1961 Citroen H Series 2 (Commercial Coffee Van) Van

Description

Citroën’s H Van is a legend in Europe, built over 34 years between 1947 and 1981. Built in factories in France and Belgium, the H Van was a simple panel van with a unitary body with no separate frame, four-wheel independent suspension, and front-wheel drive. For a commercial van, this combination provided useful benefits such as a flat floor close to the ground, 180 cm standing height and a side loading door. Giving it its unique style was distinctive corrugated bodywork whose ribs added strength without adding weight, and required only simple, low-cost press tools. The flat body panels were braced on the inside by 'top hat' box sections, at right angles to the ribs. The engine, gearbox and many smaller parts were shared with other Citroën models, the engine and gearbox virtually identical to those in the Traction Avant and later the DS. The headlights were identical to those of the 2CV, while speedometers were successively borrowed from the Traction Avant and the Ami 6. The de-rated 1.9 litre Traction Avant four-cylinder engine and three-speed gearbox provided only modest performance, the chassis and sophisticated independent suspension layout provided remarkable roadholding qualities. Only three body styles were available: the standard enclosed van, a pick-up version and a stripped-down body which went to non-Citroën coachbuilders and formed the basis for other variants. The basic design changed very little from 1947 to 1981, with 473,289 sold mainly to France, Belgium, and the Netherlands.