1985 Citroen GSA Special 1.3 cc from Romania

Summary:

All in all, it's a great car in its class

Faults:

When I bought it, it was a mess, but I managed to buy some original parts from another car, and now it's a beauty.

The oil leaking is a never ending story.

The seats are a mess, but comfy.

The direction is a bit unstable.

The gases from the exhaust reach the inside, and so the car is a bit messy, and I don't know what to do with it, because I tried everything.

In Romania you cannot buy tires for it. If somebody can help me, please contact me at: adoka1985@yahoo.com.

General Comments:

The car is a jewel. I like it very much because it manages all kind of terrains. The interior is comfy and spacious.

Would you buy another car from this manufacturer? Yes

Review Date: 20th June, 2006

1981 Citroen GSA Club from UK and Ireland

Summary:

Extremely practical now that we can all afford another car for the winter

Faults:

I am a great fan of the GSA and was delighted to find a superb example recently in the motoring small ads - which I immediately went off and bought and which has been a source of huge fun in the short time that I have owned it.

Unlike anything else that I have driven, the GSA gives the driver a feeling of great involvement in the journey: a bit like a motorbike, but with the ability to cosset you in the ultimate comfort and lug tons of luggage and other people around. Added to which, it seems to get quieter the faster you go, which makes it the ultimate modern motorway cruise machine.

In fact, unlike most more modern cars, which are much faster in dreary factual terms, the GSA is still relaxing to drive on A roads even behind the queues of traffic that are today's motoring experience.

I would love to sell my other two cars and rely on the GSA which seems so perfectly adapted to its environment, but have it on good authority that one or at most two English winters would see to the car for good.

Above all, this car has brought back a little bit of fun to driving - for example in accelerating from nothing to unbelievable revs in third up a gentle twisting incline - heaven!

General Comments:

This is not just a car - this is a musical instrument as well. I just wish they still made anything half as good today.

Would you buy another car from this manufacturer? Yes

Review Date: 12th June, 2006

15th Jul 2006, 13:39

I could not agree more with you, I also have a GSA from 1984 and I drive it every day. During the last month I moved from Holland to Portugal and took the car with me, I packed it until if was full and drove to the south 2500km. Within 30 days I drove 8000km with the GSA all extremely relaxed and lots of fun. You can use the GSA every day all year round, but just keep the car good, a bit of TLC helps. Good luck and NEVER sell your car, keep it on the road!!!

2nd Mar 2009, 16:10

The review was so much my opinion that I wondered for a moment if I had written it.

What a pity that we cannot roll around all year in our great little cars. I use the word advisedly, because the GSA is so neat and light compared with the giant product offerings on the market today. Of course they are fragile, but like a racing shell they are perfectly adapted to the strains that they are designed for.

The only drawback that I perceive when driving my GSA is that, because the car is so involving you tend to go too fast. I am always overtaking where I normally would just drive along resignedly in the usual queue of traffic. I feel a lot safer overtaking in my GSA than in my mighty but completely uninvolving Volvo.

When people talk about classics, they often refer to a period during which a certain car might have been manufactured. These cars aren't like that, they are classics because they stand out from the crowd in any company, vintage or modern.

I shall hang on to mine as long as I can.