> I think you missed the subtext that comes with the duckling designation and maybe took some self-irony of 2CV drivers for real.

I have never, ever in my slightly more than forty years on this rock heard Germans refer to the 2CV as "hässliches Entlein", let alone their 2CVs, and especially not in colloquial conversion. It was always just Ente. Same goes for printed materials, e. g. magazines, books, etc.

As a matter of fact, I believe it's the opposite of what you imagined: The "ugly duckling" designation was used from time to time either by ignoramuses (e. g. in older magazine headlines), or, in an ironic fashion, by some of the machine's owners.

> Again you may be thinking of the DS, which was Citroën's flagship model and its fender skirts were the ultimate expression of cool.

No, I'm talking about the 2CV. At this point I should mention that I'm East German. Citroën cars, compared to other Western makers, were relatively common where I grew up during the 80s. The most common one before the Wende? That's right, the DS!

> The 2CV was designed from the start as one of the cheapest cars possible.

Utilitarian/economical design and beautiful styling are not mutually exclusive.