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Lighting situation getting grim. 11 miles north of Greenville 
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Apr 25, 2022 01:29
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Fingers crossed.
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Apr 25, 2022 01:34
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What great pictures. She looks amazing, too.
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Apr 25, 2022 02:13
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Got pulled over by some suspicious cop, told him the whole story, he was like lol whatever, I'm not even gonna write you up a warning, I don't even know what is call this thing. Rear tail light is out Passenger side headlight is working intermittently. The blinker switch lit up for a while, then did not. Fed the car a quart of oil at about the half way mark Arrived 
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Apr 25, 2022 05:40
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Awesome. A great thread and trip report. I'm a big Citroën fancier (as the name/avatar should hint at...I have a thread about my 2CV here in AI) and I've loved Tractions from the first time I drove one. They're like a very slow 1980s car in the body of a 1930s one. Glad it seems to be treating you well so far. Traction seem quite prone to vapour lock, usually either because the heat shield under the carburettor has gone missing (e: although I see in your engine bay pics that it's still there) or the non-return valves in the lift pump are worn. Modern fuel is more volatile than what was available in France in the 1950s so even a slight leak can cause vapour bubbles to form.
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Apr 25, 2022 12:55
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hell yeah you made it!
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Apr 25, 2022 14:42
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Y E S! OK, the headlight & taillight being out may be some mild corrosion at the plug contacts. A few light strokes with steel wool & some alcohol should help the contacts on the headlight & the body of the bulb. You can use electronics contact cleaner & then some contact paste to promote contact & prevent corrosion. A rear bulb out can drop voltage enough so that the blinker relay can't >blink< so try that first. Did it consume a quart on the trip home, or was it a bit low at the start?
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Apr 25, 2022 15:45
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I have no suggestions for any problems because this car is a dinosaur and I mean that in the best way, but I'm glad you made it home okay.
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Apr 25, 2022 16:45
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Yeah I'm gonna have to go over the electrical system, probably worth replacing everything if possible. Swap in LED where practical, the rear tail lights are tiny and I need as much nighttime rear visibility as I can get The guy who restored it is really handy with mechanical things, I don't think he touched the electrics beyond the ignition and starter The oil dip stick has a well defined notch on both sides and the oil was exactly in the middle when I found it cold in DC. I was kind of woozy from gas fumes (tank overfilled and pooled up gas somewhere, I think? I'll enjoy getting blood cancer later I guess) and it looked slightly low so I just dumped the quart in there for good measure in a "let's just get home, I'm loving exhausted, engine probably won't sieze if I do this" probably a mistake for fuel efficiency but don't think it did any permanent harm? Gonna rain tonight, will have to move the car so I'll check it then Checked my stats, looks like my trip was about 420 miles all in, and averaged about 18mpg, probably averaging 41mph(?) I subscribed to the 2CV thread, will have to check that out looks very info dense with similarly detailed description Edit: engine holds 4.5L which is 4.75 quarts of oil Hadlock fucked around with this message at 16:54 on Apr 25, 2022 |
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Apr 25, 2022 16:49
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Holy poo poo that’s awesome.
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Apr 25, 2022 20:00
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Next order of business should be to put a gun rack in the rear window and get yourself a MAS 36 for it. 
Cyrano4747 fucked around with this message at 20:40 on Apr 25, 2022 |
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Apr 25, 2022 20:01
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Chauchat imo
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Apr 25, 2022 20:05
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 Went to go park it in the garage and the lighting was perfect   
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Apr 26, 2022 01:18
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Felicitations!
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Apr 26, 2022 02:47
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What a beautiful suite of photos! Looks like a goddamn calendar for May. Say what you will about French automakers, but drat if they didn't produce some gorgeous designs and, hands down, the most comfortable seats in any car. The only concern I have about overfilling the crankcase oil is that the crank counterweights will thrash the oil into a foam, and if that gets sucked into the oil pump, unwelcome excitement follows. A moot point since you made it home. If it doesn't have one, may I suggest installation of an electronic oil pressure gauge. Every car I owned got coolant & oil pressure gauges if they weren't already so equipped.
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Apr 26, 2022 02:49
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God drat that's a sexy vehicle
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Apr 26, 2022 08:08
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Hadlock posted:. I was kind of woozy from gas fumes (tank overfilled and pooled up gas somewhere, I think? I'll enjoy getting blood cancer later I guess) and it looked slightly low so I just dumped the quart in there for good measure in a "let's just get home, I'm loving exhausted, engine probably won't sieze if I do this" So I've been taking Vick's 44 cough medicine which is real DXM which is the active ingredient. I bought some Walmart brand cough medicine which was also labeled DXM, and took two full shots of it, because that had been working out for me with my really ugly and persistent cough (been to a doc, not covid, just awful though) Anyways I guess there's DXM hga and... DXM... some variant that's six times as powerful that they put in store brand cough medicine. So I guess I was robo-tripping down the highway at 45mph which might explain why I forgot to set my ignition timing back to normal after starting the car and it was running kind of rough and low on power
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Apr 27, 2022 02:47
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OP I came across this and I do believe it belongs in this thread:
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Apr 28, 2022 22:32
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I'll have to add that to the OP Apparently the woozy was a mix of cough medicine and the crazy steroids I was taking. Turns out there is a small gas leak on the drain plug for the gas tank, nothing serious but gonna tighten that up Also there's a leak where a... Cable? Maybe the speedo cable comes out, looks very minor. It's coming out of the top front of the transmission. The engine is bone dry which is nice Also looks like the whole exterior of the bottom of the car is coated in some intense anti corrosion, including the suspension etc so that's contained and not an issue. Inside of the car doesn't appear to have any rust and well preserved. This is the first chance I've had to really look at the car in good daylight when I wasn't racing to get back home so nice to see it looks as good as the inspection said it was Getting rear seat belts installed today at some random jeep 4x4 shop, so I can put a car seat in the back, and also haul around my nephew when he comes to visit 
Hadlock fucked around with this message at 21:29 on Apr 29, 2022 |
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Apr 29, 2022 21:25
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Apparently you can order custom euro plates online, what novelty plate (s) should I order? I think you're limited to 9 characters https://www.customeuropeanplates.com/eec-france-license-plate-yellow-p-135.html?category_id=1  
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Apr 29, 2022 21:33
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Apr 29, 2022 21:35
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HONHONHON
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Apr 29, 2022 22:06
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spankmeister posted:OP I came across this and I do believe it belongs in this thread: 
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Apr 29, 2022 22:31
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How could I have missed this thread? The TA is in my top 3 of favorite cars ever (the others are the DS and the 2CV  ).What a beautiful specimen! I am intensely envious.
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Apr 30, 2022 22:38
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Get all the license plates and just rotate them at your whim. BTW this thread has one of the best titles I've seen in AI in a long time. When I see it I have to read it out loud to myself and I chuckle every single time.
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May 3, 2022 00:30
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Finally had a chance to check the oil and it's showing on the low end of the notch. Maintenance manual says should be at the top of the notch. This is after adding a quart of oil ~250 miles ago on the initial drive down from DC. Also there are three 6" dots of oil stain (not puddles, thankfully) forming on the garage floor so I'll need to get under there and dig around, figure out what's going on. Will order plates tomorrow
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May 3, 2022 04:59
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You gotta get “BONJOUR” on the front and “AU REVOIR” or “A BIEN TOT” on the back, IMO
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May 3, 2022 20:53
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May 4, 2022 18:30
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J’AIMEDESSLUTS
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May 4, 2022 18:44
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Ok Comboomer posted:You gotta get “BONJOUR” on the front and “AU REVOIR” or “A BIEN TOT” on the back, IMO c’est ça Amazing car; get some period clothes and luggage and document a weekend trip to some getaway popular in your area back then.
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May 4, 2022 18:45
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I love these things, there used to be a guy down the street who had one as his only car. I got talking to him and he said it was remarkably dependable after about 6 months of absolute hell. Apparently he got fed up and replaced everything that has anything to do with fuel or electrons
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May 8, 2022 08:48
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Wow I just found this thread, shame on me for neglecting AI. Beautiful car.
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May 8, 2022 20:31
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PainterofCrap posted:Go go go, baby! And take lots of photos/video! Turns out I took almost exactly 30 minutes of video, here is a link to the youtube (which is probably DRM/DMCA's to the moon with all the music in the background). It's 99% just driving through country roads, so if you have half an hour to kill this week maybe watch this, or something. Other than the first 15 seconds there's no narration. Buyer beware. Fake edit: ok, Sort of looks like youtube let me upload the video and forced me to auto-swap one song. Youtube has gotten really advanced. Looks like it might actually upload minus the one song. Made a lovely youtube card for it. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2HWmUriO3LY Here is a link to the video privately hosted, with tunes and no DCMA fuckery. I think you have to download it, otherwise chrome just treats it as an audio file: https://hadlocks-bucket.s3.us-west-1.amazonaws.com/citroen_traction_avant_dc_to_nc.mp4 Also I realized my trip was roughly the same plot as the lyrics to Wagon Wheel Top moments: 4:05 summer time song, pretty much encapsulates the whole drive, if you watch nothing else this is the part to watch 17:45 long shot out the back window 20:44 interior shots of the dash, seats etc 21:41 wagon wheel First 6 min involves cruising through some twisty stuff in SW maryland down 301 Real quick I think my route is Alexandria VA Waldorf MD Port Royal VA Tappahannock Newport News Suffolk VA Winton NC Greenville NC Further south At one point I ended up on "shortcut road" for what seemed like 30 miles. In retrospect that was super dangerous because a) my taillights predate modern retroreflector standards and even if they didn't, are tiny tiny dots b) there's no shoulder to pull off on to, it just dumps directly into swamp and c) no gas or services of any kind Hadlock fucked around with this message at 07:52 on May 9, 2022 |
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May 9, 2022 07:47
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Hadlock posted:Turns out I took almost exactly 30 minutes of video, here is a link to the youtube (which is probably DRM/DMCA's to the moon with all the music in the background). It's 99% just driving through country roads, so if you have half an hour to kill this week maybe watch this, or something. Other than the first 15 seconds there's no narration. Buyer beware. Fake edit: ok, Sort of looks like youtube let me upload the video and forced me to auto-swap one song. Youtube has gotten really advanced. Looks like it might actually upload minus the one song. Made a lovely youtube card for it. there’s probably no song that I find more viscerally repellent than Wagon Wheel, might actually rather listen to nails on a chalkboard or the most alienating noise music than that song anyway that’s a kick-rear end video, well done
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May 9, 2022 08:31
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Is "Essence" the fuel gauge?
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May 9, 2022 15:31
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Yeah and it's in absolute liters, which really confused me at first "so am I just expected to not worry about fuel until I get to 50%?!" which given everything else Citroen does, seems not completely out of the question* 50L is about 12 gallons but in reality it holds closer to 13 Apparently the gauge cluster can be backlit, and I found what might be the switch but it's either rusted or activated in some weird way. Driving this car is like playing the first 30 minutes of bioshock There's a chrome.... Stick under the dash that I think is the parking brake but haven't figured that out yet, still using a rock and 2x4 scrap The P switch is the dome light (maps to ceiling light or similar in French) while E is windshield wipers which are actually quite vigorous for their age. The knob is the manual wiper knob, required by French law for a really long time. It spins on the dash at about 10rpm when the wipers are going  *"Locking" the door involves a mechanism that disengages the handle from the door and now it spins freely. That might be worth a video. Apparently this is how they do it on the 2CV as well. The first time you do it, you're like ... Did... Did I just lock myself out of my car and the only door with a lock has a non functional door handle, very disturbing Hadlock fucked around with this message at 16:28 on May 9, 2022 |
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May 9, 2022 16:25
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Hadlock posted:Apparently the gauge cluster can be backlit, and I found what might be the switch but it's either rusted or activated in some weird way. Driving this car is like playing the first 30 minutes of bioshock The backlight control should be a little black plastic stick on the right-hand side of the instrument cluster. It's a rheostat, with an 'Off' position and then an adjustable range. The silver round control next to that will be the adjuster for the clock. It's been too long since I last drove a Traction, but IIRC the handbrake is a straight pull to set the brake against the ratchet, then to release you pull the handle to its limit, twist it 90 degrees and then it springs back without the ratchet. Unlike 2CVs and the later big Citroëns the brake acts on the back wheels, not the front. My 2CV has exactly the same door/trunk lid locks. The fuel filler cap locks in the same way too - when locked it just spins. It does take a bit of getting used to. On a late 2CV you can play the fun game 'spot the bits from a Traction which they still used 40 years later, but now made from cheap nasty plastic.' The Traction's manual windscreen wiper knob is on the 2CV as the control for the air vent flap under the windscreen, the headlamp column switch is from the very late Traction (and still has the old Citroen logo in the plastic) as are the pedal rubbers and some other little bits.
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May 9, 2022 16:46
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Made my first parts order. Picked up a full set of 6v bulbs for the entire car, looks like 23 bulbs all in. At only $1-3 each pretty cheap but adds up, and the yellow hi/lo beam french socket bulbs are pretty pricey at $25, as are the parking/position lights. Not sure if I need all of these, but a) most of them don't work, haven't pulled out the multimeter yet but probably a safe bet and b) i'm ordering them from germany might as well ship in bulk cut down on costs, and don't want to wait a week or two more to order more. Ordered an oil pressure switch because that seems like a good thing to have a new, functional one of. Also ordered all the blinker assembly stuff, I think. Not sure what is wrong with my blinker assembly, but it's ~$75 for everything and I really like having working blinkers if I'm gonna replace the bulbs and lenses. Also ordered a new gas tank drain plug and washer because supposedly that is leaking. Also ordered new windshield wipers because the old ones look.... well I just have no idea how old those things are. They're crispy looking single blade rubber things, and they're only $3 each to replace. I will probably end up building my own modified from a silicone bosch wiper later. Also also ordered a new fuel tank sender as mine appears to be sticky until you put at least 3/4 tank then it works ok. The TA 11CV has a really nice access panel in the trunk that lets you get to the top of the gas tank to swap that stuff out. All in parts were about $300 including $70 flat fee international shipping Other news Drove the car six short blocks to the gas station that sells 100% gasoline (0% ethanol) what I think is the low oil pressure light came on again. Put in three gallons of gas and bought an outrageously priced $9.50 quart of 20-50 SAE oil in. This brought the oil level from exactly the bottom of the notch on the dip stick to exactly the top of the notch, which apparently is where it should be at, and also tells me that notch is exactly 1 quart of oil. The suspected low oil light came on for about 5 seconds so I'm eager to see if the new oil pressure switch fixes that problem. Although thinking about it, that light doesn't come on when the ignition is on and the car is off so I guess it's time to play trace-the-wire. Also also, apparently there's a starter switch in the engine bay somewhere(?!) ordering a cylinder pressure tester so I can get some baseline. There is a blog somewhere called "old jalopy" or something, he seems to think 90psi is about the right reading for a healthy cylinder. The TA has a compression ratio of ~6.5:1 which might explain why these engines last forever. I think the Ford Model A (that came after the Model T you were thinking of before I said this) had a 4:1 compression ratio and produced about 80% of it's peak horsepower even with totally blown rings. Want to validate the cylinders are healthy and then work my way through the fuel system and see if I can recover some power/improve idling characteristics. It has a solex carb which I guess is sort of the chevy smallblock of 2 liter engine carbs BalloonFish posted:The backlight control should be a little black plastic stick on the right-hand side of the instrument cluster. It's a rheostat, with an 'Off' position and then an adjustable range. The silver round control next to that will be the adjuster for the clock. Ok I'll give it another shot. Mine might just be rusted in place. Another part to find/buy. Weirdly Jose Franssen didn't have this on their parts page. 6v rheostat shouldn't be hard to find though. Hopefully. Hadlock fucked around with this message at 21:54 on May 10, 2022 |
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May 10, 2022 21:51
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Hadlock posted:This brought the oil level from exactly the bottom of the notch on the dip stick to exactly the top of the notch, which apparently is where it should be at, and also tells me that notch is exactly 1 quart of oil. It's a liter (naturally) but that's ofc close enough to a quart that it basically doesn't matter. Lots of (non-American tbh) cars I've owned have had that same volume between lower and upper limits on the dipstick. EDIT: I mean, could they have made another dipstick with a quart instead of a liter between the markings, sure, but I doubt it.
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May 13, 2022 10:10
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My schedule is all hosed up because of a project, and I live near a beach, please enjoy:
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May 18, 2022 11:26
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