Citroën Buyer's Guide

No marque at auction rewards specialist knowledge like Citroën, because no marque engineered so differently. Our six tracked sales span a £3,600 2CV, two Traction Avants at £4,862 and £7,313, a DS at £10,000, a Saxo at £7,245 and, the outlier, a GS-family car at £27,750, proof that exceptional examples of unfashionable models can startle a saleroom.

The story, briefly

The Traction Avant of 1934 brought unitary construction and front-wheel drive to the mass market; the 2CV of 1948 mobilised rural France on suspension that could cross a ploughed field with eggs aboard; the DS of 1955 introduced hydropneumatic suspension and still looks like the future. The GS and SM carried the hydraulic faith through the seventies. Nothing else drives like any of them, which is the entire point.

Which Citroën, for what money

2CVs around £3,500 to £8,000 remain the friendliest entry, with galvanised replacement chassis a standard and value-adding fix. Traction Avants at £5,000 to £8,000 are prewar engineering at postwar prices. The DS is the design icon: our £10,000 result bought a usable car, with the best selling for multiples of that nationally. Hot Saxos (ours made £7,245) now trade as modern classics on nineties nostalgia.

What goes wrong

On hydraulic cars (DS, GS, SM and descendants): the system itself is reliable when maintained and ruinous when bodged, so the history file matters more than the gauge readings. Spheres and pipes are consumables. 2CV and Traction structures rust; both have excellent parts and club support, the 2CV's being world-class. The rule with all of them: buy from an owner who understood the car.

Our view

The 2CV on a galvanised chassis is one of the most dependable and sociable classic ownerships available, and our £3,600 result shows the entry remains gentle. The DS is the one to stretch to, bought on hydraulic history from the specialist network rather than on chrome. Every Citroën rewards joining the club before buying the car.