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Each year over a hundred French cars gather in upstate New York for the annual Citroen Rendezvous, an annual weekend for a community of keepers of some of the rarest cars sold in America. The majority of participants' cars, of course, are Citroens, as the marque was officially sold here through the mid-1970s, but there are also a handful of Peugeots, Renaults, Simcas, Panhards, Alpines and even the odd Bugatti, with these marques accounting for about 10 percent of the field.
It's clear what marque will be in the spotlight this year in Ballston Lake, New York, as Citroen celebrates its centenary: The automaker has a large number of events planned throughout the year in countries where it has a presence, even China. But after a nearly 50-year absence from the U.S. market, it's still a community of hundreds of owners, mostly on the two coasts.
What cars will visitors be able to see at Rendezvous 2019?
Starting with the earliest models present in a significant number, the annual event will host at least two dozen Traction Avant sedans. The pocket-size 2CV accounts for a plurality of stateside Citroens, and every year at least three dozen examples appear at Rendezvous on the East Coast. Next up is the still-futuristic DS model, which combined a sleek exterior with an innovative suspension system that has become Citroen's trademark technology. Tens of SM coupes also travel to Ballston Lake every year, a model whose values have taken off in recent years. The event also hosts CX sedans and station wagons, from a time when CXA Automotive, a registered gray market importer, offered federalized versions of this luxury model following Citroen's departure from the U.S. market. You're also likely to see at least one Citroen XM, just two dozen of which were imported in the early 1990s.
Gallery 2014 edition Citroen Rendezvous
Beyond those, you'll also see some of the rarer models never offered in the States like the Citroen GS and GSA, the Bertone-styled BX or even an M35 rotary prototype.
If it feels like a number of automakers and companies are celebrating their centenaries this year, there's a good reason for this: World War I ended in November 1918 and during the following year several automakers flourished, after almost five years of delayed plans or simply not having the resources of manpower to launch their operations. Not all of them are still around, but Bentley and Citroen certainly are.
Saturday, June 15 is the main event as all the cars gather on a field, and admission is free to visitors. Visit the event website for driving directions and a detailed schedule.
Jay Ramey grew up around very strange European cars, and instead of seeking out something reliable and comfortable for his own personal use he has been drawn to the more adventurous side of the dependability spectrum. Despite being followed around by French cars for the past decade, he has somehow been able to avoid Citroën ownership, judging them too commonplace, and is currently looking at cars from the former Czechoslovakia. Jay has been with Autoweek since 2013.
