Hello all,

This summer I drove my 2CV Acadiane to Mongolia. The trip took quite a toll on the van and it's currently waiting to be shipped back from Ulaan Ude in Russia. The main things wrong with the van are:
- The carburetor was on its last legs, and the engine would cut out when it was idle for more than a second
- The amount of dust that got into the engine meant one of the pistons snapped at the point where it meets the crankshaft
- This piston breaking cause a crack in the engine casing
- To get the car to a city after the piston issue, a local strapped it to his flat bed, unfortunately he strapped it round the chassis, not the wheels, meaning either the front suspension has collapsed or the chassis has bent and the van is leaning forwards at a worrying angle

Anyone have any idea how much time, effort and money this might cost to sort out, or if it's even possible at all...?

(Despite the damage the trip was still incredible and i'd do it again in a heartbeat)

What an adventure! Poor old thing, but at least it gets to come home.

Do you think it needed better air filtering?

Maybe the chassis already had rust and this was the last straw. Last time I looked I think chassis weren't too expensive.

Is the chassis a special one for an Acadienne - either Dyane or unique? Because that could be an issue. Most old A-series will benefit from a new chassis, of course.

Very, very cool! Got any pictures of the car and the trip to share??



Anything is possible. The impossible just cost more time and money.
From what you are writing, it seems you just need a new chassis and engine.

And yes a acadyane had a special chassis (10cm longer) which is available at the parts dealers as fas as i know.

Acadyane chassis are available for 1275 euro's here in Holland...

http://www.lepatron.nl/catalog/product_info.php?cPath=72&products_id=2100000111

and I guess it will add more then 1275,-- to the van when when it is mounted.. An (orignal) engine will cost between 250 and 1250 euro and will give the same gain when you want to sell it..

It will take you about 25 hours to 50hours mounting it.... so I think it will be Always worht the money and effort..


At last I guess, shipping the car back will cost also a lot off money???

Hi,

Thanks for all the advice. I'm going to talk to the place we bought it from originally see what they think.

For everyone asking for photos, here's our facebook page with all our blog posts and photos from the trip: facebook.com/2CSomeYaks/

Great if the photos were on a blog or even Here!

Hi Matt,
out of idle curiosity, was it a garage which had plenty of experience with A series Citroens?
I assume that you made them aware of what you planned to do with the van, so any 2CV-based business should have made sure that the chassis was in tip-top condition.
If they didn't, that's more than a little disappointing.

Some other observations; one of your photographs shows a radiator cap fitted to the fuel tank filler, instead of the proper (vented) item. If that was used on the trip, it may well have restricted fuel flow to the engine, causing it to run lean and overheat.

Also, the starting problems you experienced were almost certainly down to a 'below-par' ignition coil, which is why a new coil, and maybe a spare, should have been on the shopping list when preparing the van.

In case you're wondering, I do have a bit of previous experience with this sort of venture, having prepared a (blue) Acadiane which drove overland from Australia to the UK in 1996/97...

Hi Matt.

I've just been checking out your Facebook page. Sounds like you had a great time, despite these rather large problems! I'm feeling quite inspired...

It's a shame your van suffered such catastrophic issues, which as Ken says, could have been avoided if the van had been prepared properly/been kept in good condition by the previous owner. It sounds extremely likely that your chassis has gone (just like the one on the van that I'm currently restoring - see pics). New Acadiane chassis are available, from ECAS - http://www.ecas2cvparts.co.uk/chassis-s ... -1515.html You'll find that some welding will almost certainly be required on the bodyshell as well - most likely the front toeboard area, whose structural integrity is vital to the overall strength of the 'shell.

I hope you get the van back on the road!

Slight lean apparent here: -



Full horrors revealed once the body was off: -