https://www.adrianflux.co.uk/influx/culture/hip-square-70-years-citroen-h-van/ * Powered by Adrian Flux * [ ] * [influx-nav] * * Twitter * Facebook * Instagram * CarsFrom Car Crushes to Concept Corner - we get inside the aesthetic of the auto * BikesRide with us - from garage builds to stone cold classics * PeoplePaying homage to the people who create the culture * CultureThe creativity inspired by Man and machine * Latest Edition * Archive * About * Contact * Twitter * Google+ * Facebook * YouTube * Instagram * Pinterest [ ] * Twitter * Google+ * Facebook * YouTube * Instagram * Pinterest previous article Abarth - Background of the Scorpion previous article next article British Classic Car Meeting next article back to homepage H Van You might like this... 2CV cover Economical ingenuity: 70 years of the Citroen 2CV Cars Culture " The 'umbrella on wheels' or the 'tin snail', the unmistakable Citroen 2CV has also been a 24-hour endurance racer, a James Bond film star, a delivery van, a beach buggy-type fun machine, and, in twin-engined four-wheel drive 'Sahara' versions, " Read More Tweet this article Try again. Please enter a valid email address Influx news straight to your inbox. Enter your email address then hit return. [ ] [Send] Please leave this field empty. [ ] Hip to be square - 70 years of the Citroen H Van Cars Culture From rugged workhorse to cool commercial landmark on nearly every street corner, the Citroen H Van has undergone quite a transformation in 70 years Tweet Written by Richard Gooding Ubiquitously hip. That's the best way to describe Citroen's retro light commercial in 2017, a mammoth seven decades since it first appeared on French roads. A capable workhorse after the end of World War II, it wasn't meant to be a cool commercial at all. But now, like its equally omnipresent Volkswagen Type 2 rival, it's a vehicular landmark on streets all over Europe. And just like the VW, it is now most often seen with its side panel or rear doors open dispensing all manner of hot beverages or snacks to passing hipsters. Citroen H Van rear In production from 1947 to 1981, the Citroen Type H (also called the Type HZ and Type HY) was, functionally, a simple square box for carrying things. However, far from simple mechanically, the H Van was the most advanced light commercial of its period, and borrowed advances from its pioneering Traction Avant relative. The first mass-produced front-wheel drive commercial vehicle, a unitary monocoque body with no separate chassis frame, four-wheel independent suspension, and rack and pinion steering all translated into a beneficial language that spoke to technologically-minded business owners who placed innovative practicality above all else. H Van interior The French box-on-wheels enjoyed a flat floor, an 850-1,500kg payload (depending on version), a 6ft internal standing height, as well as a side loading door, a feature which would not be standard in the UK for decades. An innovative arrangement of three rear doors - one which lifted up like that of a hatchback car, with two suicide-hinged ones below - meant that goods could be loaded and unloaded under shelter. H Van ad The floor could take the weight of a horse, while enclosed van, pick-up and stripped-down body for coach-built derivative versions were available. Myriad wheelbase lengths were available, too, and with its wheels pushed out to its corners like the original Mini, the H Van boasted a relatively low centre of gravity for a commercial vehicle, which aided handling. Not that you'd be going fast enough to experience the ultimate in roadholding. Even though the first H Vans were fitted with a large 1.9-litre petrol engine similar to those of the Traction Avant and DS, it was only bestowed with 35bhp and a top speed of 47mph. A brace of 42bhp 1.6-litre and 50bhp 1.9-litre diesel engines appeared later, but were still far from powerful enough to dislodge the syrup which is now drizzled over the crepes now served from many an H Van. But whatever the engine flavour, the H Van's recipe undoubtedly worked: 473,279 examples of Citroen's corrugated commercial darling were made over an incredible 34-year period. H van side Of course, it's that distinctive ribbed bodywork - borne of German 'Junker' aircraft and requiring uncomplicated low-cost pressing tools - and the pig-like snout which have elevated the Citroen Type H above other commercial vehicles. Now ever present in urban and festival landscapes, it has a retro look which endures seven decades after it first appealed to those delivery drivers, vendors, and animal-carrying famers of the 1950s. Red H Van A sure sign of a cult vehicle, the H van still inspires, too: FC Automobili has launched a limited 70-set run of fibreglass kits to transform Citroen's current Relay van into an EUR42,900 H Van tribute. With a total of six conversions and much more loadspace on offer, there may well be twice the body style choice of the original, but there's certainly only a fraction of the distinctly French brutal elegance. New H Van But why has the boxy Citroen transcended time to become a bona-fide cult vehicle? While new-found retro appeal is one answer, adaptability is another. "The addition of crepe plates in a French van serving coffee made sense, and our summers have never been so busy!" say Mark and Sally from catering company Van Chaud, who have operated a restored and converted food-vending 1969 H Van since 2012, bitten by the vintage Citroen bug after running a 2CV parts business. H Van chaud There's no doubt that very few commercial vehicles combine the style and long-lasting appeal of the Citroen Type H. And while its technology and make-up may no longer be cutting edge, it offers a crowd-pleasing allure and rugged beauty which has won it many fans. We raise a glass (or a plastic lidded coffee cup) to the Citroen Type H and wish it many happy returns. 'Bon Anniversaire' - here's to 70 years of Citroen's cult and cosmopolitan commercial! [09vanjpg] Image credits: http://www.citroenorigins.co.uk/en/cars/type-h Related posts: 1. Economical ingenuity: 70 years of the Citroen 2CV 2. Citroen H Van 3. Citroen M35 4. The Evolution of the Citroen 2CV CLICK TO ENLARGE Tweet previous article Abarth - Background of the Scorpion previous article next article British Classic Car Meeting next article back to homepage You might like this... [hvan-278x186] Citroen H Van Cars Culture " The Citroen H Van was produced between 1947 and 1981. Amazingly perennial and instantly recognisable, 473,289 were produced in 34 years in factories in France and Belgium. The engine, gear box and many smaller parts are well known from other Citroen models " Read More Tweet this article Try again. Please enter a valid email address Influx news straight to your inbox. Enter your email address then hit return. [ ] [Send] Please leave this field empty. [ ] or this... [citroen_m35_prototype_by_heuliez_9-278] Citroen M35 Cars "Sometimes it strikes you how innovative Citroen was as a company. The M35 is one of the most striking concepts in a long list of bold vehicle designs. The M35 was derived from the Ami 8 - and came equipped with " Read More previous article Abarth - Background of the Scorpion previous article next article British Classic Car Meeting next article back to homepage Related Articles [2cvfr1063-1-278x185] The Evolution of the Citroen 2CV "The 2CV was famously conceived by Citroen President Pierre Boulanger to drag the French farming population into the modern era - but in introducing this car he unwittingly created one of the most enduring archetypes of global car culture. " Cars [Citroen-Saxo-5-278x185] Citroen SAXO: Likely Lads "Whatever happened to the likely lads? Meet the Citroen Saxo. You know, the Max Power generation? The Red Line Magazine monkeys. The boys and girls tinkering and tweaking and representing down in the car park of your local rec; lapping " Cars Culture [2cv-tintin-278x185] Citroen 2CV - The ugly bug that wowed the world "No single car has summed up the French concept of the Bagnole better than the Citroen 2CV. 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