1974 Citroën DS20 Pallas

“ A technical tour-de-force that was at least 15-years ahead of its time. ”
This example has genuinely been cherished without regard to expense during it current long and enthusiastic ownership.

Background
France was still in the midst of post-World War II recovery, repair and reconstruction when the Citroen DS debuted at the Paris Motor Show of 1955. Its arrival would have been akin to parking Concord amongst a sea of Douglas DC-3s and Junkers Ju52s. Little wonder that French philosopher Roland Barthes described the car as looking as if “it had fallen from the sky.” It was reported that 12,000 orders were lodged with Citroen on the first day of the Paris show with a total of 80,000 being pledged before it ended.

It wasn’t just the sublime Flaminio Bertoni / André Lefèbvre futuristic design that beguiled show visitors. The new car, that had been a full 18 years in development, was packed to the gunwales with new and innovative technologies. Even Citroen’s competitors must have wondered jealously at the all-new hydropneumatic self-levelling suspension, the semi-automatic transmission, quick change centre lock wheels, disc brakes all round and even the fibreglass roof panel used to lower the centre of gravity.

There is no question that the Citroen DS represents a quantum leap in automotive development. Science fiction writer William Gibson could have had the DS in mind when he said, “The future is already here — it's just not very evenly distributed.” It’s no wonder then that the Citroen DS remained so successful for so long. The rest of the world were merely catching up. The car remained in production for 20 years with over 1.45 million units ultimately built. Whilst the majority of these rolled out of the iconic Quai de Javel factory next to the Seine and in sight of the Eifel Tower, production was also outsourced to other countries to help satisfy local demand. As such DS models would be built in Australia, South Africa, England, Portugal and even Yugoslavia. The car would, indeed, become a global totem for France’s emphatic emancipation from the tragedy and tyranny of war.

Overview
This well presented DS hails from the penultimate year of production and is hence a Series 3 car as made -over by Robert Opron who styled both the CX and the Maserati engined SM. Whilst the car was an evolution of what went before, it now featured the famous cable operated directional headlamps and the most reliable LHM (liquide hydraulique minéral) based hydropneumatics. The new green dyed fluid was the first to be non-hygroscopic to the benefit of system longevity and utility.

This example left the Parisienne factory in 1974 with its DS20 Pallas designation marking it out as a 1985cc example in the plushest state of trim. By 1995 it had emigrated to the UK, being registered with the DVLA for the first time in September of that year. Three UK keepers account for the period between 1995 and the autumn of 2010. It was at that time that the current owner bought the car at Anglia Car Auctions for £7,310. This was in the knowledge that the car had undergone a thorough restoration in 2005 at a cost of over £10,000. It is believed that the DS was resprayed at that point transitioning from its original gold hue to its current blue shade.

Despite that, it became obvious that major structural work was actually required and in 2011 the current keeper commissioned a diligent structural restoration via Citroen Classics at a cost of over £16,200. Since then, the Citroen has been diligently maintained and repaired with a further £20,000 being spent between then and now. The result is the very well sorted example we offer you today.

Estimate: £12,000 - £15,000

View The Current Bid Price HERE