It is called the Citroën FAF for Easy to Make, Easy to Finance, which sums up quite well the concept of this economical vehicle derived from the 2CV and adapted to emerging countries. It is capable of withstanding poor condition tracks and requires minimal maintenance. The FAF is well suited to harsh conditions. The bodywork was designed to be easy to produce thanks to the precedent of folded sheet metal, unlike that of sheet metal formed under expensive presses. In terms of design, the FAF has a family resemblance to the metal version of the Citroën Méhari. Its mechanics and running gear are those of a Citroën 3 CV which are shipped from France. The engine is a 652 cm3 flat twin, forced air-cooled and developing 34.5 hp, it is coupled to a 4-speed synchronized gearbox. The maximum speed is 100 km/h.
It was built in many countries under different names, in Portugal, Guinea-Bissau, in Chile under the name of Yagánau, it is called the Citroën Pony in Greece, it is known under the name of La Dalat in Vietnam, while in Senegal, the Central African Republic and Ivory Coast it is called Baby-Brousse.
But if it is indeed a Citroën that we are talking about, the original idea comes from Maurice Delignon, a carpenter from Abidjan, who built it first in 1963 in Ivory Coast under the name Baby-Brousse. Freed from its bodywork, very cumbersome in the bush. It benefits from the exceptional qualities of the 2 CV, capable of going almost anywhere and of making do with a minimum of petrol and maintenance. The concept was built from 1968 in small series by the Ateliers et Forges de l'Ebrié in Abidjan (named after a lagoon running through Abidjan) from 2 CV and 3 CV platforms from France and thus dressed in folded sheet metal.
It is the least expensive of the automobiles available in Black Africa, it is also a model rather well adapted to the needs.
If the first versions were more of a craft than a real series production, at the Quai de Javel, this initiative was viewed with benevolence and curiosity. It is difficult to say when the negotiations for a more official production began, but it must be believed that the proposals of Roland de la Poype and his Méhari inspired by the Mini Moke on a 2CV base sharpened the ambitions of an accessible, versatile and useful Citroën. However, the Méhari project was not necessarily duplicable in emerging countries because of its specific ABS (Acrylonitrile Butadiene Styrene) bodywork. Citroën was interested in these emerging markets and decided to launch the FAF program in the mid-1970s.
It was therefore in 1969 that Citroën bought the license.
If all these countries were poorly equipped in terms of industrial infrastructure, Citroën nevertheless planned that 50% of the FAF could be of local design; including the bodywork, seats and electrical wiring. Thus, in addition to adapting the vehicle to local specificities, Citroën could sell its project to the target countries by highlighting the development of the national industry, as well as the creation of jobs. However, the majority of the FAF elements would be imported in order to guarantee a low price for the vehicle.
The FAF project was finally presented in 1978 at the Dakar Fair, and Citroën offered a real range based on the FAF: a five-door saloon with a hard roof, a three-door estate, a commercial vehicle, a pick-up and even a "patrol" version intended for military forces! All the models had very angular lines given by the folded sheet metal process.
After Ivory Coast, Greece and Vietnam, it was Iran's turn to get involved. Saipan had recently started producing the Jyane (a local Dyane) and was now offering its Méhari (in fact a FAF). In Chile, the FAF was called the Yagan (a model that would not be taken up when IES took over from Citroën but, from 1984, would produce the real Méhari under the name Safari). In Portugal, in Mangualde (which would later produce the AX, but also the C15 and the latest 2CVs), the FAF project grew a little more with the real support of Citroën. From 1977, and until 1981, around 810 units were produced there. In Guinea-Bissau, there were Portuguese FAFs but a few units were manufactured locally in 1979 and 1980. Also in 1979, it was Indonesia's turn to begin production of the FAF (around 630 units). In 1980, nearly 60 FAFs were produced in the Central African Republic. In 1981, Senegal tried its luck after 500 Baby Brousses had been produced more or less regularly. Only 15 "FAF" cars would actually leave the workshops.
The FAF with the support of Citroën bowed out in 1983. From then on, the Baby Brousse would resume more or less officially. In total, the Baby Brousse, La Dalat, and Namco Pony represented around 31,050 units (a majority produced in Greece, Iran and Vietnam), while the official FAF only represented a tiny part of the production: 1,785 units. If the vehicles were essentially 4x2s, a 4x4 version was designed in Vietnam, studied by Citroën (giving birth to the Méhari 4x4) but also reproduced as a test on the FAF, in Portugal in particular. These examples were presented to the French army as part of the light vehicle contract of 1979 (but also to the Portuguese army), in addition to the project developed with Volkswagen and the Iltis: it was finally Peugeot and its P4, derived from the Mercedes G-Class, which would win the day.
Technical characteristics:
Tax power 3CV
Displacement 602 cm3
Reinforced chassis and suspension arms
Maximum speed 100km/h
Payload 509 kg
Mine type BB 3 AK
Comments