The Citroën 2CV (French: Deux chevaux), usually called Ente in Germany and Austria and Döschwo in Switzerland, was a popular model of the automobile manufacturer Citroën with an air-cooled two-cylinder four-stroke boxer engine and front-wheel drive. Between the summer of 1949 and mid-1990, 3,868,631 four-door sedans and 1,246,335 vans (“Kastenente,” “Fourgonnette”) were produced.

Development began in the mid-1930s; due to the war, Citroën did not present the new 2CV to the public until October 7, 1948 in Paris. Initially ridiculed by the trade press, the 2CV became one of the best-known car models in France in the following decades. The 2CV was the basis for the Citroën models Dyane, Ami and Méhari.

The purchase price of the 2CV was quite low. Thanks to the simple technology, maintenance costs were also relatively low, and the small engine capacity was reflected in low motor vehicle taxes. These factors contributed early on to the duck becoming the typical student car, especially in Germany. Its ownership was seen by many as an expression of a non-conformist and consumer-critical attitude to life, in which status symbols played no role. In France, the Citroen 2CV had a similar status to the VW Beetle in Germany.

From October 1980, the special model “Charleston” was available in 8000 units. It differed from the series models “Club” and “Spécial” by the black-wine-red painting in the style of the 1920s. It had special seat upholstery in a houndstooth pattern, round headlights in body color and chrome hubcaps. The rest of the interior was the same as the better equipped “Club” model.

Due to its great success, the “Charleston” C-CV was available from spring 1981 as a third series model, with chrome headlights and – like the other models of the 1981 vintage – with disc brakes on the front axle, and from summer 1982 also in black and yellow exterior color. In mid-1983, the black and yellow was replaced by a midnight gray and mist gray version, which remained in the program until production was discontinued.

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