The Citroën CX mirrors fitted to British sports cars

When it comes to large French saloons, the Citroën CX ranks among the finest examples: bold, comfortable and, above all, successful, with 1.1 million units built from 1974 to 1991.

Yet one CX component enjoyed a longer life than the car itself: the second-series model’s door mirrors. Curiously, these mirrors went on to feature mainly on British vehicles.

Citroën CX mirrors on the Jaguar XJ220

This may come as a surprise to some. The best-known example is a supercar, the Jaguar XJ220. This British model still attracts some controversy today, although its mirrors are not the reason: they were sourced from the very French Citroën CX.

Aston Martin and Lotus models

Aston Martin also fitted them to the V8 Virage and Vantage of the 1980s and 1990s, retaining them into this century on the far more modern DB7. They also appeared on the Lotus Excel and Esprit, the latter remaining in production until 2004.

TVR and other sports cars

Do you remember TVR? Citroën CX mirrors were also selected for the V8S, Tasmin, Griffith and Chimaera. The little-known Marcos Mantis used them too. Every one was a British sports car. We found only one non-British model: the French MVS Venturi sports car.