You know that:
- With the arrival of the legend of all legends, the Citröen DS 19 in the automotive industry, the era of bodies with protruding fenders, wide treads and streamlined shapes came to an end.
- Albert Einstein once said: "When something can't be done, people don't do it because they know it can't be done, but then someone comes along who doesn't know it can't be done, does it, and it works." Well, that's an accurate description of what happened at the car's private premiere at a motor show on October 1, 1955. None of the competitors had displayed a car as revolutionary as the DS 19, but it worked.
- At first, expert journalists condemned the novel shapes of the car. A reporter for Le Figaro even wrote that Citroën will not sell more than a few units. But after the fair was opened to the public, the mela took off. Citröen sold out of production for the next two years in a single day and had to stop accepting new orders. The French Parliament also had to deal with customer dissatisfaction, which was not addressed immediately.
- It took another twenty years before the competition was able to produce a car of similar quality.
- The only weak point was the older Citröen Traction engine, which was soon replaced.
- Three people were behind the success. Designer Flaminio Bertoni, designer and racing driver André Lefébvre and inventor of hydropneumatic suspension Paul Magés.
- The "flying carpet" or "la déesse" (goddess) as Citröen was nicknamed was interesting not only in its external shapes, but also in its interior.
- The car was also popular among the French elite and politicians. President Charles de Gaulle even claimed that the DS 19 saved his life during the 1962 assassination attempt.
- Filmmakers loved the car anyway. In the 1960s and 1970s, the car was not missing from any French film, and with the arrival of the famous Fantomas comedies, its popularity grew even more.
- During twenty years, 1,455,746 cars were produced.
- In mid-1975, the last Citröen DS Pallas rolled off the production line.
Technical parameters:
- length 4.87 m, width 1.82 m, height 1.47 m
- weight 1170 kg
- power unit petrol in-line four-cylinder 1.9 L R4 with 55 kW
- maximum speed 148 km/h
- acceleration from 0 to 100 km/h in 22 s
- fuel consumption 10.6 l / 100 km
- tank capacity 65 litres
- number of gears 4 forward + 1 reverse
- number of seats 4
- luggage compartment volume 500 l
American actor Danny Kaye on the Citröen DS 19:
"The Citroën DS is the most amazing car I've ever seen. I think it's from another planet."
Assembly instructions
