Here’s something for all you folks reading the Saturday paper (and getting really mad that there is nothing of substance to read) or perhaps streaming that silly show “Car Talk” online.
I say silly in a good way. The two guys are a hoot. However I think they discuss really boring cars for the most part. The Road Rake will bring you car talk that is far less common. Which brings me, once again, to the French.
As I said before, I attended Bastille Day at J. Leune a few weeks back. Once the world catches up to “instant journalism” I would have filed these videos more quickly. And yet, perhaps, French cars are the kind of thing that require patience and understanding. With this mind, let me file, as time permits, some of the interesting things I “raked up” during the Citroen Car Show across the street.
FILM NOTES: This first video is narrated by the Treasurer of The Citroen Car Club of Minnesota. He describes a car light years ahead of its time–the Citroen Traction Avant.
FILM NOTES: The back seat of the Traction Avant. This video does not adequately capture the spaciousness (better yet, capaciousness) of this interior. It really was the first station wagon of sorts. Unibody construction too–unheard of in the 1930s–today everyone does it.
FILM NOTES: The engine bay of the the Citroen Maserati (the most complicated car of the 70s). This is narrated by a few people and the sound quality is not good. While its a little like watching paint dry, once you understand what you are looking at, and realize the Italians and French tried to do this, you begin to understand madness*
* Focault was a controversial yet brilliant guy. Not mad, mind you, just uncommon.
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