With the initial Nazi successes of WW2, many foreign countries fell to the Reich. Conquered and occupied, these countries were pressed into service in support of the German war effort.
They would give their raw materials in support of wartime manufacture. They would house some of the worst of the Nazi concentration camps. And they would build the weapons of war used by Hitler in his fanatical attempt to conquer the world.
There was little that many in these countries could do to fight back. Those found supporting any organized resistance, or aiding foreign powers, would be summarily shot.
But this did not stop the fighters. Small acts of sabotage here and there would damage the Nazi machine. And perhaps the most subtle of these came from the French vehicle manufacturer Citroen.
A Manufacturing Error
France had been rolled over by the Nazi blitzkrieg in 1940, with Paris falling in June of that year. France’s vast manufacturing might was pressed into service for the Nazi cause, and this included the factories of Citroen, then as now one of France’s largest automotive manufacturers.
Citroen’s T-45 trucks were highly useful heavy loaders for the Nazi armed forces, and the production lines were kept going with these vehicles now being used by the enemy. For the President of Citroen, Pierre-Jules Boulanger, this was an unacceptable situation.
But what, after all, could he do? Any attempt to refuse would have led to his removal and replacement: Germany would have their trucks, and he would likely be shot. No, something more subtle was required.
Boulanger’s solution was brilliant. Of course Hitler could have his trucks, and the trucks that rolled off the line were finished in every way. Only one small thing had been changed – the notch on the dipstick had been moved.
This notch is the only practical way of measuring whether the truck has enough oil in the engine to avoid damage. By moving the notch down, Citroen made it appear that the trucks needed less oil to run than was true.
Nor was this something which would be immediately apparent. The trucks would appear to run fine for a time, only failing later with seized engines when they were likely in active service. Such failings could easily be attributed to wear and tear of wartime use, and if anybody thought to check the trucks themselves there would be nothing to be found.
And in a final stroke of genius, should Citroen come back under Allied control it would only take the smallest of changes to render the trucks coming off the production line reliable again. Citroen had started making trucks that worked for the Allies and not for the Nazis, without a single change to anything mechanical.
Well played, Citroen.
Top Image: A Citroen T-45 truck. Citroen’s sabotage was small, reversible, and devastatingly effective. Source: TycoonX / CC BY-SA 3.0.
By Joseph Green
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