The simplicity of the Citroën 2CV’s fundamental design is refreshingly straightforward.

Conceived by the French marque in 1948 as a means of affordably mobilising a segment of rural society still dependent on the horse and cart, the 2CV’s name translates roughly from the French deux chevaux to “two horse-powers”.

Given the nature of French roads in the immediate post-war period, the 2CV was built to be cheap, reliable, easy to maintain, and with long-travel suspension that made it able to traverse a freshly ploughed field—famously demonstrated in period advertising campaigns with a basket of eggs balanced on the passenger’s seat.

From the earliest days of the 2CV, few could have predicted the overwhelming success and remarkable longevity of the model, with the final example produced in France in 1988.

Bar the occasional increase in power and engine capacity, the 2CV remained faithful to its post-war brief throughout its 40-year production run—with the notable exception of the fasci...