1937 Citroen 11BL- Traction Avant

The Traction Avant, French for front-wheel drive, was designed by André Lefèbvre and Flaminio Bertoni in late 1933 / early 1934. The Traction Avant pioneered mass-production of three revolutionary innovations widely adopted since, and still used today: front-wheel drive, four-wheel independent suspension, and the use of a crash resistant, unitary, monocoque body. Additionally, the car was one of the earliest mass-production adopters of rack and pinion steering.

The novel design made the car very low-slung relative to its contemporaries – the Traction Avant was always distinctive, which went from appearing rakish in 1934 to familiar and somewhat old fashioned by 1955.