Lomax 224 – Into the Wild

The best-known 2CV-based kit cars here in the Netherlands undoubtedly come from Burton, an originally Dutch company that has recently come into French hands. About six and a half years ago we already thought about a Burton that turned up in the wild. A nice spot, but a Burton is not too rare either. On summer weekends, there is a relatively good chance that you will spot one or even more Burtons. A bit more special is this spot by AutoWeek forum member Afentoe, who bumped into a real Lomax 224.

Broadly speaking, the Lomax may also remind you of the Burton conversions, but a closer look reveals that the Lomax set-up was quite different. The Lomax looks a bit more stocky than a Burton, with the seats visually further forward and its narrower body. It is also a somewhat more classic-looking body and simple fenders hang above the wheels, instead of the larger gracefully shaped side screens of the Burton. The most obvious difference is the pointy butt of the Lomax. If it reminds you of a classic Morgan, that could be right. You also had the Lomax 223, a tricycle inspired by the Morgan Supersports 3 Wheeler from the 1930s. The 224 had the same pointed stern, only with two wheels on either side.

The chassis of the Lomax 224 was also just the same as that of the donor car. That could be a Citroën 2CV, Dyane or Ami. In this case, a Citroën 2CV6 from 1982 was taken as the basis. So in the nose is a 602 cc two-cylinder boxer engine that releases 29 full horsepower on the front wheels. Thanks to the light polyester body and the open seat (provided you remove the fabric roof), you can still have the experience that it goes fast despite that modest power. The idea behind the Lomax is ‘low cost, maximum fun‘, hence the name, and that doesn’t seem to lie to us.

The current owner received the keys in 2008 and the 2CV was probably already converted into a Lomax 224 by then, because the Lomax company went bankrupt four years earlier. In any case, it is a converted car here, because the basic car is originally Dutch. Incidentally, it seems that the owner not only has a soft spot for converted 2CVs, because there is still a nice 2CV from 1986 in the driveway that has not yet been fitted with a saw.