Citroën DS Critique

For many years, Citroën had the reputation of being an advanced-technology automobile maker.  This was certainly apt regarding its Traction Avant (front-wheel drive) model,  produced 1934-1957.

However, by the late 1940s, the most advanced feature of the Traction Avant was its front-wheel drive, the rest of the car looking distinctly old-fashioned.  Citroën and its Michelin owner were not about to rest on their laurels, setting out to create another technological sensation if they could.

The result was the DS series that entered production in 1955.  Styling was by Flaminio Bertoni, who I wrote about here.  The first of the series was the DS19, the 19 referring to its 1,911 cc motor.  The first link in this paragraph mentions the DS19s major technical innovations: I will focus on its styling.

Gallery

Here is a DS19 on display at a British auto show, not the 1955 Paris show where it made its debut.  Note that this example has right-hand drive.  The light colored car at the upper-right is a Rover.

Publicity photo of a 1956 DS19.  There is no grille to speak of, radiator cooling air entering from the lower part of the front end, a feature common today, but rare then.  DSs had a long 3,124 mm (123.0 in) wheelbase and short front and rear overhang.

Possibly the same car seen in the previous photo, this time apparently at an auto show.  The windshield has tight curve radiuses, so I wonder how much distortion drivers and front-seat passengers experienced.  Bertoni was a sculptural artist, so it is interesting how he treated the lower body, blending the hood with the sides.  I suspect that the high front fenders were dictated by legal requirements in some countries regarding headlight height above the ground, and wonder if Bertoni might have preferred a different treatment.

Rear three-quarter view.  Note the extremely short rear overhang, the rear wheels being placed nearly at the car's corners.  An odd touch is the lights placed at the ends of those tube-like chromed rain gutter formers at the edges of the top.  This seems like a weak copy of space ship and jet aircraft styling features found on many 1950s American cars.

The most striking interior feature was its steering wheel with only one attachment arm.

A publicity photo featuring pretty girls.  The DS had a tall greenhouse with plenty of glass area.  Making this visually even taller was the fact that the doors lacked window frames (though there was a slender B-pillar); see the top image for more detail.  The thin roof, the flat window glass (a technological limitation of the time), the tall greenhouse, the fairly upright windshield and the flat C-pillars combine to create a comparatively rigid form that contrasts with the curvy lower body.  Result: the Citroën DS19 is not a well-integrated design that seemed odd to me when first announced and still does not please me.

Styling Variety: 1930s French Cars

During the 1930s General Motors' styling boss Harley Earl would travel to Paris to visit the annual Salon de l'Automobile.  It was a serious focus to what might seem to some a frivolous enjoy-Paris corporate junket.  That was  because fashion-conscious France was a hotbed of car styling ideas that Earl wanted and needed to be aware of.

And there were many automobile makers in France, even in the depth of the Great Depression.  For example, the mid-decade 1935 Paris salon had 27 firms exhibiting passenger cars.  Those 27 firms produced only about 170,000 cars that year, and 3/4 of those were from the "big three" -- Renault, Citroën, and Peugeot.  The remaining manufacturers averaged about 1,550 cars that year, which makes me wonder how they could afford to keep body designs even halfway fashionable.  The largest firm, Renault, produced around 58,000 cars that year, yet marketed ten lines of cars using what seems to be three basic bodies -- which also seems like a small basis for product renewal.

Regardless, French car styling from the 1930s was innovative and varied.  Admittedly, this was especially the so for custom-built bodies, but also was the case for factory models.  The images below are mostly of standard production cars.

Gallery

Bucciali Double-Huit - body by Saoutchik - Paris Salon 1931
This car was intended to astonish, something it still does 85 years later.  It has a underslung chassis, so it sits low.  The low stance is further emphasized by the large wheels and extremely long hood.  Not to mention the low-headroom passenger compartment.

Voisin C 20 - Paris Salon 1931
Many of Gabriel Voisin's designs also astonish.  His C 20 and C 22 models feature radically disaggregated components.

Voisin Aérodyne - Paris Salon 1934
This is a pre-production car, but essentially the same as the few that were built.  Here Voisin edges towards aerodynamic shaping on his way to the 1936 Aérosport.

Citroën Traction Avant - 1956
The Traction Avant line was introduced for 1934, and its design was virtually unchanged even by 1956, the year before it was replaced.  The body is low because it lacks a driveshaft and also a chassis, being of semi-unitized construction.  One French styling fashion in the late 30s was the belt line drooping towards the rear, as can be seen here.

1935 Renault Nervastella Grand Sport
Unlike the Citroën, this top-of-the-line Renault is tall.  And it also has a somewhat streamlined appearance that's negated by the formidable grille-hood combination.  Note especially the the highly-sloped, V'd windshield: advanced for 1935.

Peugeot 402 - ca. 1939
The 402 first appeared for the 1936 model year and, like the Renault above, featured a streamlined look.  The body aft of the cowling seems inspired by the 1934 Chrysler Airflow.  For me, the most intriguing feature is the headlamps buried behind the grille.

1937 Hotchkiss 686 Coupé Modane
By the mid-1930s Hotchkiss' were solid looking cars.  Attractive, slightly conservative styling for its bourgeoise clientele.  I am especially fond of the grille design that relates well to the fenders.

1937 Panhard Dynamic
The ancient firm Panhard et Lavassor developed styling senility in the early 30s with its Panoramique three-piece windshield design that progressed to the strange Dynamic model shown here with its central driving position.  "Creativity" does not necessarily produce good results.

Talbot-Lago T 155 SS by Figoni & Falaschi - ca. 1938
Finally a fabulous "Goute d'eau" (teardrop) Talbot-Lago custom that's marred by having spats over the front wheels.  Most similar Talbots had exposed front wheels.