Really enjoyed this video and glad to see the RU-vid algorithm recommended this video allowing me to discover your channel. I had a Citroen BX 1.6 RS that I bought very cheap when it was about 4 years old and it looked and drove like brand new. I loved it, and it was very lively for a 1.6 of the time, it was also practical and very reliable. It suffered a split top hose once when I was in France and I happened to be a couple of hundred meters from a Citroen garage at the time. Oddly the other Citroen of the same era that I owned also suffered a split top hose. All in all it was a great car, quirky enough to be fun but also conventional enough to be practical.
I had a bx16trs many many years ago in the 80s the back windows kept falling out as they were glued to a plate ,I had them sealed up in the end as no one could get the glue to work .. loved it though ..
Ah yeah, the earliest cars did have that. They updated the design in 85 to a clamp-on type. I've retrofitted that to the front of this one, but the rears are still original (and therefore broken)
We had a family business in the 80's and 90's, the first company car we bought was allegedly the first BX in the country and my dad chose it! Unfortunately I cannot recall the exact model, just that it was silver, 1.6 petrol, and had the CX type yellow drum gauges. Initially I hated it because of a fast Ford mindset, fortunately I rid myself of that, but the more I drove it the more I came to like it. The engine was a bit harsh and unrefined, but the ride, comfort and those brakes quickly became things of joy. Subsequently we had another 4 BX's, all petrol except for the final turbo diesel. Diesels weren't as popular back then but that last one was my favourite. They were the most reliable fleet vehicles we ever had and very economical. Interior and trim quality were bit flimsy, but nothing ever actually broke! I have personally had 5 Xantias in subsequent years, including an Exclusive HDi, which I loved. I still have an LX HDi 90, bought as a hack, unfortunately the clutch has failed and it's been unused for 5 years. Otherwise it is in good condition, with virtually no rot. Must get something done with it.
@@UPnDOWN Yeah, maybe, 16RS rings a bell. Just remembered, we had an AX GT to, which I really liked, and a C15D van, which had alot of punishment without any complaints. I also had a 1978 CX Pallas 2.4 in the 90's as an alternative company car. That was a fantastic motorway cruiser and superlative in adverse weather conditions, especially heavy rain. That succumbed to some serious and very expensive to repair hydraulic problem, related to the steering column mounted system, so it was scrapped!! So, we have had alot of Citroens! And one Peugeot, a 305 GLD, which I quite liked! The 2 Citroens I would really like to have though, are, a 2CV and a DS. Shame they are now so expensive and I have nowhere to garage them. Oh yes, and I have a lust for a C6 but the complexity and service hassles put me off.
My mum and stepdad had about 7 Citroen bxs .from the base model to the leather seated all electric pack this in metallic grey/silver?,they all were reliable family cars apart from my mums as she was always breaking the suspension spears ? because of her not slowing down for speed bumps which inside the car we didn’t realy feel them but the components did and he was always buying new ones for each of hers but his never once got changed on the two he owned over the yrs and he went over the same bumps (probably at a lower speed and respected the car unlike mother).we’ve got a piccaso and it’s ok just needs new brake discs,pads,shoes & drums and a new timing belt as we don’t no when last one was put on,only thing broken is the back screen wash so not bad for a 19yr old car.
"Awaiting hate from 340 owners" Rest assured that, back in the day, 340 and BX owners were both hated, mainly for being in front of the queue. 😜 In the late 1960s DAF and Triumph had similar appearances, because they were both using Michelotti designs.
I own a 1.9 turbo diesel BX!. I transplanted a Xsara 19 XUDTE to a 1.9 non turbo BX 19trd. It has more low torque grunt than the original 1.8 turboD (Which my dad owns a break version of). Mine has the C-pillar window too. It is a second generation model (the 19trd, build in 1986, rouge vallelunga). I can confirm that the BX is not made of plastic. I spend quite a lot of time welding the substructure. Especially the rear subframe mountings were terrible (3 of the 6 bolt mounts were gone). And a pain to repair (not nearly as much work as a DS though, those rot like no other).
Thanks for confirming that metal BX bonnets exist. I remebered quite clearly mine had a steel one but started doubting my own recollection. So I wondered if it might have been a pre-series model. It was a BX14E though and not a diesel!
My brother had a 1.8 turbodiesel and a 1.6 tri. I had a 1.4 leader, 1.9 d, 1.6 trs lpg, and a 1.9 tri brake. latr on a zx and c5. man I loved thm all (not the zx zo much, no emotion to it, but it did what it had to). loads of roam, quick enough (some of them damn quick), quirky, brilliant, comfortable, massive loading capacity. I loved the satelites and km/h eye on the earlier versions, like the cx. I would have loved 6th gear on the petrols, this gearing was just too short.
I had a BX, and I seem to remember it said BX19TD. How is that not a 1.9 turbo diesel? It was a lovely car, all successors are measured against it……….. I just googled BX19TD and there’s a picture of a BX with BX19TD on the back, my brain is not failing.
'TD' was the trim level (assuming you're not in the UK, as we didn't get those here). We got 19RD; 19TGD; 19TZD; 19DTR & 19TXD - all these were naturally aspirated. The TD engines were 1.8 (1769cc), not a 1.9....confusingly!
Really good sum up. As a big fan of older Citroens and owner of an XM I knew most, but indeed I never knew the BX 16v dropped the GTI. Here everybody calls it the GTI 16v, but indeed checking up it appears that after only 2 years the GTI bit was dropped and it is not even to identify between the 160HP and the catalyst 147HP versions.
It was quite early on that they dropped the 'GTi' moniker (1988) but it wasn't consistent with all the branding/packaging, and you quite often saw dealers advertising cars for sale in the paper with the 'GTi' bit still there (probably to make it sound spawwwwteeee). The 148bhp version (DFW) came out in around 1989 for markets that required it. The UK got the 160bhp (D6C) for most of the production run, thankfully, only having to switch to the cat-equipped DFW in late 1992. Very few of them exist here...possibly single-digits.
the XUD7 being a small 1.8 and the diesel visa was badged 17, probably the only car with this block to have had a numerical indication. this is perhaps why we are talking as much about 1.7 as 1.8 for this block.
Great video. Informative and entertaining. My first Citroen was a 1989 BX19 TRS manual, which I had for 2 years before replacing it with a ZX. I called it the Plastic Fantastic. Yeah I knew most of it was metal underneath, more tin foul than steel. But it didn't seem to rust like other cars of it's time. I loved it for the short time I had it.
Genuinely a shock. I even paused while I went and double checked the Haynes BX BoL I still have@@UPnDOWN !🤣 I remember it particularly because it was a brand new car and I *know* it was a turbo because it had the barbeque grill (aka intercooler) on top of the engine! Obviously I was wrong but I blame that on still being at primary school when they got it!
we didn't have a 19 TRD i Denmark because of tax and tarriff reasons and than diesels just didn't sell if it weren't a van or a pick-up before the HDI,D4D etc were launched
I had a 1987 BX 19TRS Automatic. I loved that car to bits. Unfortunate events caused me to part ways after 250.000 km. And it was still as new. Yes, it had had some problems during its life, but on the face of it, not more than any other European car. I still have fond memories of that car.
Great video, I always thought the Tundra was passed to Citroen after Volvo rejected it and I never knew about the plastic boot kids, so this has been a great video to learn things about the BX. Surprised Toyota Never picked up on the Poo ref with their TRD models....
Initially it may have only been a 4-speed, yes, but most were 5-speed. There was actually a BX 14...not even an E! They were 4-speed. In fact, in Italy there was a BX 11!
Similar experience to you, really. I find the 1.8 more flexible, if ultimately less able. The 1.9 seems to have less low down, and then more once the turbo gets going.
A weird trend indeed with the 4x4 or 4WD in those days, it just didn't make sense in cars with small torque. Best example to this would be the Peugeot 405 MI16x4. The 4x4 really transformed the MI16 into shit. The MI16 was legendary for being a fast 16v saloon, but the MI16x4 had an acceleration of over 10s from 0-62, not sporty at all. Btw yes there was a 4x4 version of the Renault R21 and it was even combined with the turbo version. Renault called it the R21 Quadra or R21 2L Turbo Quadra and reportedly Audi was not exactly thrilled with the similarity to their Quattro name. But here the question, was it really the torque breaking 4WD transmissions on the stronger BXs? As Peugeot had a 405 MI16x4 and even a 405 T16, which was also 4x4 but didn't have the x4 part in its name (other than the Renault R21 Turbo, the 405 Turbo was always 4x4). I owned a 405 T16 for 11 years, very fast car, perfect sleeper car. The T16 was known for breaking torque tubes, thought it never happened with mine. That's why the T16 had a thicker torque tube than other Peugeot x4 versions as well as reduced boost in 1st gear. But the 405 MI16x4 never had this problem to my knowledge, so strange there never was a BX GTI 16v 4WD.
If someone is interested in this, I could return to my opening comment above "weird trend with 4WD in those days". I own an XM V6 these days. For sure this car is made for comfort. But I can't help that the XM feels lighter than the 405 T16, the XM is much more chuckable on curvy roads. The 405 T16 in comparison, yes a very fast car, and very stable on wet motorway cruising, but find a twisty A/B-cat road and the T16 always felt like a heavy car. The XM V6 feels more chuckable even though it is a whole class larger with a less powerful engine, weight about the same though, curiously. I used to have a 205 GTI 1.9 many years ago and today I feel in driving sensation on a curvy road the XM V6 is closer to the 205 GTI than the 405 T16 ever was. This may seem a daring claim, but I think what happens here is on the 405 T16 you feel the weight and a certain stubborness from the 4WD system, while on the Citroens the hydropneumatic and the pinpoint accurate no brake server brakes work wonders. That all said, if today I got to chose between say an R21 2L Turbo or an R21 2L Turbo Quadra, I would take the 2WD version, same on 405 MI16, BX GTI, the 4WD makes the cars heavier and you feel it. I will never stop wondering how fast the 405 T16 had been had it not have 4x4 as standard, there is no reason to miss 4WD on a BX GTI.... And as last thought on the weight talk, I often hear a BX GTI 16v is faster even than a 309 GTI16. I can well imagine thanks to hydropneumatic, brakes, plastic panels. That moves a BX (GTI) 16v to the top of the list of cars I wish to experience one day.
The BX 4wd had a different system to the 405, weirdly. You'd think they'd share, but apparently not. The BX's 4wd system wouldn't have been able to handle the 16V's torque, or even the turbo-diesel's (which would have made more sense as a concept).
These rabbit holes of model names are insane.... I do believe the one that TRD was differently named for the UK market for reasons not dissimilar to those Toyota used to change the MR2 name for France. All this model-name madness reminds me of a car I drove in the Balkans in the 90s. A Peugeot 405 GRx4. Not a UK model. The pedals and steering wheel were in front of the passenger seat... A very strange mutt.... It even had a couple of green Citroen spheres in it so handle the ride height or self-levelling. I don't think it knew what it was. But it was rapid. I think it had the same motor as the BXGTi 8v. Or maybe a slightly milder one. A very funky monkey. A parts bin special that worked.
@@UPnDOWN Defective memory on my part.... I remembered the spheres and a switch in the boot, bit couldn't recall the reasoning. Was a lovely car. Just about the only Peugeot I saw in that country at that time. I recall it being an injection model, bit that may be incorrect. On your riff about the model names.... Broadly, "D" is diesel and "E" is essence (petrol in French). This goes right back across quote a few models and model years. I love the mad logic of TRS. Only Citroen....
Fascinating, enjoyed that. BX must have one of, if not the most complex model range designation system, perhaps Citroen had a whole department dedicated to that function, or is that another myth? I still can't figure out where the TZD Hurricane fits in to the naming convention ethos!
TZ is top-of-the-range (forgoing the sporty models), and D means diesel. The Hurricane element was a limited edition (in LHD markets it was the 'Ourane') and as far as I can make out, it used the rear spoiler from a ph2 16V (assumedly to use up stock) and velour seat fabric which looks to have been lifted from the same stock as what eventually went in the Xantia. Definitely a bit of an oddity, but probably the plushest diesel BX ever made. They were all Triton Green, too. TZ superceded TR, so a TZD is effectively descendant from my mk1 16TRS, just with a diesel engine.
@@UPnDOWN Thank you, that fits with the example that I worked on belonging to a friend (now sold), it was the fact that it had a "name" as opposed to a simple designation that I was scratching my head over. It was green, velour upholstery, plastic bonnet and flat spoiler (as opposed to the pram handle). The intercooled XUD was quite lively and made it a lovely thing to drive and very practical, wish I'd made him an offer for it. Sadly the only photo I have of it is being loaded onto a recovery when the injection pump expired.
Did you ever make that video about BX models/trims/engines? Because I cant find any actual info on that topic. Its all just confusing 3 letter codes that dont really say anything
Interesting, because my understanding of the D and E letters was that D was for the diesels, and E was for "Essence" ie the petrol models? I guess you live and learn!
E might be for 'essence' of course (I wasn't in the meetings lol!) But I know E was the cheaper end of the petrol engines, and 'S' was 'sportif' i.e. the higher-output end of the petrol engines.
I'm having a *watch u tube videos on the bx day* as I fancy one...anyway did you know yours is only one of 7 1.6 TRS models left on the road in the uk? 14 are SORN. Super rare car, rarer than ferraris or lamborghinis...in 1996 I bought my dad a BX 14E. He kept it for 4 years and it's still showing up on the DVLA website so is probably in a yard somewhere even though last MOT was due in 2001!!!
🤣 can appreciate this! However, I don’t buy it that there wasn’t a 4x4 16v because the transmission wouldn’t be able to cope with that, as a 405 Mi 16 X4 did exist. And as for the trim levels, I always thought the s in trs stand for super: trEconomy, trSuper, trDiesel. We had the 405 SRDTurbo with the XUD7TE, brilliant thing. But to drive it really quickly, you were restricted to a pretty narrow rpm band, so it took a lot of quick shifting. Not very dieselly. Keep it between 2000 and 3500, below that it feels slow, above: no extra punch. Maybe what felt as slow was actually normal for a diesel, as it was blazing fast from 2000-3500. Good turbo punch. Just for the record: we did drive it hard, but didn’t mistreat it, we made it without engine rebuild, even without clutch change, to 285K Mi! Still running great with negligible oil consumption (1ltr/5K or something like that). We sold it as we were doing 40K/yr, and it didn’t have an airco…
Believe it or not, the 405 had a different 4wd system! Crazy, because they're such similar cars. So that's why the 405 could handle it - you probably already know that the 405 Mi16x4 used a BX-style rear axle with hydro-suspension, too?
@@UPnDOWN Yep, HP with an electric pump. I thought (but don’t know), that it might be the same axle, as a new one had to be developed anyway. Anyhow, crazy that they have different 4WD systems… And too bad that I really don’t have time to tinker with cars, total lack of time. Our Xm is maintained by a specialist.
The letters in the model designations are abreviations for the following French terms: Last letter indicates the kind of engine: E = Essence (regular gas), S = Supercarburant (premium gas), I = Injection, D = Diesel More or less letters before describe the trim level: R = Riche, TR = Très Riche (Very Rich), GT = Grand Tourisme From about 1989, they messed it up by replacing all the R's with either G for the lower or Z for the higher range of models, and weird combinations like TZX. Now I'm guessing that G could mean Grand, but Z and X? Any ideas?
That was good. I enjoyed your BX mythbusting. Wish I'd bought one. Took one for a test drive but ended up buying an Escort. Don't know what I was thinking at the time.
Just watching this video and you state that the 19 rd was not 1900cc but 1800cc same as a 17 rd, I find that strange as I drove both the 17 rd and 19 rd back to back and the 19rd felt more lively both almost new demonstrator cars, my late Dad ordered and bought the 19 rd version, I know neither were turbo's-confused!
That's the turbo diesel. The 19RD was indeed a 1.9 (1905cc), it's just they never did the turbo version of that engine in the BX. First application of it was the ZX; BX turbodiesel was a 1.8 (1769cc).
Nice to know all those facts about the BX and also nice that at 23:13 a small publisher is advertised. But would like to add that the Volvo 300 series is the undisputed highlight of 136 years of car history. In its 15-year production run, this icon has managed to connect modern times with the romantic times we all miss. The rear-wheel drive through the beautiful de Dion rear axle, the choice between a smart CVT or a five-speed manual transmission to curb the power of the best European engines. And all that in a timeless design, with lots of brown to brighten up the interior. No need to mention the subject of safety with a Volvo, everything together makes the 300 series the best the world has seen so far in the automotive field.
I’m not so sure. Back in the day three colleagues all bought 360GLTs. Initially a great Q car for their understated looks and nippy performance all three ate their diffs at very low miles. I know one of them stuck with them and got a later version which, as part of a design to increase fuel efficiency, used smaller big end bearings. This resulted in a bombproof engine being transformed in to one that liked to take an early bath with big end failure. :(
E is economique, yes. Not sure about the G, though! It may not relate to a specific term in the French language. I think the Z in TZS/D means Zenith, which is also the name of the trim in many of them. Otherwise, perhaps 'Grande'?
I'm afraid that is incorrect (certainly in the case of UK cars, but it might have been in the case in other markets.) TG was a middling spec. In BX geek theory, for a 14 to have the opera window, it would need to be a 14TZE.
Nice to see a red 16TRS again, my vibe was the 19TD auto, going to work average speed was about 3 mph, the auto coped with this without problem. Lovely car in any form, rattled Ford, always a good thing. 2 cars needed to replace slightly mad parent which lacked, as far as I am concerned just one thing, ABS. Even when fitted it rarely worked for long. And a surprise, the blank over the heater or controls housed the air con in Spanish taxis. Confused UK government still favors diesel - lower road tax, where roads available. Too old now, so need to use C4 Picasso 2.0 diesel auto - it's great for getting in and out.and must rank as one of the least demanding cars to drive. stick to 2,000 rpm, it will do what you want before you realise you want it. Progress!
Greetings from the other side of the Channel, just brought here by a grey BX I recently saw that sparked again my interest in these cars that are sadly not fully appreciated (hence this very late to the party comment). I also have this book, learnt a lot of things like these ludicrous dashboards and seats designed by Harmand that sadly didn't made to production, and also saw from 1989 they all got catalytic converter (page 195 in the book) which surprised me considering they were mandatory in UE since 1993, if it's true for here (France) I guess it would be easier for passing MOT? Would have liked owning one but finding a mechanic that would agree to repair the suspension isn't easy (even if there are parts being made again), plus unfortunately they're often left neglected because of they're were (sort of still the case) considered as the ultimate hicks' cars.
I had three models including the gti and found them GREAT models particularly the GTI only problem was the sunroof switch which failed £180 to replace (in 1989),the most comfortable car I ever had
I think they might have had you over, there! It's just a basic rocker switch, easy enough to sort. Might have been the motor, perhaps? Can imagine that being quite a lot of money brand new.
Who'd have thought such a simple thing as someone sitting in front of a camera talking about obscure BX facts would be so entertaining? I had a black 1991 16 TZS (with C pillar windows) and I miss it terribly
My BX story is I got it serviced at the dealer on the way home a pipe burst and I lost all the oil. The flaming garage wouldn't accept responsibility, it was connecting the oil filter I think. 1.9 TRD I think. Moto Baldet in Northampton was my fav dealer.
My folks had two diesel BXs , H67 TUM & H68 TUM. Fairly Sure they were 1.9 TD. Always thought they were turbo. Probably polluted my mind cos I had a 1.9 TDI swapped phase one a few years ago. I must search the plates and see what became of them all!
They weren't...not unless someone fitted a 1.9TD engine from something else! Don't forget the model was often something like a 19TGD, or 19TXD, which confuses things as the T means very, not turbo!
@@UPnDOWN I think it was the badging that I mis remember. Quick dvla search. They were turbo just not 1.9. Both bought new in '90 by my old man. Both now not taxed or mot so probably gone. Shame. I still have a free inflatable dinghy with Citroën down the side that came with it.
5) Renault 21 Quadra, perhaps? Also, I think Audi went first, ahead of Ford, with the 80/90 quattro B2 - but you're right, it was all about fashion, as much as practicality, also the Ford gave you an estate or a hatch, whereas the Audi was just the 4 door (or 2 door coupe). I didn't realise the BX "TRS" etc letters actually meant something though, thought it was just trying to confuse everyone!
It did dawn on me that Audi did it, but they had reason to with the Group B endeavours. Vauxhall making boggo 4wd Cavaliers seemed a bit more pointless!
@@UPnDOWN yep I think the marketing value of the quattro badge surprised them, but then they grabbed it with both hands...& the others jumped on the bandwagon. The Cavalier was a strange one - the bog basic one was as rare as rocking horse manure, saw a few growing up in Bedfordshire - but that may have been all of them. Good to see you & the Hubnut family picking up his NZ UB
@@UPnDOWN imagine a 14e... Now slower... :-) One of my BX now has a 1.8 from a Xantia (converted to carburetor and a distributor from a BX16, together with its gearbox and engine cradle) and other has a 1.4 from a AX GT (also carbureted)! From the 3 BX11, only one is actually still a 1.124cc!!!
@@UPnDOWN ow I’m looking forward in seeing a video for it from you. You do an amazing job, so you’re my only hope for a good video on this amazing car.
17:10 pssssssh2: Before getting my GT, I went to check a base 89' 1.4, it also had a metal hood. I am unsure what were the requirement, but it seems like base models randomly had metal hoods, who knows
Just remember when in 1983 my dad and I went to various dealers for the next family car. The Citroen showroom reeked of plastic solvents. The Ford place not at all. It ended with a VW golf.
Hello, why rattly? Modern when it came out, robust, it just did not have the opportunity to be mounted on particularly memorable cars. in the 80s it is always more modern than the Peugeot and Citroen side camshaft engines still in service. A Simca engine which made it possible to equip the 505 with a turbo engine of a relatively modern design. It will be very thorough on blockbuster cars and will give satisfaction.
