Probably quite a small market for a vid like that, but the next one I'm working on is very much BX-based.

I'd still watch it

I need one of those!@@UPnDOWN

Sounds like that first one might have been a 16RS, so fast Ford in spirit!

@@UPnDOWN Yeah, maybe, 16RS rings a bell. Just remembered, we had an AX GT to, which I really liked, and a C15D van, which had alot of punishment without any complaints. I also had a 1978 CX Pallas 2.4 in the 90's as an alternative company car. That was a fantastic motorway cruiser and superlative in adverse weather conditions, especially heavy rain. That succumbed to some serious and very expensive to repair hydraulic problem, related to the steering column mounted system, so it was scrapped!! So, we have had alot of Citroens! And one Peugeot, a 305 GLD, which I quite liked! The 2 Citroens I would really like to have though, are, a 2CV and a DS. Shame they are now so expensive and I have nowhere to garage them. Oh yes, and I have a lust for a C6 but the complexity and service hassles put me off.

Ah yeah, the earliest cars did have that. They updated the design in 85 to a clamp-on type. I've retrofitted that to the front of this one, but the rears are still original (and therefore broken)

My grandpa still has his BX Leader 2 laying around, trying to get him onto the idea of restoring it as a Grandpa-grandson project

It was quite early on that they dropped the 'GTi' moniker (1988) but it wasn't consistent with all the branding/packaging, and you quite often saw dealers advertising cars for sale in the paper with the 'GTi' bit still there (probably to make it sound spawwwwteeee). The 148bhp version (DFW) came out in around 1989 for markets that required it. The UK got the 160bhp (D6C) for most of the production run, thankfully, only having to switch to the cat-equipped DFW in late 1992. Very few of them exist here...possibly single-digits.

I suspect none of the videos I make are going to go viral!

Oh you can count on it!

That's a somewhat underused phrase...

I can see me doing this!

Ah, see, now I'm convinced! A mate had a 360 2.0 injection once. Had a prancing moose sticker on the side!

I’m not so sure. Back in the day three colleagues all bought 360GLTs. Initially a great Q car for their understated looks and nippy performance all three ate their diffs at very low miles. I know one of them stuck with them and got a later version which, as part of a design to increase fuel efficiency, used smaller big end bearings. This resulted in a bombproof engine being transformed in to one that liked to take an early bath with big end failure. :(

Same to you!

Yes, a DTR would have the opera window because it's effectively a TRD (diesel version of TRS).

Go back in time and give yourself a slap, David!

Initially it may have only been a 4-speed, yes, but most were 5-speed. There was actually a BX 14...not even an E! They were 4-speed. In fact, in Italy there was a BX 11!

TZ is top-of-the-range (forgoing the sporty models), and D means diesel. The Hurricane element was a limited edition (in LHD markets it was the 'Ourane') and as far as I can make out, it used the rear spoiler from a ph2 16V (assumedly to use up stock) and velour seat fabric which looks to have been lifted from the same stock as what eventually went in the Xantia. Definitely a bit of an oddity, but probably the plushest diesel BX ever made. They were all Triton Green, too. TZ superceded TR, so a TZD is effectively descendant from my mk1 16TRS, just with a diesel engine.

@@UPnDOWN Thank you, that fits with the example that I worked on belonging to a friend (now sold), it was the fact that it had a "name" as opposed to a simple designation that I was scratching my head over. It was green, velour upholstery, plastic bonnet and flat spoiler (as opposed to the pram handle). The intercooled XUD was quite lively and made it a lovely thing to drive and very practical, wish I'd made him an offer for it. Sadly the only photo I have of it is being loaded onto a recovery when the injection pump expired.

I feel it is need-to-know info!

Similar experience to you, really. I find the 1.8 more flexible, if ultimately less able. The 1.9 seems to have less low down, and then more once the turbo gets going.

It's a great book!

Met Mr Baldet many times in the 80's an absolute titan of a man.

'TD' was the trim level (assuming you're not in the UK, as we didn't get those here). We got 19RD; 19TGD; 19TZD; 19DTR & 19TXD - all these were naturally aspirated. The TD engines were 1.8 (1769cc), not a 1.9....confusingly!

The BX14, yes. Weirdly, the 'XB' code continued in the VIN for BX16 models.

Brave ones!

I think they might have had you over, there! It's just a basic rocker switch, easy enough to sort. Might have been the motor, perhaps? Can imagine that being quite a lot of money brand new.

Thanks. It's a blessing and a curse in equal measure.

Should really be known as a BX18, but there we go!

Genuinely a shock. I even paused while I went and double checked the Haynes BX BoL I still have@@UPnDOWN !🤣 I remember it particularly because it was a brand new car and I *know* it was a turbo because it had the barbeque grill (aka intercooler) on top of the engine! Obviously I was wrong but I blame that on still being at primary school when they got it!

Believe it or not, the 405 had a different 4wd system! Crazy, because they're such similar cars. So that's why the 405 could handle it - you probably already know that the 405 Mi16x4 used a BX-style rear axle with hydro-suspension, too?

@@UPnDOWN Yep, HP with an electric pump. I thought (but don’t know), that it might be the same axle, as a new one had to be developed anyway. Anyhow, crazy that they have different 4WD systems… And too bad that I really don’t have time to tinker with cars, total lack of time. Our Xm is maintained by a specialist.

The letters in the model designations are abreviations for the following French terms: Last letter indicates the kind of engine: E = Essence (regular gas), S = Supercarburant (premium gas), I = Injection, D = Diesel More or less letters before describe the trim level: R = Riche, TR = Très Riche (Very Rich), GT = Grand Tourisme From about 1989, they messed it up by replacing all the R's with either G for the lower or Z for the higher range of models, and weird combinations like TZX. Now I'm guessing that G could mean Grand, but Z and X? Any ideas?

I'm afraid that is incorrect (certainly in the case of UK cars, but it might have been in the case in other markets.) TG was a middling spec. In BX geek theory, for a 14 to have the opera window, it would need to be a 14TZE.

They're still out there, but spec plays a big part in price now.

Were there ever that many BXs in Canada (or North America in general)?

Welcome to my world!

Good advice for any people out there who aren't 'getting any' and have to go straight to sleep.

Not sure if serious, but will admit I'm going to check now!

@@UPnDOWN yes at least mine is like this and my friends 19 Tri auto

It did dawn on me that Audi did it, but they had reason to with the Group B endeavours. Vauxhall making boggo 4wd Cavaliers seemed a bit more pointless!

@@UPnDOWN yep I think the marketing value of the quattro badge surprised them, but then they grabbed it with both hands...& the others jumped on the bandwagon. The Cavalier was a strange one - the bog basic one was as rare as rocking horse manure, saw a few growing up in Bedfordshire - but that may have been all of them. Good to see you & the Hubnut family picking up his NZ UB

I hate this weather. 31c down here next week! Scotland looks appealing...

@@UPnDOWN yeah we are threatening the 30°c over here near Gatwick.

The 4x4 405s had the hydropneumatic rear axle, so they could self-level and look after the CV joints...apparently.

@@UPnDOWN Defective memory on my part.... I remembered the spheres and a switch in the boot, bit couldn't recall the reasoning. Was a lovely car. Just about the only Peugeot I saw in that country at that time. I recall it being an injection model, bit that may be incorrect. On your riff about the model names.... Broadly, "D" is diesel and "E" is essence (petrol in French). This goes right back across quote a few models and model years. I love the mad logic of TRS. Only Citroen....

Ooh, a black 16TZS! Now you're talking, that's a rare and stylish beasty!

If someone is interested in this, I could return to my opening comment above "weird trend with 4WD in those days". I own an XM V6 these days. For sure this car is made for comfort. But I can't help that the XM feels lighter than the 405 T16, the XM is much more chuckable on curvy roads. The 405 T16 in comparison, yes a very fast car, and very stable on wet motorway cruising, but find a twisty A/B-cat road and the T16 always felt like a heavy car. The XM V6 feels more chuckable even though it is a whole class larger with a less powerful engine, weight about the same though, curiously. I used to have a 205 GTI 1.9 many years ago and today I feel in driving sensation on a curvy road the XM V6 is closer to the 205 GTI than the 405 T16 ever was. This may seem a daring claim, but I think what happens here is on the 405 T16 you feel the weight and a certain stubborness from the 4WD system, while on the Citroens the hydropneumatic and the pinpoint accurate no brake server brakes work wonders. That all said, if today I got to chose between say an R21 2L Turbo or an R21 2L Turbo Quadra, I would take the 2WD version, same on 405 MI16, BX GTI, the 4WD makes the cars heavier and you feel it. I will never stop wondering how fast the 405 T16 had been had it not have 4x4 as standard, there is no reason to miss 4WD on a BX GTI.... And as last thought on the weight talk, I often hear a BX GTI 16v is faster even than a 309 GTI16. I can well imagine thanks to hydropneumatic, brakes, plastic panels. That moves a BX (GTI) 16v to the top of the list of cars I wish to experience one day.

The BX 4wd had a different system to the 405, weirdly. You'd think they'd share, but apparently not. The BX's 4wd system wouldn't have been able to handle the 16V's torque, or even the turbo-diesel's (which would have made more sense as a concept).

17:10 pssssssh2: Before getting my GT, I went to check a base 89' 1.4, it also had a metal hood. I am unsure what were the requirement, but it seems like base models randomly had metal hoods, who knows

The rear spoiler, yes.

Could have been retrofitted after an accident or something? I don't think anybody knows for sure.

@@UPnDOWN Don't think it had been damaged... But I mean it was overally so rough I can't confirm anything lol

They weren't...not unless someone fitted a 1.9TD engine from something else! Don't forget the model was often something like a 19TGD, or 19TXD, which confuses things as the T means very, not turbo!

@@UPnDOWN I think it was the badging that I mis remember. Quick dvla search. They were turbo just not 1.9. Both bought new in '90 by my old man. Both now not taxed or mot so probably gone. Shame. I still have a free inflatable dinghy with Citroën down the side that came with it.

E is economique, yes. Not sure about the G, though! It may not relate to a specific term in the French language. I think the Z in TZS/D means Zenith, which is also the name of the trim in many of them. Otherwise, perhaps 'Grande'?

E might be for 'essence' of course (I wasn't in the meetings lol!) But I know E was the cheaper end of the petrol engines, and 'S' was 'sportif' i.e. the higher-output end of the petrol engines.

No, not yet.

Maybe the metal ones were cheaper, too? We never got the 1.1 BX over here sadly. Would love to see one!

@@UPnDOWN imagine a 14e... Now slower... :-) One of my BX now has a 1.8 from a Xantia (converted to carburetor and a distributor from a BX16, together with its gearbox and engine cradle) and other has a 1.4 from a AX GT (also carbureted)! From the 3 BX11, only one is actually still a 1.124cc!!!

It might have had one fitted at some point, but normally it wouldn't do. Some of the aftermarket versions were tin.

I don't know much about XMs 😔

@@UPnDOWN ow I’m looking forward in seeing a video for it from you. You do an amazing job, so you’re my only hope for a good video on this amazing car.

That's the turbo diesel. The 19RD was indeed a 1.9 (1905cc), it's just they never did the turbo version of that engine in the BX. First application of it was the ZX; BX turbodiesel was a 1.8 (1769cc).

I did know this, yes. (I run the BX register for the Citroen Car Club)

I like the 340, as it's old and interesting! I just thought that from a looks perspective, that or the Tundra...

You aren't the only one.

I know, but I didn't want to go down that road in too much detail as I'm terrible for going off on tangents.

I've never seen a Spanish-built BX, to this day.

4TC was an 8v turbo. Rattly-old engine, too!

Hello, why rattly? Modern when it came out, robust, it just did not have the opportunity to be mounted on particularly memorable cars. in the 80s it is always more modern than the Peugeot and Citroen side camshaft engines still in service. A Simca engine which made it possible to equip the 505 with a turbo engine of a relatively modern design. It will be very thorough on blockbuster cars and will give satisfaction.