[4] The Citroën BX was announced in June 1982,[5] but its commercial life really only began in the Autumn of that year,[5] with a Paris presentation on 2 October 1982[6] under the Eiffel Tower.

The BX was designed to replace the successful small family car Citroën GS/GSA that was launched in 1970, with a larger vehicle (although the GSA continued until 1986).

The British advertising campaign used the slogan "Loves Driving, Hates Garages", reflecting the effort of Citroën to promote the reduced maintenance costs of the BX, over the higher than average maintenance costs of the technologically advanced GS/GSA; while still performing in the Citroën style on the road.

Among the features that set the car apart from the competition was the traditional Citroën hydropneumatic self-levelling suspension, extensive use of plastic body panels (bonnet, tailgate, bumpers), and front and rear disc brakes.

[8] It was produced in a new engine plant at Trémery built specifically for this purpose, and was later introduced in a larger 1.9-litre version and saw long service in a variety of Peugeots and Citroëns.

A four-speed automatic by ZF was introduced as an option on the 16 RS and TRS in July 1984, and added to the 19 TRD in February 1986.

The interior and dashboard were redesigned to be more conventional-looking than the original, which used Citroën's idiosyncratic "satellite" switchgear, and "bathroom scale" speedometer.

[11] The exterior was also slightly updated, with new more rounded bumpers, flared wheelarches to accept wider tyres, new and improved mirrors and the front indicators replaced with larger clear ones which fitted flush with the headlights.

[12] In 1989, the BX range had further minor revisions and specification improvements made to it, including smoked rear lamp units, new wheel trims and interior fabrics.

Winning many Towcar of the Year awards, the BX was renowned as a tow car (as was its larger sister, the CX), especially the diesel models, due to their power and economy combined with the self levelling suspension.

The engine modifications, including a reshaped combustion chamber and larger valves, were developed by famous French tuner Danielson.

Period road tests complimented the ride quality (as usual with Citroëns) but complained that the driving characteristics were not all that sporty as a result, even though the suspension had also been modified.

The rally version of the BX also featured the unique hydropneumatic suspension, and the five-speed manual gearbox from the Citroën SM.

Aside from being overweight and with bad weight distribution, the BX 4TC also suffered from restricted suspension travel compared to the competition and did not feature a central differential, meaning that the front and rear axle were usually struggling against each other - limiting the cars effectiveness on tarmac in particular.

The result was the XU9J4; a naturally aspirated 1.9 L engine, (also fitted to the phase 1 Peugeot 405 Mi16) producing 158 bhp (118 kW) and 177 N⋅m (131 lb⋅ft) of torque.

The updated car came with new fibreglass bumpers, anthracite painted wheels, smoked taillight lenses, and a redesigned rear spoiler.

There were also a few subtle changes made to the car's performance, the most noticeable being harder suspension and a thicker anti-roll bar, which improved handling.

The BX 16V was found to be faster around a race-track than the "in house" competitor Peugeot 405 Mi16 in a test in the Swedish motoring magazine Teknikens Värld.

Also in Sweden, young driver Magnus Gustafsson competed successfully in rally with a group A tuned BX 16V.

The regular BX estate couldn't be registered as a van in Finland because Finnish law required vans to have a cargo space at least 130 centimeters high and 2.5m3 in cargo volume, lengthwise measured awkwardly from inner boot lid to the bottom of steering wheel.