Citroën BX

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Citroën BX
Citroen BX
Manufacturer Citroën
Production 1982—1994
Predecessor Citroën GS
Successor Citroën Xantia
Citroën ZX
Class Large family car
Body style 5-door hatchback
5-door estate
Engine 1.1 L I4
1.4 L I4
1.6 L I4
1.8 L turbodiesel I4
1.9 L I4
1.9 L diesel I4
Related Peugeot 405
Similar Ford Sierra
Renault 21
Designer Marcello Gandini

The Citroën BX was a large family car produced by the French manufacturer Citroën between 1982 and 1994. In total, 2,315,739 BXs were built during its 14-year history. The hatchback was discontinued in 1993 with the arrival of the Xantia, but the "break" (estate) continued for another year.

Contents

[edit] History

The BX was launched in Paris in 1982 under the Eiffel Tower, and was a somewhat radical design compared to many of its rivals, made very obvious by comparing the body shape of the BX to other popular models in its class.

The BX was designed to replace the successful large family car Citroën GS with a larger vehicle. When the BX was replaced, it was with two dissimilar cars, the smaller Citroën ZX and larger Citroën Xantia.

The angular Gandini-designed hatchback was strongly inspired by the British 1977 Reliant FW11 concept and the 1979 Volvo Tundra concept car (also designed by Bertone). It was one of the first cars to benefit from the merger of Peugeot and Citroën in 1976, sharing its platform with the more conventional 405 that appeared in 1987. Among the features that set the car apart from the competition was the traditional Citroën hydropneumatic self-leveling suspension, extensive use of plastic body panels (hood, tailgate, bumpers), and disc brakes front and rear.

Powertrains also came from Peugeot. The BX used the XY, TU and XU series of petrol engines in 1.4 L, 1.6 L and 1.9 L displacements (a 1.1 L engine, very unusual in a car of this size, was also available in Italy, Portugal and Greece). The XUD Diesel engine was also available in 1983. It was this Peugeot influence that endowed the BX with some much needed reliability, something for which its predecessor, the GS, had a marginal reputation. This led to the BX's famous advertising slogan "Loves Driving, Hates Garages".

All engines were badged as 11, 14, 15, 16, 19 — signifying engine size. The 11TE model was seen by foreign motoring press as slow and uncomfortable.

Citroen BX Break (estate)
Citroen BX Break (estate)

A year after the launch of the hatchback model, an estate version was made available, marketed as the "Break". Later on in the BX's life, a four-wheel drive system and turbodiesel engines were introduced.

All BXs are known for an exceptionally smooth ride, reasonable fuel economy and potent brakes. The perceived complexity of the suspension system meant that it was often neglected, leading to expensive repairs. Maintenance was seen as expensive because the suspension spheres (the equivalent of the spring and shock absorber on conventially-sprung cars) needed to be replaced every two to three years, although on the BX they were easy to change and a cheap consumable. On later models, the suspension piping was better protected against corrosion, and less prone to failure. That is why there are very few original BXs on the road today.

Famous owners of the BX include Italian automobile designer Marcello Gandini, who penned both the BX and the Lamborghini Countach. Citroën used this in its advertising campaigns in the early 1990s.

The amount of additional equipment available to BX was also surprisingly high for a car of its size and class. Besides the superior hydropneumatic suspension, one could also have equipment such as anti-lock brakes, air conditioning, power windows, power side mirrors, power sunroof, a remote-controlled central locking system, leather upholstery, etc. In 1987, the interior and dashboard were redesigned and made more conventional-looking than the original, which used Citroën's idiosyncratic switchgear, "bathroom scale" speedometer and a single-spoke steering wheel. These were replaced with more conventional switches and dial-type instruments.

The earlier GTi models already had a "normal" speedometer and tachometer. In 1987, the exterior was slightly changed, with new bumpers fitted and the front turn signal indicators changed. Later, the taillights were also altered.

[edit] Performance models

[edit] 16V

Citroen BX 16 Valve (Phase one)
Citroen BX 16 Valve (Phase one)

In May 1987, a 16-valve version of the GTi was launched. This was the first French production car to be fitted with a 16-valve engine. A DOHC normally aspirated 1.9 L engine, producing 160 bhp (119 kW) and 177 N·m of torque, rocketed the BX to 100 km/h (62 mph) in 7.4 seconds, stopping at a top speed of 220 km/h. Anti-lock brakes were fitted as standard. Its side skirts made it easily recognizable from all other BX models. In 1990, the much needed facelift of the 16V gave the car a new lease of life. The updated car came with new fibreglass bumpers, anthracite wheels, smoked taillight lenses, and a redesigned rear spoiler. These cosmetic changes made the car look even more distinctive from other BXs. There were also a few subtle changes made to the car's performance, the most noticeable being a thicker anti-roll bar, which improved handling. The BX 16V is still competitive against today's "hot hatches", although it is rare and not particularly popular with tuners.

[edit] Sport

As well as the normal BX, Citroën produced the BX Sport from 1985 to 1987. During this period, Citroën produced 7,500 BX Sports; 2,500 at first, then an extra 5,000 due to its sales success. Rated at 126 bhp and equipped with dual 2-barrel carburettors, the BX Sport was the most powerful BX in production at that time. It also stood out with its unique body kit, alloy wheels used on the GTi later in the BX's life, a unique dashboard and PULLMAN interior. The car was only available with steering wheel on the left side and so it was not sold in the UK.

[edit] GT

The BX GT was launched in 1985 and featured a 1.9 L Peugeot-sourced engine. In 1985, Citroën produced a "Digit" model, which was based on the BX GT. It featured a digital instrument cluster and an onboard computer. Citroën only produced 4000 Digits in 1985.


[edit] 4TC

Citroën entered Group B rallying with the BX in 1986. The specially-designed rally BX was called the BX 4TC and bore little resemblance to the standard BX. It had a very long nose because the engine (derived from the Peugeot 505 engine) was mounted longitudinally, and had only 2 doors as opposed to the 4 of the ordinary BX. Interestingly, the rally version of the BX also featured the unique hydropneumatic suspension. Because of the Group B regulations, 200 street versions of the 4TC also had to be built.

The 4TC was never very successful in competition, its best result being 6th place in the 1986 Swedish Rally, and Citroën only participated in three Group B rallies before the Group B class was banned in late 1986, following the death of Henri Toivonen in his Lancia Delta S4 at the Tour de Corse Rally. Citroën was ashamed of the performance of its cars{fact}, and immediately recalled and scrapped as many examples as it could, making the BX 4TC road and race cars extremely rare and sought-after.

[edit] External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to:
<- Previous Citroën car timeline, 1980s-present -  v • d • e 
Type 1980s 1990s 2000s
0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9
Economy car 2CV
Off-roader Méhari
City car LN / LNA AX C1
Supermini C2
Visa Saxo C3
Small family car GSA ZX Xsara C4
Large family car BX Xantia C5
Executive car CX XM C6
Leisure activity vehicle C15 Berlingo
Compact MPV Xsara Picasso C4 Picasso
Large MPV Evasion C8
Crossover C-Crosser
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