been on with nearly 100 sign ups and at least 20 E-Types joining in....
There have been some rather amusing columns written over the last few weeks that the departure of Jeremy Clarkson somehow paves the way for a ‘kinder, gentler’ (read more PC) Top Gear. More reviews on affordable cars; more eco friendly; no off colour comments. What a lot of rubbish. Nobody wants to watch a programme like that. How many teenage boys have a poster...
Today I was planning to change the oil in the engine and gearbox of the Traction. I took it for a drive to heat up the oil so it would drain out nicely. It was a lovely evening and I was enjoying the drive, then all of a sudden, the Traction won’t select a gear. Despite pushing the clutch to the...
Last year I replaced my accumulator sphere on the DS. The main driver for this was that I was getting short ‘cycle’ times. (i.e. the hydraulic pump would kick in very regularly to maintain system pressure, which puts stress on the system). At the time, I did get an improvement in cycle time. Secondarily I was hoping to cure a problem where the power...
This evening I spent some time looking over the traction. One of the things noted in the condition report was that the number plate lamp was inoperative. After eliminating it was not the blown fuse, I took the light apart, and the problem was that it was just dirty. A good clean and the lamp was working again. I also...
Despite my overheating problems last year, I had enjoyed the Citroen Club drive up the Putty road last year, and was keen to have another go in the DS with a new water pump and flushed radiator. This year was the same format, drive up for breakfast at the cafe halfway along the Putty road, Lunch at one of the wineries and...
Today I read a report from the NSW Council of Motor Clubs about their stance on historic registration. (It was published in the Magazine of the Jaguar Drivers Club of Australia). Basically their stance is to support the status quo (with minor amendments for street rods) and so NSW continues to have the worst historic registration system in the country. Obviously the final...
This evening I went over to the garage to look at the Traction in more detail. Overall I am still very happy with the purchase. A couple of things that I noticed: There was a frayed wire in the boot for the number plate light. I used electrical tape to ensure that it does not touch the metal. Not sure if this is...
Today I went and picked up the latest addition to the garage, a 1954 Citroen Light 15. Being a Light 15, this car is a Traction Avant and was built in Slough, UK. I don’t have a lot of history for the car, but it has been registered in NSW since 1984 and recently had $18,000 of mechanical work done by European Autocare...
In my view, Citroen has made two cars that changed the world – the Traction Avant and the DS (some would also include the 2CV in this list). The Traction Avant established Citroen as an innovative car company but at the same time bankrupted the company, leading to their ultimate control by the Michelin family. While Andre Citroen is probably better known for...
Today I attended the 2015 Sydney German car show, which was put on by the Mercedes Club this year. Unlike the Mercedes show I went to a few months ago, the German car show is an informal show without concours judging. Unfortunately this means some of the pristine, concours only cars don’t show up, but you do get a great selection of...
Those of you who follow the classic car market would have seen the recent sale of the $202,000 23 Window Kombi at the recent Shannon’s auction in Melbourne. Somebody bid more than 50% over the guide price to secure this car. The Kombi is iconic, but is it really worth that sort of money? The market might say yes at the...
The Citroen Club had a meeting at the Shannon’s auction display again and as usual Shannons had a nice selection of cars on show. The pick of the auction for me was the Traction Avant. Almost in my ideal spec. (I would prefer a year older with the small boot). As well as this there were some other interesting cars for sale...
Supercheap Auto had their hydraulic positioning Jack on sale ($162 e.a.) last week so I picked up a set for the garage. There are some parts of the Garage that are not easy to get cars in/out of, and I’ve also had situations such as with the 280CE where there are cars that are not running for extended periods of time as I...
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