The spirit of adventure is still alive in Alaska because Art and Tamea Isham drove their 1978 Citroen 2CV sedan from the greater Anchorage area to a car show in Wetaskiwin, Alberta Canada.
The Ishams took a meandering route to attend the show and had already covered over 2000 miles (roughly 3300 kms for the metric set) by the time we spotted them at the Wetaskiwin event.
Jim Sutherland
The husband-and-wife team were no strangers to road adventures in vintage vehicles and dumped their car trailer 25 years ago so they could travel in their old school rides. They added: “We tour every summer”.
Their current trip in the ’78 Citroen was just another chapter in their book of road adventures when MyStarCollectorCar spotted them pulling into the Wetaskiwin show after seven days on the road in which the Ishams said they “passed only 5 cars”, in their words.
The Ishams never intended to set any speed records in their little Citroen and instead kept the car at about 55-60 mph (90-100 km/h) on the open road because the car still has its factory air-cooled 602 cc engine that only churns out 29 horsepower according to Art. The Citroen is also a front-wheel-drive car, a system that was not common back in the 1970s.
A 1978 Citroen 2CV has its own ultra-retro style (even for the late Seventies) and is a rare sight on any modern road. The little import attracts plenty of attention because few people have even seen one-let alone knew they existed here in North America.
The good news is Art and Tamea dedicate a few hours every day to “talk to people” about their unusual set of wheels, including a group of motorcyclists who were fascinated by the Citroen, according to the Ishams.
Art filled in a few blanks about the Citroen and told MyStarCollectorCar it has a Ford shade of bright red and was the only year they painted them in this color, according to him. He added the car is a bare bones model sold by Citroen in 1978 with minimal brightwork and a bench seat to keep the price tag down for frugal buyers. It also has flip-out side windows and a large front vent to keep fresh air moving in the passenger compartment, plus the canvas roof retracts to give the Citroen a convertible vibe.
The small engine is coupled to a 4-speed manual transmission that gets a workout whenever it encounters hills and requires lower gears to conquer them, along with a “good run before you get there”, according to Art.
The Citroen has a dual master cylinder and unique inboard disc brakes on the rear to help it slow down when the situation arises on a long trip down a steep hill.
Art was pleased with the car’s gas mileage and pegged it at 32 to 42 mpg, depending upon the terrain.
We at MyStarCollectorCar applaud Art and Tamea for their spirit of adventure because so few car guys and girls would have the same view about a very long road trip in an underpowered 47-year-old French car.
You and your ‘78 Citroen are truly road warriors.
Jim Sutherland
BY: Jim Sutherland
Jim Sutherland is a veteran automotive writer whose work has been published by many major print and online publications. The list includes Calgary Herald, The Truth About Cars, Red Deer Advocate, RPM Magazine, Edmonton Journal, Montreal Gazette, Windsor Star, Vancouver Province, and Post Media Wheels Section.
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