2 CV Charleston in 1980
production : 8.000
The Company in 1980
- A mechanical assembly plant comes into operation at Meudon, near Paris, for the manufacture of machine tools, tools and prototype components.
- The first Quality Circles are formed at the Rennes-La Janais factory: each consists of five to ten volunteers working in the same service or area. The idea is to continually apply quality control techniques to solve problems as and when they arise.
- The SMAN (Société Mécanique Automobile du Nord) plant begins operations at Valenciennes in northern France. Another subsidiary of Automobiles Peugeot and Automobiles Citroën, it supplies the three companies of the group with gearboxes for their mid-range vehicles.
- The Acadiane replaces the 2CV Van in the STIA assembly plant in Tunisia, which is assembling 600 vehicles a year.
- Annual production : 651 374 vehicles.
The models in 1980
- March sees the launch of the Visa Sextant, a limited series in 2,000 examples.
- In May, Citroën launches a version of the Acadiane with a 602 cm3 engine running on LPG. For the same performance as a petrol vehicle, the van consumes between 7 and 9 litres of gas/100 km.
- In July, the Visa Super is replaced by the Visa Super E economy version and the Visa Super X. Super E: 1,124 cm3 engine, 57 bhp at 6,250 rpm, 5 bhp, 142 km/h, 5.5 litres/100 km. Super X: 1,219 cm3 engine, 64 bhp at 6,000 rpm, 7 bhp, 155 km/h, 6.7 litres/100 km.
- The Paris Motor Show unveils the limited edition 2CV Charleston, with a two-tone paint scheme and round headlamps. Citroën originally planned to make just 8,000 examples of the 2CV-based Charleston, but in 1981 it becomes a standard model.
In the news in 1980
- War breaks out between Iran and Iraq.
- In Poland, the first strikes take place in the Gdansk shipyards. Lech Walesa and the Solidarity trade union are in open opposition to the Polish government.
- Reagan is elected President of the USA.
- Marshal Tito and the Shah of Iran die.
- In France, Marguerite Yourcenar becomes the first woman to be elected to the Academie Française. Akira Kurosawa directs Kagemusha, Frederico Fellini The City of Women and David Lynch Elephant Man.