by Gordon Hoey

Created on: February 03, 2010   Last Updated: April 02, 2010

Sitting on the dusty pavement, on a hot summer day in1960, in a small Scottish fishing village, used to the boring Austin’s, Morris’s, Humber’s, Ford’s and  the occasional Jaguars; I saw my first Citroen DS.

In shiny black with loads of chrome and driven by a beautiful lady with a cigarette holder and a headscarf, it made for wondrous viewing to a 7 year old. I was smitten, forever. Feast your eyes before reading further.

http://www.saabsunited.com/upload/images2009/06/the_ saab_sensation_-_lance_cole_on_how_only_design_and_m oney_can_save_saab/CitroenDS_blu.jpg

The Citroen DS is also known as la déesse or The Goddess.This is perhaps the mostly aptly named car in history. This stunning car was thrust into the public domain at a time when most cars were still using technology from the Model T. When introduced at the Paris motor show in 1955, over twelve thousand orders were taken on the first day alone.

 The Citroen DS was so far advanced; it had features that are not standard on most cars, even to this day. The list of innovative features included in this car reads like a who's who of technical brilliance. A mass produced car with features like front wheel drive, swiveling headlights, hydraulic, or correctly termed, hydropneumatic suspension, power brakes, power steering, self leveling and height adjustable suspension it was a motoring revelation and revolution. The DS influenced car design for decades to come.Given the list of technical innovations and the drop dead gorgeous looks, incidentally, the DS has been named in various magazines as the most beautiful car design of all time and is top ten finisher in the coolest cars ever built list; the number of accolades goes on.

 
http://www.autoblog.com/2009/02/12/car-designers-nam e-citroen-ds-most-beautiful-car-ever/10

Designed by Flaminoio Bertoni, who was also a sculptor, the car was met with gasps of admiration, or in some cases disbelief.

I fulfilled my dream in 1982 when I purchased a 1973 DS Super 5, which was in need of some TLC. Many hours were spent on the restoration, which took about a year. When completed, splendid in a midnight blue with a black leather interior, the standard engine was almost bulletproof and needed only servicing to keep it sweet. This was the coolest car ever. Interior space was lavish, even by today's standards, back seat legroom was most generous, the driving experience, this feeling of floating effortlessly along on a magic carpet was sublime. My wife and kids loved it. It could swallow two kids, prams and all the usual kid's paraphernalia. Imagine how much space there was available in the estate version!

This car was built for cruising.

Times change though, the DS went when we bought our first camper van and I graduated to a Volvo Amazon as my daily commute. The DS though never left us, now semi retired; we are looking for one again.Who says you cannot recreate the past?

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