Three thousand, seven hundred and fifty pounds sounds like a lot of money for a 954cc Citroën AX with the crash protection of a croissant and performance best measured against livestock.
And yet, look at it. Just look at it.
When Petrolblog ventured into the world like a blinking teenager seeing daylight after a marathon gaming session, the AX was still part of the UK’s street furniture. The sort of thing you bought for £375, ran through winter, ignored a faint smell of damp carpet, then sold to someone called Craig who needed “a little runabout for the missus”.
That was a long time ago. Today, the AX is an endangered species, so seeing one is an event. It’s the sort of car you photograph in a Waitrose car park and stick on Instagram with the hashtag #FrenchTat.
Not that you can describe this one as tatty. On the contrary, it’s a proper survivor, described by the vendor as “probably one of the best examples available”. There’s no risk of “probably” doing much heavy lifting here; from the photos, this is almost certainly one of the best AX Sprees in the country.
With a little prep, it could probably leave next year’s Festival of the Unexceptional with a prize. It’s that good, if the photos are anything to go by.
It has effectively had one lady owner from new, with the car transferred within the family after the original owner passed away, which explains the two-owner status. It’s always been garaged, which explains the condition, and has covered just 30,542 miles since it rolled out of Avalon in 1997.
An AX fit for a king, Arthur? Just call it AXcalibur, pulled not from a stone, but from a garage, no doubt surrounded by tins of paint, old bottles of polish, a copy of the Daily Express circa 1999, and a plastic box marked “Xmas decorations”.
It ticks a lot of boxes. The original dealer plates. The original Avalon Motor Company dealer sticker. The Avon & Somerset Constabulary Vehicle Watch and 25 stickers. Yes, all of these could be reproductions, but the peeling RSPB sticker provides reassurance that they’re the originals.
Crucially, the Spree accoutrements are still present and correct, acting as a time capsule from an era when Citroën rolled out special editions as often as Greggs produces sausage rolls in 2026. The Spree decals on the doors and tailgate, the oh-so-nineties Atlas upholstery and the Dante Red pearlescent paint are the key features.
Elsewhere, there are body-coloured bumpers, a sunroof, tinted glass, rear wash/wipe, Reflex wheel trims, cigarette lighter, clock, integrated radio/cassette, lights-on warning buzzer, glovebox with lid and a folding rear seat. Enough treats for the original owner to say “oui” to a run-out AX and “non” to a new Saxo.
And it really was the AX’s farewell act. Citroën’s own press material sent the Spree quite literally into the sunset, describing it as “Citroën’s last ever AX”. That’s not reading too much into the press photo. That’s Citroën standing at the end of the runway, waving a hankie as the little hatchback heads for the horizon.
But the best bit isn’t the condition, the mileage or the Spree special edition. It’s the fact that this AX has never ventured far from its supplying dealer in Glastonbury.
There is something deeply pleasing about a Citroën AX Spree wearing Avalon dealer plates. It gives a basic French supermini a mythic backstory it neither asked for nor deserves. The Lady of the Lake had a sword. The Lady of the AX had a 954cc engine, five gears and the good sense to keep the original number plates.
Dealer plates and stickers are little geographical fingerprints. They tell you where a car started, where it lived, who sold it, and sometimes what sort of life it might have had. A BMW from Park Lane says one thing. A Proton from a long-defunct dealer in Wisbech says another. A Citroën AX Spree from Avalon of Glastonbury says: “I have seen things. Mostly the A361.”
But here’s the big question: is this Citroën AX worth £3,750?
Three thousand, seven hundred and fifty pounds is objectively a lot of money for an AX without a GT or GTi badge. The AX was designed to deliver cheap motoring, but this one feels far from cheap. Then again, to borrow an overused phrase, find another one as good as this.
Someone should buy it. Not me, obviously. That would be ridiculous. Although Taunton isn’t that far away…
Could you be the next keeper of the Lady of the AX?
At the time of writing, this Citroën AX Spree is for sale on Auto Trader for £3,750. Petrolblog accepts no responsibility for sudden trips to Taunton, awkward driveway conversations or the phrase “but find another one”. View the advert here.
Photos courtesy of Auto Trader.
