Retromobile 2025: 70 years of the Citroën DS | Axon’s Automotive Anorak
Ah, Paris. The city of lights. Stylish, elegant and romantic; there can be no finer place to be at this time of year. Sure enough, for the past 35 years or so, I have traditionally spent the time around Valentine's Day in this fabulous city, though not usually walking hand-in-hand with a loved one along the banks of the Seine or taking in the countless historical landmarks. Instead, you’ll find me admiring the fantastic and rare machinery on display at the world’s greatest indoor classic car exhibition: Retromobile.
Held for the 49th occasion this February, the 2025 edition of Retromobile matched, or exceeded, the very best of the previous shows held in Paris since 1976. This year’s publicity poster of an early orange Citroën DS mounted on spherical red balls at a jaunty angle perfectly summed up the numerous delights that awaited the many visitors lucky enough to enter the Porte de Versailles Paris exhibition centre.
As a huge fan of the DS, as well as Citroëns of the past in general, my anticipation ahead of this year’s Retromobile was especially high, and sure enough, it didn’t disappoint.
To mark the 70th anniversary since the Citroën DS was first revealed to an astonished crowd at the Paris Salon on Thursday 4th October 1955, Retromobile staged a suitably stylish and opulent homage to this most iconically French of luxury cars. Beautifully and thoughtfully lit by Mathieu Lustrerie, a selection of around ten important DS derivatives from the model’s 20-year production run were on display, including early bold-coloured saloons, an ID19 (the base model), practical multi-seat Break (Safari in the UK), plus a much-sought Chapron-bodied Cabriolet.
Taking centre stage within this special display was an orange-coloured DS19 ‘Ballon,’ mounted on red spheres to replace the wheels – this representing the Citroën’s advanced hydropneumatic self-levelling suspension, as first used in 1959 to advertise the DS’ unique feature. The DS Ballon, with its smooth underside, was joined by another special DS mounted upright, like a monolithic temple of worship, as famously used by Citroën to imaginarily present the DS at the Paris Motor Show in the early 1960s.
Dotted around the remainder of Retromobile’s vast and busy halls were a variety of other notable Citroën DS models, including the coachbuilt Frua Coupé, the short-wheelbase Work’s DS Coupé that famously lost a wheel but continued going to take victory at the Chamonix Ice Rallye, an eye-catching as-new yellow 1957 DS19 for sale at an eye-watering six-figure price, and a brand new Grand Palais Coupé conversion. Plus, there was an entire stand devoted to regular Citroëns equipped with the hydropneumatic self-levelling suspension system, from the humble GS thorough to the popular BX, the Xantia, CX, XM, C5, C6 and stunning SM.
One of the other main Retromobile special displays for the 2025 edition was also Citroën-themed, with an impressive gathering of a dozen Chenille models all equipped with innovative engineer Adolphe Kegresse’s half-track caterpillar go-anywhere vehicles. This display marked the centenary of Citroën’s La Croisière Noire (The Black Crossing) expedition through Central Africa, this following the very first successful vehicle crossing of a motor vehicle by a Citroën-Kegresse B2 in 1922.
Eight Kegresse half-track-equipped Citroën B2s set off in late 1924 on the hazardous, trail-blazing journey, traversing unmapped, roadless routes never before conquered by a motor vehicle, including desert, bush, swap, Savannah, river and tropical forests. The plucky Citroëns came through largely unscathed, arriving in Cape Town in 1925.
Sticking with Citroën, Italian coachbuilder Caselani chose Retromobile to debut its latest Citroen HY van-inspired body kit – the Type Ami. Based around the minuscule Citroën Ami electric microcar, with self-coloured corrugated GRP panels and a prominent retro HY double chevron grille, the new Type Ami creates a very charming and appealing neo-retro city car to add to Caselani’s extensive range of nostalgic light commercial vehicle HY-esque ribbed panels.
Away from the extensive Citroën content, Retromobile also offered a mouth-watering array of other exceptional vehicles, with arresting displays of competition cars, stunning historic machines, modern supercars, manufacturer displays, all of which will be covered in greater detail in next week’s Anorak.
Images courtesy of Getty Images.
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