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At the time of the First World War, Andre Citroen had great success in armament production. When the war ended, Citroen, a man with a great eye for business opportunities, decided automobile production for the masses would be his next venture. He set his company up in 1919, and his first car would be the first mass produced car in Europe. It would also be the first car to have electric lighting and starter. The car (A-Type) soon became very popular.

Citroen always innovative introduced the first network of dealerships and repair garages in Europe. In 1948 the company realised they needed to build a car everybody could afford - the 2CV. The car was the beginning of the legendary "Tin Snail".

In the late 60's, Citroen acquired a controlling interest in the Italian sportscar builders Maserati. The first car to be produced in this new partnership was the impressive Citroen SM GT. Power came from V-six quad-cam unit, a smaller version of Maserati's V-eight masterpiece. At 2.7 litres it was just within French tax laws, which came down heavily on engines over 2.8 litres. Sales were in the beginning very good, but it was to be short lived due to the fuel crisis of 1973, at 18mpg it became expensive to run. Production finally ended in 1975.

The first front-wheel drive Citroens came in 1934, the costs of development forced the company into bankruptcy. Michelin came to the rescue.

The 11CV went into production in 1935, almost 20 years passed before the line was discontinued.
In 1974 Citroen went under control of Peugeot, but even today the name lives on with great success.

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