Citroën rally cars were mechanically not dissimilar to the road going versions - rear wings were generally cut away to allow easy wheel changes but later in the car's career, specific rally versions were built - often on a shortened chassis - a modification that made the cars more wieldly but at the expense of aesthetics.

My special thanks to Arthur Frijling for permission to use his photographs above and right.

The TAP was inspired by the Ricou DS driven by Robert Neyret and Jacques Terramorsi in the 1969 Rallye du Maroc. The TAP's engine is a bored out DS 21 lump which was reworked by Maserati - bigger pistons and barrels, purpose built cam and exhaust but it used the standard 5 speed DS 21 gearbox. The chassis comprises the front of a normal DS with the rear of a Break, the cut-off point being immediately behind the front seats. The earlier DS coupés were shortened saloons, this car was designed as a coupé. Everything from the B pillar forward is standard DS; the roof, rear wings and boot were originally made out of aluminium although these were replaced with polyester panels following accident damage sustained in the TAP rally This car was then left in a shed chez Citroën until 1993 when the Citroën DS Club Nederland borrowed the car and restored it to its original condition. Its first public outing was in the Grand Prix de Paris that same year when it finished 14th despite running on only 3 cylinders. In February 1994 it finished 59th in the Monte Carlo Challenge. The car has now been returned to France where it may be viewed at the Musée National de l'Automobile in Mulhouse, France .  

The photographs below were taken by Bruno Jammes at the Salon de l'Auto de Bordeaux in December 2001.  Click on them to see larger versions.  Click here to see more of his pictures of Citroëns and Panhards.