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The public reaction to Stephen’s Citroen Rosalie 10CV (who, of course, goes by the name “Rosie”) is often one of surprise – ‘most people have never seen one or didn’t realise that Citroen’s were ever built in the UK and the fact it is a RWD surprises most’.

The Rosalie family made their bow in 1932 with a choice of three versions - the 1,452 cc 8CV, the 1,767cc 10CV and the six-cylinder 2,650cc 15CV.

They represented a move towards larger cars on the part of Citroën and the company’s use of Ford-style mass-production techniques with their one-piece steel bodies.

Citroen eventually built 88,090 8CVs and 10 CVs and 7,230 15CVs and these production figures included the models constructed in Citroën’s British assembly plant.

In 1915 the then Chancellor of the Exchequer Reginald McKenna introduced what was to be known as the “McKenna Duties” - a 33.3% levy on ‘luxury imports’, including foreign cars.

The Slough factory was the company’s response to this move, initially covering 60 acres of ground and between 1926 and 1965 it constructed a vast array of models – from the Type A to the DS Pallas.

In the UK, a Rosalie such as BKL 104 appealed to the middle-class driver who appreciated the marque’s reputation for engineering and attention to detail.

Anyone who was in the market for a new Lanchester or Wolseley would have been highly satisfied with the Citroen.

1934 saw the debut of the Traction Avant, but the 8/10/15 gained a facelift as the NH (“Nouvel Habillage” - New Clothes) before the 7UA and 11UA versions superseded them.

Rosalie production continued until 1938, by which time Citroën’s image was inextricably associated with front-wheel-drive.

And when Stephen came across Rosie three years ago, she had been off the road since 1988 and during her later career was the subject of an apprentice training scheme in Nottingham.

As Mr. Parrish wrote in the Citroeneon magazine last year:

I bought Rosie without seeing her in January 2017 (other than a few photos).

She was running but spewing oil out both the front and back of the engine, consequently the clutch was covered in oil on the flywheel side and was slipping on the slightest of hills.

The last-named issue was especially unwelcome as there are ‘plenty of hills here in County Durham!’

In 2018 Stephen decided to remove Rosie’s engine in order to tackle those oil problems and also to remove the clutch.

However it quickly became apparent that the Citroen required a complete re-build of the motor – but fortunately a fellow Rosalie enthusiast had a spare plant!

Mr. Parrish also encountered further challenges, from paintwork in need of refurbishment, an exceptionally noisy rear axle to wayward steering.

However, thanks to her new custodian Rosie once more returned to the road, turning heads at shows and generally amazing anyone unaware of the marque’s pre-FWD models.

The official top speed of the 10 is 62 mph, and Stephen finds the best aspect of driving his example to be ‘the relaxing pace of 40-45 mph’.

And to see this elegant saloon today is to appreciate the appeal of the Rosalie – understated and with quite awe-inspiring levels of charm.

With Thanks To – Stephen Parrish

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