Raidtrac — The Canadian ATV with 2CV Power

Did you know that in the 1980s, Citroën continued in a rather obscure manner in Canada, supplying 2CV engines and gearboxes to Vehicules Raidtrac Inc. in Drummondville, Quebec, where they were fitted into their all-terrain vehicles?

As you see in this Raidtrac letter to RI – Nov 1982, it would appear that the smaller 435 cc engine of earlier 2CVs was installed their model 718 and the larger 602 cc engine of later 2CVs equipped their 1800 Snowcat model.

Raidtracs were made with a few body variations:

We know that the Raidtrac snowcat was produced with Citroën’s 602cc motor until at least until 1987. This one was for sale in Fort Colins, CO earlier this year and you can see the 2CV engine nestled in the engine bay;

^{1987 Raidtrac 1800 Snowcat with fiberglass body, 2 cyl. Citroen 602cc motor, air cooled, 4 speed manual transmission with reverse, chain drive, turn brakes, 30″ wide tracks, aluminum grousers, solid bogey tires with grease zerks on the hubs, 7 gallon fuel tank, roughly 11′ long x 7′ wide x 7′ tall (at exhaust), weighs around 3000-3500 pounds, front and rear receiver hitches, 18mph top speed, electric fans to pull heat out of the engine compartment (switched), air diverters to pull heat from the engine into the cab.}

^{This is possibly the only Raidtrac snowcat with this body in existence. I have not been able to find another picture or documentation of it anywhere. Currently a single seat, but it would be very simple to add bench seats to each side in the rear of the cab.}

Looking into Canadian Government records, RAIDTRAC VEHICULES INC. (also known as VEHICULES RAIDTRAC INC.) was a federal corporation in Montreal incorporated with Corporations Canada, a division of Innovation, Science and Economic Development (ISED) Canada. The entity was incorporated on July 28, 1980 with corporation #680028, and dissolved on January 22, 2004.

It came into existence from a previous business making all-terrain vehicles known as PlayCat in the same Drummondville factory.

The Playcat was manufactured by Playcat International Corporation in Drummondville. Similar to the Cushman Tracker, the Playcat was a tracked ATV built for traversing marsh and snow terrains. They were ultimately put out of business from infringing on the PassePartout’s patented drivetrain. Playcat assets were sold and reproduced as Raidtrac with a different drivetrain, that being the 2CV from Citroën.