Why the Citroen DS Still Looks Like it’s From the Future
It’s a bird! It’s a plane! It’s an alien mothership! If you’ve ever spotted a Citroen DS out in the wild you may have asked yourself these questions because the car looks like nothing else on the road today – or even when this groundbreaking car hit the road back in the 1950s… yes, it’s that old.
Plenty of vehicles have debuted some pretty revolutionary features, but it’s a safe bet that none introduced as many all at once as this futuristic Citroen. The car featured an adjustable hydraulic suspension system that provided a pillowy-soft ride – and numerous other benefits – later models offered swiveling headlamps that turned with the steering wheel, and the DS even had power steering and brakes, big features for its time.
And all this innovation was wrapped in a sleek and unusual but also strikingly beautiful design, one that was so fundamentally sound that the car remained in production for 20 years – longer, in fact, than the Ford Model T.
In the episode of “Drawing Conclusions” embedded below, Jason White, car designer and professor at the College for Creative Studies in Detroit points out the important elements of this Citroen’s styling, explaining why the car is such a design legend, not only a technical masterpiece. Check out the AutoEsoterica YouTube channel for more informative content like this and much more.
AutoEsoterica is home to the under-appreciated and fantastical in car culture. Frontman Craig Cole is a life-long car enthusiast whose videos range from the restoration progress of his vintage Fords to design analysis and industry insights from contributors Jason White and Jim Hall.
The TTAC Creators Series tells stories and amplifies creators from all corners of the car world, including culture, dealerships, collections, modified builds and more.
Become a TTAC insider. Get the latest news, features, TTAC takes, and everything else that gets to the truth about cars first by subscribing to our newsletter.
AutoEsoterica is home to the under-appreciated and fantastical in car culture. Frontman Craig Cole is a life-long car enthusiast whose videos range from the restoration progress of his vintage Fords to design analysis and industry insights from contributors Jason White and Jim Hall.
More by AutoEsoterica, TTAC Creator
Comments
Join the conversation
There must've been a Citroen dealer in Dallas where I grew up. I'd see them here and there up into the late seventies. I liked them a lot but my parents didn't so we never got one. I like the DS in pink but I don't know if that was a factory color. There was a Renault place near where I lived so I always got a good look at French weirdness. My cousins husband had an R17 Gordini.
They also made a longer wheelbase limousine version with folding footrests that converted to jump seats. All available with a 5 speed manual. It was called the President model. I think it was imported by Bertone, in much the same way as the FIAT X-19 was when the parent companies ceased exporting their cars to the US. I wanted to buy one, but was concerned about long term parts availability. An amazing car, to be sure.