Entry · Monday, September 7, 2026
Citroen 2CV
/sit-roh-AY duh shuh-VAY/ n.- 1. A French economy car produced by Citroën from 1948 to 1990, distinguished by a rear silhouette of surprising amplitude relative to its modest wheelbase: the haunches swell outward from the cabin with a confidence the engine output does not technically support.
- 2. colloq. Rear-heavy by philosophy, not accident. The body rounds back and downward in a continuous, unhurried curve, as if the designer was told 'small car' and heard only the first word.
"She parked her thiccc Citroën 2CV outside the boulangerie and the cobblestones seemed to accommodate her specifically. The rear fenders flared out like a suggestion that became load-bearing."
From Citroën (André Citroën, French industrialist, 1878-1935, who named the company after himself and died before he could see what it would eventually park on a cobblestone street) + deux chevaux-vapeur, French for 'two steam horses,' the tax-rated horsepower class. The name promised very little. The posterior delivered considerably more.
Filed by
Filed because 'deux chevaux' promised almost nothing and the rear fenders filed a formal objection.
Ruling ADMITTED
The haunches are documented. The engine output is also documented. The disproportion between them is the entry. Admitted.
In the margin
Two horsepower. TWO. And yet the rear fenders are out here flaring like they have somewhere extremely important to be and the horsepower is just their plus-one.