Citroën DS - 1960 publicity campaign - photo photograph

Description

WE
ARE
CLEARING OUT OUR ARCHIVES!
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, restaurant, bar or club!
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