Pardon My French: The DS5 Is Here, Really

Bertel Schmitt
by Bertel Schmitt

Remember how our man in Brazil became infatuated with the “anti-retro” Citroen DS line? Remember the DS5 pictures Herr Niedermeyer found? Well, here is the production version. And a chance to polish your French.

Bertel Schmitt
Bertel Schmitt

Bertel Schmitt comes back to journalism after taking a 35 year break in advertising and marketing. He ran and owned advertising agencies in Duesseldorf, Germany, and New York City. Volkswagen A.G. was Bertel's most important corporate account. Schmitt's advertising and marketing career touched many corners of the industry with a special focus on automotive products and services. Since 2004, he lives in Japan and China with his wife <a href="http://www.tomokoandbertel.com"> Tomoko </a>. Bertel Schmitt is a founding board member of the <a href="http://www.offshoresuperseries.com"> Offshore Super Series </a>, an American offshore powerboat racing organization. He is co-owner of the racing team Typhoon.

More by Bertel Schmitt

Comments
Join the conversation
5 of 14 comments
  • Advo Advo on Jun 20, 2011

    The exterior would be fairly normal looking if not for those chrome stripes on the hood which I don't really like. Just make them optional. Citroen manages to make all those gadgets and buttons interesting to me without the garishness of some Honda or Acura interiors, aimed at the younger generation, with their emphasis on electronic brightness screaming at you from all over the dashboard. Having a car with lots of buttons (think the older Tourareg, all backlit at night) appeals to me more than the integrated, all functions on one screen panels designed to reduce clutter. All these details have got to cost a lot of money to make even for a higher-priced vehicle. No bean-counting here. So, as GM used to promote, do more toys equal more luxury?

  • NulloModo NulloModo on Jun 20, 2011

    It's a beautiful car. I like the overall lines a lot, and the wheels are awesome, though directional designs like that would probably make rotating the tires a pain (or maybe not, perhaps I'm not seeing an obvious solution to keep them all pointing the same way). The interior is incredible - what a great idea to put texture in the pads on the leather, and that added to the metal accents by the headrests makes it all look very classy. Exhaust tips integrated into the rear bumper need to migrate to all car designs, they're an instant way to make a car look $10K more expensive. I saw a Suzuki Kizashi on the road the other day with integrated exhaust tips, and the car wowed me from a styling perspective.

    • Felis Concolor Felis Concolor on Jun 21, 2011

      There's definitely a lot for the eye to linger on, inside and out. I like the body when finished in lighter colors, the better to emphasize all the creases and character lines throughout. Even with all of the eye candy, the exterior and interior never appear to be overly busy: I most definitely do not get a "trying too hard" feeling from the interior appointments. As upscale interiors go, this feels like it will age gracefully and not experience the rapid descent into anachronism most "retro" interiors suffer from.

  • Ubermensch Ubermensch on Jun 21, 2011

    Did anyone else notice the seats are styled to look like a metal wrist watch band. Nice touch. I was amazed at how many different design elements were packed into this car without looking overwrought. Not bad.

  • Herb Herb on Jun 22, 2011

    I'm out of time. That's why I'd simply call the design overdone. Sadly, Paul Bracq ia out of time and out of design business, too. Wonder, what he would have done.

Next