Welcome to this week’s FC Throwback, where we take a look back at some of our favourite previous feature cars. This week it’s Joe Hobbs’s C2 from 2013…
Dressed in deep purple paint and wearing custom mint green rims, Joe Hobbs’s C2 is smashing the scene with its bold colours and dirty lows!
Growing up surrounded by petrol heads was only going to end up one way for Reading-based modder Joe Hobbs. As soon as he was handed his driving licence Joe went on the hunt for a suitable base car.
After a long search, he finally decided on a standard Citroen C2. “I went for the C2 because it was different to what most of my mates were going for, and I wanted a car to stand out,” Joe tells us.
A standard C2 was never going to stand out from the crowd though, and in no time at all Joe got the mods rolling. Sorting out that ride height was top of his hit list, so Joe fitted a set of coilovers and decked it to a respectable height.
When it came to sorting out a set of rims, Joe wanted to go the extra mile and find something unique. After putting in a call to the guys at Image Wheels a design was picked. The end result is a set of custom-built three-piece rims in staggered 8.5x15in and 9.5x15in fitment. Before they were fitted, the rims were wrapped in Toyo 195/45×15 tyres. A simple drop and set of rims was never going to cut it though, so Joe turned his attention to sorting out that boring exterior.
Local bodyshop Imagination Creations were put in charge of sorting the Citroen’s shell. The front bumper has been fully smoothed, together with the rear to give it a clean and uncluttered finish. The boys have also worked their magic on the boot and deleted the aerial. At the same time all the badges were removed and a de-badged grille was fitted. With all the panels up to scratch it was time for Joe to pick a colour to dress the C2 in.
After a fair bit of head scratching, Chris from Imagination Creations and Joe settled on a custom, mixed-purple paint. Every inch of the car has been covered in this deep purple finish and makes for a fresh alternative to the usual Euro colours we see. The car was taking shape, but even with the coilovers, it still wasn’t sitting quite right.
There was only one way to go – to really dump the C2 on its arse, so Joe booked the car in with HavAir. The Citroen is now fully loaded with a four-way air-ride system that allows it to cock a wheel at the flick of a switch. The rear seats have been binned, and replaced with a pair of three gallon tanks that Joe had painted to replicate a pair of Duracell batteries. The interior has been treated to a pair of Recaros and a 300mm Momo wheel. A JLW3 Audio sub and amp combined with an Alpine headunit take care of the tunes, while a Powerflow custom exhaust system gives the car a nice little burble.
This might be Joe’s first attempt at modding a car, but he’s completely nailed it – job done!
TECH SPEC CITROEN C2
Styling
Smoothed front bumper, rear bumper, bonnet, boot and aerial, de-badged grille, custom paint job
Chassis
Air-ride, 2x three gallon air tanks, hardlines, four-way AVS 9 channel switch box, AVS digital gauge, Airzenith compressor, custom built three-piece staggered 8.5x15in and 9.5x15in Image Wheels, T1R Toyo 195/45×15 tyres
Interior
Stripped rear seats, custom boot build with air tanks custom painted as Duracell batteries, Recaro VXR bucket seats, 300mm Momo steering wheel, handmade custom billet aluminium gear knob
Audio
JLW3 Audio sub, JLW amp, Alpine headunit
Tuning
Powerflow exhaust
Thanks
Chris Ronchetti, Michael Hobbs, Geoff Skinner, Molly Coates, Danny Braggins, Massimo Boukas, Darron Augustus, Lil Olly (Olly Scott), Doug Smith, all my family and friends
Words Nick Turner Pics Laurens Parsons