IDRIVEACLASSIC reviews: 80s Citroen Visa L (a rare French classic car!)

Today's video features the Citroen Visa which was made from 1978 to 1988. The video was filmed in accordance with relevant social distancing laws at time of filming.
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Hard of hearing like me? Walkaround text below:
Once one of France’s most popular exports of the 1980s, the Citroen Visa is a car which is so rarely spotted it makes my Marina look commonplace!

Like all good things, the Visa wasn’t something dreamt up overnight. Way back in 1965, Robert Opron began work on a prototype to replace the 2cv which had an intended launch date of 1970. For many reasons, this didn’t come to fruition, but it did lead to the Citroen Prototype Y - which was developed in conjunction with Fiat to replace the Ami.

Again, this didn’t come to an immediate result for Citroen, but when Peugeot acquired Citroen in 1974, the project was rebooted and named Citroen VD which incorporated the floor pan of the Peugeot 104 - making it then possible to use the 104 engine and transmission units.

With this, the 5 door 104-based Citroen Visa was launched - replacing Prototype Y.

Although interestingly, the original design from the Y was sold to the Oltcit Club. If you’d like to see an Oltcit in more detail, get yourself over to watch Ian on Hubnut and see what he’s up to with his latest project.

Now going back to the Visa, the example we’re testing today is a MK2 or second generation, although you’ll notice that it sports the MK1 dash - this is correct as the car was sold and not something which has been replaced later on.

When the MK2 as we’re testing here today came to market, it was sold as being a more polished version of the Visa which had come before it.

It boasted development of the 1124cc four cylinder engine with overhead camshaft and transistorised ignition which then meant the fuel Economy for the time was nothing to be sniffed at. The Visa boasted an incredible 44.8mpg when driven at 75mph and 58.9 when driving at 56mph. The car was said to have a top speed of 87mph with the ability to do just under 400 miles on one tank of fuel.

And if you’re wondering why the numbers seem a bit odd - it’s because it was all originally done in KM with this being a French car.

The Visa was marketed as a roomy 5 door hatchback - comfortable enough for a family and with 10 cubic feet of boot space and 24 cubic feet with the seats folded, it didn’t just sell on being comfortable but practical too.

As I’ll tell you when we go driving, the seating position gives you real confidence as the driver, but with a turning circle of 31 feet, it’s also pretty easy to manoeuvre about too.

I realise that for some people, the styling and shape of this car may look a little out of the ordinary, but Citroen stated the car had been designed with aerodynamics in mind. The design took into account head space, hip swivel and body movement and was said when discussing total drag, to be the best car in its class.

In fact, it’s the aerodynamics which gave this car an enviable top speed and lower fuel demand. Although you’ll see when we go for a drive, the top speed is good, but unless you get a run up on hills, it’s a little bit sluggish!

Head and body room wasn’t the only comfort consideration. The car has been designed with fully independent suspension and anti roll bars to front and rear, which gives a really soft ride, something I do remark on when we go for the drive.

But Citroen didn’t stop there: they also paid real attention to the comfort and safety aspects of owning a Visa. We’ve got the satellite pod control which I’ll demonstrate later in the video in addition to a generous 7 air vent set up for heating, a 2 speed blower with demister function and a heated rear screen.

Another interesting feature we discovered when we found the camera man locked in the rear of the car with no means to escape from the inside, is the the car is fitted with child safety catches and as you’ll see on this walk around, those reflectors on the drivers door are applied to all doors as a warning that the door was open.

You might think this car has been well equipped, well Citroen did too. In fact, they said the car offered unbeatable value with its standard equipment and challenged prospective buyers to find the same level of spec for the same money elsewhere.

Although if you did want extras, metallic paint and sunroof came at an additional cost.