Oltcit - my Story

[Six-cylinder]

While I had been aware of the Oltcit/Axel for some time I had not really taken any notice of them and had never seen one except in pictures. Then in 2008 I returned to Visa ownership and started to take an interest in the Oltcit/Axel existence. I was a aware of a couple of non running Axels in the UK and liked the idea of owing something so unusual and sometimes looked on French and Romanian sites to view them. I noticed an Oltcit on eBay in July 2011, I was fascinated and was deciding how much I would bid when it was sold early.

 

Then in August 2011 we bought a Citroen Xantia for my wife from fellow Visa club member Franklin and found he had the Oltcit. We talked about buying it from him but I said I needed it MOTed to be able to cope with it and Franklin said if he did that he would want to keep it so we left it like that. Then two months latter I met Franklin at an East Midlands Citroen Car Club event and was very pleased to see the Oltcit had now been MOTed and was at the show. Franklin then explained having done all the work he now did want to sell it, only because he had found a Visa GTi he wanted and could not keep everything, so I bought the Oltcit. Now at the end of summer I did not have time to collect it let alone use it so I sent Franklin the money so he could buy his Visa GTi (nice dealing with people you can trust) and collected it some weeks latter and have just put it away for the winter. So 2012 will be the year of the Oltcit in my life!

 

For those who want to know a bit more about the Oltcit/Axel this is an excellent site.

http://www.citroenet.org.uk/foreign/rom ... cit-1.html

 

For those who want to know how this Oltcit came to the UK and what was done for the latest MOT, these are Franklin’s words.

http://visaforum.freeforums.org/operati ... t1004.html

 

Chris

 

 

 

 

[Formula Autos]

 

This photo HAS to be in the 2013 calendar!

 

Am I alone in thinking there's a hint of emaciated Talbot Horizon in the Oltcit? Particularly in the last picture.

 

Excellent work Chris.

[gricer]

That's strictly speaking a Citroen Axel, not an Oltcit. Only badged Oltcit in Romania, as I understand it. All export models were Citroen-badged, even elsewhere in Eastern Europe. They were sold in France too.

 

Insanely jealous - it's the last true Citroen!

 

The former Oltcit plant went on to make Daewoo Cielo/Nexia and is now making Ford Transit Connect.

[Six-cylinder]

Don't be fooled by the badge this one is an Oltcit, I have the original Romanian paper work. It is the badge that is wrong and I am planning to change it.

 

Chris

[dollywobbler]

Ah, nice one Chris. Was trusting that someone I knew (even if I've only met you in a field once!) had purchased this marvellous machine!

[Skizzer]

Brilliant. I remember admiring the shiteness of these (well, Axels I suppose) on a visit to Prague about 12 years ago.

 

Mind you, that yellow mk1 Visa is giving me an itch I shouldn't scratch in public.

[Six-cylinder]

Ah, nice one Chris. Was trusting that someone I knew (even if I've only met you in a field once!) had purchased this marvellous machine!

 

We will meet again if you keep our date at the Hafod Hotel, I doubt if I will bring the Oltcit as this is a boys classic driving trip so my Triumph Vitesse is favourite.

 

Chris

[Luxobarges_Are_Us]

mmmm...very tasty. They were reasonably successful in Greece, presumably due to the tax implications of their 1124cc POWAH. For some reason they all seemed to be finished in hearing aid beige, which only adds to the shite appeal of the vehicle!

[Citroening]

Nice write-up Chris - I really look forward to seeing it at shows this coming year. It was in some state when I got it - any other car, and off to the weighbridge it would've gone...

 

I'm going to leave this picture here, of my favourite part of that car - the dash.

 

 

 

As Chris has mentioned I've 'moved on' to a couple of Visa GTi's now...

 

Cheers,

Franklin.

[RedSparrow]

He delivers! Superb, thank-you!

They really do look like mega base-spec Visas. I'm surprised the complicated dash made it into the Oltcit though, the Romanians seem to have simplified everything else about the car except that, which must've been a bit pricey to produce as plastic dashboards go.

 

Also +1 on the calendar suggestion.

[Sam Glover]

Music to my eyes, Chris! It's good to know that this car - the UK's only Oltcit? - has fallen into the hands of a true pervert (a term I bestow upon you with the greatest respect). It was imported a few years ago by Paul Johns - a true hero among Stakhanovite car collectors.

 

It's the car that the Visa should have been, Romain build-quality and cat's piss plastics aside.

 

I believe there's a RHD Axel (or maybe a couple?) in a private collection in the UK. What our sceptred isle really needs is an early chrome bumper version. A Romanian friend has been keeping his eyes peeled, but finding a decent one is proving more challenging than expected.

 

Sam

[dieselnutjob]

There was a guy at NEC with a Visa GTI. It wasn't one of you guys was it?

[Alexg]

^ Yes there was. I had a quick chat with him about his GTI becuase there are bugger all left

 

That Oltcit is fabulous BTW!

[dieselnutjob]

good friend of mine had a Visa diesel and says it was the best car he ever owned. they were pretty rare even new I should think. I think an XUD turbo in a Visa would be interesting

[Citroening]

I believe there's a RHD Axel (or maybe a couple?) in a private collection in the UK.

Two, apparently - stored in a church. We've only seen pictures of one of them though, and it's in the background...

There was a guy at NEC with a Visa GTI. It wasn't one of you guys was it?

Not me, but a beautiful very well known GTi in Visa Circles and owned by the Visa Columnist for the Citroen Car Club's Magazine, The Citroenian...

^ Yes there was. I had a quick chat with him about his GTI becuase there are bugger all left

There's only 17 of these rare beasts left - see them here - http://visaforum.freeforums.org/post8096.html#p8096

I think an XUD turbo in a Visa would be interesting

It's been done, however unfortunately not in the UK...

[trigger]

Fab stuff, I remember this coming up in the ebay thread at the time i think and recalling that i never heard of one before.

 

Citroening - is this your Visa?, This was at a show near Bury St. Edmunds in 2010.

 

1987 Citroen Visa GTi 115 CH by Trigger's Retro Road Tests!, on Flickr

[Citroening]

Citroening - is this your Visa?

Nope, although I did see it a couple of weekends ago when I saw the owner!

 

As is the usual with such a small amount of cars remaining, owners do know pretty much every other one about! CIT GT is a lovely car and my red GTi is currently on route to looking like that - I got it back from the paintshop after a full respray last week.

Sorry to have derailed your Oltcit thread Chris...

[Louise2cv]

There is (was?) a Black Visa GTi in Menai Bridge, was on the road a few years ago, I last saw it in the summer behind some shops.

 

Fab thread, sorry to carry on going off on a tangent

[Spiny Norman]

What a wonderfully different car! I saw an Axel in Glasgow a good few years ago and it was one of those rare instances where I couldn't quite figure out what it was.

Love the Visa too, had a shot of one years ago when I was thinking of buying it. Nice, very French car.

[holbeck]

Oltcit and Visa GTI - Quality.

[Mr Lobster]

Impressive stuff, got to admire your comitment!

 

Visa GTi is one of those cars I'd really like but am unlikely to ever own sadly.

[Citroening]

Visa GTi is one of those cars I'd really like but am unlikely to ever own sadly.

It certainly is a shame that there's so few of them left.

 

Unfortunately the vast majority of GTi's that are left are in long term storage, albeit in enthusiastic owners hand's. We hope that 2012 is the GTi year - there's certainly possibilities of a few of them being brought back onto the road...

[Shep Shepherd]

Are there any Mille Pistes versions in the UK, I wonder?

[Citroening]

Are there any Mille Pistes versions in the UK, I wonder?

Just the one... http://visaforum.freeforums.org/post9415.html#p9415

[Shep Shepherd]

Ace! I've liked them since I saw a picture of one in a book about four wheel drive vehicles in the mid-1980s

[AnthonyG]

Andy Thompson in his book 'Eastern European Cars' claims the design that became the Oltcit was originally meant to be their new small car, but after Pug bought Citroen they told them to use a 104 floorpan and adapt it, this became the Visa.

 

Any truth to that - his implication that the Oltcit is more original Citroen than the Visa?

 

BTW I once bought a C reg Visa GTi for £350 in 1993 from Kingsland Car Auctions near Leominster, but couldn't get insurance for it (I was 19 at the time) so it went through the ring again the following week. Shame really, particularly as I was down about £40 after all the fees!

[dollywobbler]

Andy Thompson in his book 'Eastern European Cars' claims the design that became the Oltcit was originally meant to be their new small car, but after Pug bought Citroen they told them to use a 104 floorpan and adapt it, this became the Visa.

 

Any truth to that - his implication that the Oltcit is more original Citroen than the Visa?

 

Check the link in the first post. In short, yes, it is the last true Citroen. As you say, Peugeot put the brakes on what was meant to be the Visa and forced a load of Pug bits on it. Citroen shipped the original project (changing from 5 to 3 doors) to Romania. The Oltcit uses torsion bars and boxer engines (652cc flat-twin and a couple of sizes of GS four-pot).

 

Oltcit production was meant to start in the late 1970s, but didn't kick in until 1982.

[pompei]

"stored in a church" is that something to do with DS man Nigel Wild?

[Citroening]

"stored in a church" is that something to do with DS man Nigel Wild?

Indeed...

 

http://www.citroenet.org.uk/phototheque ... rch01.html

 

http://visaforum.freeforums.org/post7902.html#p7902

 

 

[gricer]

Andy Thompson in his book 'Eastern European Cars' claims the design that became the Oltcit was originally meant to be their new small car, but after Pug bought Citroen they told them to use a 104 floorpan and adapt it, this became the Visa.

 

Any truth to that - his implication that the Oltcit is more original Citroen than the Visa?

 

 

Totally true.

 

The car was called 'Project Y' and was designed in 1974 as an Ami replacement. The plan was always to build in Romania - Ceaucescu was seen as being West-friendly in those days (Hence Renault-Dacia, and also ROMBAC, British Aircraft Corporation's deal to make the 1-11 airliner there).

 

Deal to build Oltcit (Olt = Oltenia region of Romania) signed in 1976, but plant was not complete until 1982. So the Oltcit was already 8 years old. In the interim, Michelin had sold Citroen to Peugeot, which resulted immediately in the stop-gap LN and then the Visa, which is based on the same Pug 104 platform.

 

As the Axel, the Oltcit then became the replacement for the LN in some markets (France, Austria, Holland, Belgium, Italy). Launched in 85 (by which time the design was 11) and ran until the AX came in 88.

 

After Citroen pulled out of Romania Oltcit became Oltena then Rodae after Daewoo bought it in 93, and the cars were made until 1996, finally replaced by the Daewoo Matiz!