Citroën Ami

Citroën Ami

Manufacturer	Citroën
Parent company	PSA Group (from 1976)
Production	1961—1978
Assembly	Rennes [1](Chartres-de-Bretagne quarter), France
Predecessor	None
Successor	Citroën Axel Citroën Visa
Class	Supermini
Body style(s)	4-door sedan 5-door estate
Layout	FF layout
Engine(s)	602 cc flat-2 1015 cc flat-4
Wheelbase	95 in (2413 mm)[2]
Length	154 in (3912 mm)[2]
Width	60 in (1524 mm)[2]
Height	57 in (1448 mm)[2]
Related	Citroën 2CV Citroën FAF Citroën Dyane

1968 Citroën Ami 6 (Rouge Corsaire)

1968 Citroën Ami 6 Front Detail

Citroën Ami 6 Club estate version.

The Ami 8 featured a more conventionally positioned back window

Dashboard and shift lever of Ami 6

Citroën Ami M35

The Citroën Ami (French for "friend") is a supermini produced by the French automaker Citroën from 1961 to 1978. The Ami and stablemate Citroën Dyane were replaced by the Citroën Visa and Citroën Axel (the Axel was never sold in the UK).^[3] The Ami was for some years the best-selling car model in France. Production totalled 1,840,396 units.

Although not its commercial name, in France the Ami was often referred to as the Citroën 3CV Trois chevaux, or "three horses", CV originally being the initials for "cheval-vapeur" (horsepower), but used here for "chevaux fiscaux" in short. The "cheval fiscal" was a French fiscal unit based on engine size ; smaller CV usually meant economical cars. The 602 cc engine of the Ami was fractionally short of the 610 cc upper limit for the 3 CV taxation class. The 3CV nickname was never applied to the Ami 8, only to the Ami 6.

Overview

As with Renault 4, Citroën was responding to a market need for a vehicle slightly larger and less rustic than the 2CV. The Ami is a rebodied 2CV with certain mechanical upgrades (particularly a larger engine than the 1950s 2cv), to compensate for the added weight. Most variants are powered by a 602 cc two-cylinder flat engine which was also launched in the 2cv at the same time.

The suspension is similar to the 2CV being independent all round using leading and trailing arms and coil springs interconnected front and back.

The Ami's seats were easily removable. Sales pitches of the Ami included photographs of the seats being used as picnic chairs.

The Ami and the 1961 Ford Taunus were the first vehicles with rectangular (as opposed to round) headlamps.

Versions

The Ami 6 sedan is distinguished by an unusual reverse-raked rear window, similar to the "Breezaway" rear screen fitted to the contemporary Mercury Monterey in the US, or the Ford Anglia in the UK. A similar design feature is used on the current three door Citroën C4.

The later Ami 8 saloon has a fastback rear window. It was redesigned by the French car design and bodywork company, Heuliez. Most notable changes were the front part and bonnet and the sloping, rather than inverted, rear window on the saloon. The estate version of the Ami 8 had a similar general appearance to that of the Ami 6 although the later car's tail-lights were integrated into the rear wings.

The Ami Super was a flat-4 variant powered by the engine of the GS and produced between 1973 and 1976.

A small series of prototype coupés, the M35 were produced as test vehicles for loyal customers — testing the single-rotor Comotor Wankel engine, as also seen in the NSU Spider. A twin-rotor version of this engine reached production form with the NSU Ro 80 and GS Birotor.

French production

The Ami 6 was the first model to be produced at the Citroen plant opened in 1961 in the presence of the new president to the south-west of central Rennes. It was later joined at the plant by the Dyane and GS models.

Spanish production

The Ami 6 & Ami 8 were also built by Citroën Hispania in Vigo (Spain) from 1967 to 1978, but they were never called "Ami" because of a legal problem with that name. The equivalences with French built models are:

• Ami 6 berline: never built in Spain.
• Ami 6 break old model (M4 type engine): Citroën Break 3cv.
• Ami 6 break new model (M28 type engine): Citroën Dynam.
• Ami 8 berline: Citroën 8 or C-8.
• Ami 8 break: Citroën 8 Familiar or Citroën Familiar.

Performance

An Ami 6 tested by the British magazine The Motor in 1962 had a top speed of 65.3 mph (105.1 km/h) and could accelerate from 0-50 mph (80 km/h) in 30.3 seconds. A fuel consumption of 53 miles per imperial gallon (5.3 L/100 km; 44 mpg_-US) was recorded. The test car cost £823 including taxes on the UK market. ^[2]

Trivia

Lists of miscellaneous information should be avoided. Please relocate any relevant information into appropriate sections or articles. (December 2007)

• The 2CV is remembered as the (long-suffering) steed of Thomson and Thompson, the detectives in The Adventures of Tintin, but an Ami 6 can be seen in the Castafiore's Emerald, the doctor's car, in a memorable gag involving Professor Calculus.
• Famous owners of the Ami include Yvonne de Gaulle and James May.

References

External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Citroën Ami

• The Virtual Citroen Ami6 Garage
• hans tacq's AMI6 page
• Ami 8 at Citroenet
• Ami 6 at Citroenet
• Citroën Gallery (French) / (English)
• P CITROËN AMI6
• 2CV district CitCity
• Ami6/Ami8/Ami Super/M35 links Citroën World