You can buy a brand new Citroen H Van

You should know the Citroen H Van. If you haven’t seen one rumbling around on the road, you’ve probably seen one that’s been converted into an organic falafel or vegan burger stall. If you’ve eaten anything prefixed with the word ‘artisan’, there’s a very good chance it came out of the open side panel of one of these.

Problem is, with production between 1947 and 1981, they’re all a bit old. The ones that didn’t rot away before retro appeal set in will now need meticulous maintence. And are likely being ferociously clung onto by their loyal owners...

There’s a solution though, and you’ve got Italian company FC Automobili to think. It’s a modern-day H Van, one that is essentially a bunch of fibreglass panels which are built onto the underparts of Citroen’s current Transit-sized hauler, the Relay. So a nice modern van with an economical diesel engine and some semblance of safety equipment.

It’s the work of a pair of men, Fabrizio Caselani and David Obendorfer, the latter having past form in modern-day retro vans. He designed this excellent (if not very real) VW T1 Revival we craved last year.

Just 70 of these H Van celebrations will be made, marking 70 years since Citroen’s van first entered production. There's no price yet, though while initial vans will be made in the FC Automobili factory, further down the line you might be able to buy a kit to bolt to your own Relay.

Would you go for it? Or do you need the real thing?