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DS & ID : 1955-1975 (here is the DS 19)
production : 1.456.115
The Company in 1955
- Annual production : 181 774 vehicles.
The models in 1955
- The DS 19 Traction Avant is launched at the Paris Motor Show. Rated 11 bhp, it has a 1,911 cm3 engine developing 70.5 bhp at 4,500 rpm and a 4-speed gearbox. It travels at 140 km/h and consumes 10 litres/100 km. It has an integrated body with removable panels and a completely smooth nose with no front grille. The DS 19 is the talk of the town, a car that heralds a new era in the history of the motor car. The new vehicle is revolutionary not only for its aerodynamic silhouette but also for its innovative technical features such as the hydropneumatic suspension with automatic height adjustment.
- The car is a hit: 749 orders are taken in 45 minutes and 12,000 are on the books by the end of the day. The DS continues to be built for almost 20 years. A total 1,456,115 examples are built between October 1955 and April 1975.
- All the major systems - gear, clutch, steering, brakes - are power-driven and the car also has two independent brak-ing circuits and an automatic proportioning device to adjust brake power to vehicle load. A world first on a production car, the brakes are equipped with discs at the front.
In the news in 1955
- The Allied occupation of West Germany comes to an end. The Warsaw Pact brings all Eastern European military forces under Soviet control.
- In Britain, Churchill resigns and is replaced by Anthony Eden.
- The antipolio vaccine and the contraceptive pill enter production in the USA.
- Chuck Berry introduces the world to Rock and Roll.
- James Dean makes his debut in Elia Kazan's East of Eden.