The Citroën FAF is a small utility vehicle produced by the French manufacturer Citroën from 1973 until 1981. It was built using a combination of imported and locally sourced components in various developing countries . The body was made of easy to produce, folded steel panels, giving an appearance resembling a metal-bodied version of the Méhari . The flat metal panels and simple components were meant to allow for easier production, mostly in developing countries.
7-454: The origin of this idea was the privately built 1963 Baby-Brousse from Ivory Coast , and its many derivatives. Notably these include La Dalat (Vietnam), Pony (Greece), Jyane-Mehari (Iran), and Yagan (Chile). The various Baby-Brousse cars were quite successful, selling over 30,000 units. Both the FAF and Baby-Brousse are derived from the 2CV . The concept predates the FAF name, so it
14-731: A company in Abidjan, the capital of the Ivory Coast . Baby Brousse-type vehicles have been made and sold under different names in several places: The first FAFs were built in 1977, at the Citroën plant in Mangualde , Portugal. In Argentina: Savoiacars, has prepared some cars based on the Méhari, with improved platform and engine, and another with a body of their own design. Various kit car style bodies were also developed, inspired by
21-488: Is often erroneously reported that some of Baby-Brousse vehicles were based on the FAF. FAF stood for the French Facile à Fabriquer and Facile à Financer (Easy to Manufacture, Easy to Finance). The primary target market for the FAF was Africa. However, the concept of a "second-class" car that was connected with the FAF seems to have affected its manufacture and sales remained low. The FAF idea coincided with
28-541: The Ceylon Transport Board in the early 1970s failed due to a dispute over royalties, but a prototype was displayed at the Republic Day celebrations in 1974. Various kit car style bodies inspired by the FAF and Méhari, such as Belgium 's VanClee, were also developed. Baby-Brousse The Baby-Brousse is a Citroën 2CV -based utility vehicle , initially privately built, that later spawned
35-531: The FAF series of vehicles. Similar to a metal-bodied Citroën Méhari , the Baby-Brousse was a success with more than 31,000 being built from 1963 to 1987. The entire body was made of folded sheet metal with the other parts being bolted together without welding. The Baby-Brousse was originally conceived in 1963 by two Frenchmen, Messrs. Letoquin and Lechanteurin, owners of Les Ateliers et Forges de l'Ebrié ,
42-658: The Pony. This was the most successful version of these 'simplified' 2CV utility vehicles, selling 30,000 units. The Pony was exported as well, including to the United States of America . Production of this "poor man’s jeep," that benefitted from special tax rules, ended in 1983, two years after Greece joined the European Union . 67% of the parts were of Greek origin. An attempt to start production in Sri Lanka by
49-569: The widespread production of Baby Brousse 2CV-based vehicles in many countries, so the two often overlap. In 1969, Citroën's Vietnamese subsidiary began building La Dalat , the first automobile manufactured in Vietnam . Production ended when Americans departed Saigon in 1975 at the end of the Vietnam War . In total, 3880 Dalats were built. In 1972, the Greek firm Namco began production of
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