1985 Citroen GSA Special from Romania - Comments

Everything, from electrical to mechanical parts. Every two weeks something new went wrong! The list would be too long.

I suspect this was because of the previous owner(s), but anyway I spent my money for nothing.

Comfortable car and that's it. It drinks petrol and oil like a thirsty mammoth!

Don't you ever think of buying one!

They are one of the most reliable cars to own. Mine consumes no oil and an average of 8L of gas on 100km. You should not neglect them too much. The one I have has had no problems at all, it's a 1983 GSA X3 with 99000km on the clock. Wonderful cars to drive and rarely you see one on Belgian roads.

Was it a imported Tomoz assembled Yugoslavian GS?

I have 1980 Tomos made GSA and it is very reliable.

My own experience of the citroen gs is that it has been cheap to buy and run, very comfortable, and with average to good reliability.

I own a GSA 1980 model. Wonderful! I have carelessly driven it for two years around Rhodes, on all kinds of terrain, she's still alive and kicking, worth every Drachma!

I have owned two GSA's, and on my way to buy my third.

I have had little problems other than original parts are difficult and expensive to get. Therefore I had to use non-original parts, which leads to more problems. One bad experience doesn't mean the car is generally bad. Far from it!

1978 Citroen GS Pallas RHD.

I bought mine after 2 owners and 37,000 miles.

I now have 43,000 mies on the clock and I have performed my own routine servicing.

It drives better than my girlfriends 1998 Fiesta, has averaged 35 mpg, turns heads, is "challenging" to work on and drives like nothing else, with un-equaled brakes, steering, ride and stability for it's age and not bad by todays standards.

I wish the car wasn't an inevitable victim of rust, but it looks great at the moment and I will keep her on the road as long as I can. I would rather spend another £10,000 on keeping her roadworthy than throwing the money at an anonymous "euro hatch" of the present day. Excellent visibility and accommodation combined with long distance comfort make her the best car I have ever owned.

I have only recently bought a GS Club so I can't really comment accurately on reliability although I have heard that they are OK so long as they are maintained well. I have to say that these cars could never be described as bad as they are true design classics both technically and in looks. They have a lower drag co-efficient that a Ferrari Daytona, ultra smooth magic carpet ride, amazing handling, steering and brakes, lovely interiors with the nicest seats on a car of this size. I have to say that fuel ecconomy doesn't seem great at this point, but I believe people when they say they get 35 miles to the gallon and I'm sure it depends on how well set up the engine is.

As you say these cars are a waste of money, I can only guess that you paid way over the odds for a scrap car, as they are very reliable when serviced correctly and parts are as cheap as any other classic when you can find them. I have owned 3 GS and have now just bought a GSA and the only one that caused me any bother was my very first car and even then at £140 I don't regard this as a waste of money as it lasted me a year.

By the way, they should average betweeen 33 & 40 miles per gallon,depending on how you drive and the model, otherwise get it serviced!