At the end of the April, Riga Motor Museum's cult auto collection will be joined by the 20th design icon - futuristic 1961. Citroën DS 19.
This car played an inportant part in the Fantômas film. French romantics called the car an automotive goddess, while the philosopher Roland Bart gave the car an entire essay, glorifying the heavenly shapes of the car.
One of the brightest French automotive pearls, Citroen DS 19 debuted in 1955. Paris car exibition. The car immediately became a sensation. On the first day of the exhibition, 12 thousand people pre ordered the car, but ten days later, when the exhibition was closed, the line for the car had reached 80 thousand, well above the company's annual car output.
Why did the people like Citroen DS so much? Perhaps it was the bodywork with a very avant- garde shape. Perhaps these were the technical solutions that had never been seen - the brilliant hydraulic gear-shift mechanism and the pneumatic suspension, where clearance (the lowest point of the bodywork relative to the road surface) could be adjusted by the driver himself, depending on the conditions of the road. But maybe the car lovers were excited by its aerodynamic qualities: the slanted, down-rounded bonnet and the fully smooth underside of the bodywork. technical and design solutions resulted in a pearl that could reach the speed of 150 kph just as fast as the sport icons of the day. Power and beauty; it is for this reason in France the the designation "DS" was rephrased as "Dèesse" by the French, meaning "goddess".
Citroën DS 19 was produced until 1966. During the span of almost 10 years almost 800 thousand Citroën DS and ID units were produced.
The example exhibited in Riga Motormuseum was produced in 1961. and has one of the richest finishes. The car is equipped with specific interior ventilation channels built into the front wings, and its richly equipped instrument panel that resembles an airplane control panel.
This car comes from Switzerland a has had only two owners. In 2010, the car has undergone a full restoration, restoring its authentic paint and passenger compartment finish. Now in honour of Riga Motormuseums 30th anniversary, starting 27th of April, the car will become a part of museum's permanent exhibit "Cult cars".
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