A
superb and rare photo, of the magnificent 1960
Citroën DS , as photographed for the publicity campaign that Citroën launched
for the new model year 1960.
The
French Citroën DS, in
production between 1955 and 1975, was styled by Italian sculptor and industrial
designer Flaminio Bertoni. The DS was known for its aerodynamic futuristic body
design and innovative technology, including a hydropneumatic self-levelling
suspension. The DS advanced achievable standards in automobile ride quality,
handling, and braking. Citroën sold nearly 1.5 million D-series during the
model's 20-year production run. The DS came in third in the 1999 Car of the
Century competition, recognizing the world's most influential auto designs, and
was named the most beautiful car of all time by Classic & Sports Car
magazine. After 18 years of development in secret as the successor to the
venerable Traction Avant, the DS 19 was introduced on 5 October 1955 at the Paris Motor Show. The car's appearance and innovative
engineering captured the imagination of the public and the automobile industry
almost overnight. In the first 15 minutes of the show, 743 orders were taken,
and orders for the first day totalled 12,000. Far from being just a fascinating
technology in search of a purpose, contemporary journalists were effusive in
noting how the DS dramatically pushed the envelope in the ride vs. handling
compromise possible in a motor vehicle. To a France
still deep in reconstruction after the devastation of World War II, and also
building its identity in the post-colonial world, the DS motor car was a symbol
of French ingenuity. It defied virtually every automotive design convention of
that era. It also posited the nation's relevance in the Space Age, during the
global race for technology of the Cold War. Structuralist philosopher Roland
Barthes, in an essay about the car, said that it looked as if it had
"fallen from the sky". The high price tag, however, hurt general
sales in a country still recovering from World War II, and a cheaper submodel,
the Citroën ID, was introduced in 1957. The ID shared the DS's body but was
more traditional mechanically: it had no power steering and had conventional
transmission and clutch instead of the DS's hydraulically controlled set-up. A
station wagon variant, the ID Break, was introduced in 1958. Outside of France,
the car's radical and cosmopolitan design appealed to non-conformists. An
American advertisement summarised this selling point: "It takes a special
person to drive a special car". The DS was historically significant for
many reasons, one being that it was the first mass production car with front power
disc brakes. It also featured hydropneumatic suspension including an automatic
levelling system and variable ground clearance, power steering and a
semi-automatic transmission, and a fibreglass roof which reduced weight
transfer. Inboard front brakes (as well as independent suspension) reduced
unsprung weight. Different front and rear track widths and tyre sizes reduced
the understeer typical of front-engined and front-wheel drive cars. As with all
French cars, the DS design was affected by the tax horsepower system, which
effectively mandated very small engines. Unlike the Traction Avant predecessor,
there was no top-of-range model with a powerful six cylinder engine. Despite
the rather leisurely acceleration afforded by its small four-cylinder engine, the
DS was successful in motorsports like rallying, where sustained speeds on poor
surfaces are paramount, and won the Monte Carlo Rally in 1959 and 1966. The DS
placed fifth on Automobile Magazine "100 Coolest Cars" listing in
2005. It was also named the most beautiful car of all time by Classic &
Sports Car magazine after a poll of 20 world-renowned car designers, including
Giorgetto Giugiaro, Ian Callum, Roy Axe, Paul Bracq, and Leonardo Fioravanti.
In conventional cars, hydraulics are only used in brakes and power steering. In
the DS they were also used for the suspension, clutch and transmission,
although the later ID19 did have manual steering and a simplified power braking
system. At a time when few passenger vehicles had independent suspension on all
wheels, the application of the hydraulic system to the car's suspension system
to provide a self-levelling system was an innovative move. This suspension
allowed the car to achieve sharp handling combined with very high ride quality,
frequently compared to a "magic carpet". The system
used—hydropneumatic suspension—was pioneered the year before, on the rear of another
car from Citroën, the top of range Traction Avant 15CV-H. The 1955 DS cemented
the Citroën brand name as an automotive innovator, building on the success of
the Traction Avant, which had been the world's first mass-produced monocoque
front wheel drive car in 1934. In fact, the DS
caused such a huge sensation that Citroën was apprehensive that future models
would not be of the same bold standard. No clean sheet new models were
introduced from 1955 to 1970. The DS was a large, expensive executive car and a
downward brand extension was attempted, but without result. Throughout the late
1950s and 1960s Citroën developed many new vehicles for the very large market
segments between the 2CV and the DS, occupied by vehicles like the Peugeot 403,
Renault 16 and Ford Cortina, but none made it into production. Either they had
uneconomic build costs, or were ordinary "me too" cars, not up to the
company's high standard of innovation. As Citroën was owned by Michelin as a
sort of research laboratory, and were a powerful advertisement for the
capabilities of the radial tyre Michelin had invented, such experimentation was
possible. Other models produced by Citroën were based on the utilitarian
2-cylinder 2CV economy car (that contained some of the most advanced
independent suspension chassis engineering in the world). The Ami also designed
by Flaminio Bertoni attempted to combine the styling of the DS with the advanced
chassis of the 2CV. It was very successful in France
in the 1960s, but less so on export markets because of its controversial
styling, and by being noisy and underpowered. The Dyane, was a modernised 2CV
with a hatchback, to compete with the Renault 4. Citroën finally did introduce
the Citroën GS in 1970, which won 'European car of the Year 1970' and sold a
spectacular 2.5 million units. But it was still underpowered by a flat-4
air-cooled engine, the intended Wankel rotary engined version did not reach
full production. The DS remained popular and competitive throughout its
production run. Its peak production year was 1970. Certain design elements like
the somewhat narrow cabin, column mounted gearstick, and separate fenders began
to seem a little old-fashioned in the 1970s. Citroën invested enormous
resources to design and launch an entirely new vehicle in 1970, the SM, which
was a thoroughly modernized, much wider, faster and more expensive car than the
DS. Though the SM construction was conceptually similar to the DS—a platform
frame with many pieces spotwelded together, mid-engine, front wheel drive,
detachable front fenders, hydropneumatic suspension, rear fender skirts, and
trailing arm rear suspension—it is an entirely different car. On the SM, the
roof and rear quarter panels were welded on. Few parts are directly
interchangeable between the two cars, but the DS and SM were both assembled on
the same production lines at Quai André-Citroën, Paris. Unlike the DS,
the factory never authorized a convertible model, since Citroën felt the roof
was integral to the structure of the SM. Despite all this, the SM had to
fulfill another purpose beyond just modernizing the DS — it had to launch
Citroën into a new grand tourer market segment.
You
can always contact us for more Citroën and other automotive photos!
This
is a very nice and very rare photo that reflects a wonderful era of Citroën ‘s
automotive history in a wonderful way. This is your rare chance to
own this photo, therefore it is printed in a nice large format of ca.
8" x 12" (ca. 20 x 30 cm). It makes it perfectly suitable for framing.
Shipping costs will only be $ 7.00 regardless of how many photos you
buy. For 5 or more photos, shipping is free!
(Note: A. Herl, Inc. does not appear on
photo, for ebay purposes only)
No copyright
expressed or implied. Sold as collectable item only. We are clearing out our
archives that we have gathered from various sources.
All items always sent well
protected in PVC clear files and board backed
envelopes.
We have
photographs that came from professional collections and/or were bought from the
original photographer or press studio! They are all of professional and
excellent quality.
After many decades
of professionally collecting photographs and posters we are clearing out our
archives. They make the perfect gift and are perfectly suited for framing. They
will look gorgeous unframed and will be a true asset nicely framed with a
border. They are a gorgeous and great asset in every home, workshop, workplace,
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