| Unusual Four wheel drive systems
Prompted by a perceived need for a simple, inexpensive all-terrain vehicle for oil exploration in North Africa, the French motor manufacturer Citroën developed the 2CV Sahara. Unlike other 4x4 vehicles which use a conventional transfer case to drive two axles, the Sahara had a modified front axle, engine and gearbox fitted to the rear of the vehicle, facing backwards.
The throttles, clutches and gearchange mechanisms could be linked, so both 12bhp engines could run together, or they could be split and the car driven on either engine. Combined with twin fuel tanks and twin batteries (which could be set up to run either or both engines), the redundancy of two separate drive trains meant that they could make it back to civilization even after major mechanical failures. Only around 700 of these cars were built, and there are no clear records of how many still exist. Enthusiasts have built their own "new" Saharas, by rebuilding a 2CV and fitting the modified engine, gearbox and axle onto a new, strengthened chassis.
BMC experimented with a twin-engined Mini Moke in the mid-1960s, but never put it into production.  |