Huit Places

The Goddess by Citroën was certainly one of the greatest innovative steps in automobile construction. The model name DS, pronounced Déesse in French, which means goddess, is as ingenious as the whole car. The car was presented at the Paris Salon in 1955 and must have seemed like a vehicle from another planet. Aerodynamic shape with no visible cooling air intake, completely smooth underbody, covered wheel arches at the rear, frameless side windows, front-wheel drive, high-pressure hydraulics for the suspension, power brakes, power steering and semi-automatic transmission, single-spoke steering wheel, aluminum bonnet, plastic roof, and so on and so forth. The dream car was not cheap and yet over 80,000 sales contracts were concluded at the presentation at the Paris Salon. The more simply equipped ID models were presented in 1957 and the station wagon models ID Commercial, Break and Familiale in 1958. The Commercial have a continuous rear bench seat and no other folding seats. The Break also has a continuous rear bench seat and two additional emergency seats that fold out across the direction of travel. The Familiale has a rear bench seat that is set far back and three seats in front of it that fold out in the direction of travel. A particularly clever detail of these cars is the horizontally divided tailgate, the halves of which can be opened separately. For example, you can leave the lower flap open to transport extra-long objects. Thanks to the hydropneumatic suspension, the high-pressure brake and the power steering, these were the first station wagons that were easy, safe and comfortable to drive despite a permitted payload of an incredible 725 kg(!). Although technically equipped with all the refinements of a DS, the station wagon versions were only sold as ID until 1969. Apparently there was a fear of giving a station wagon the noble name of a DS. It was not until the 1970 model year that the Break or Familiale could also be obtained as a better-equipped DS. Or rather, the cars were then officially simply called Break or Familiale 20 or 21, but the DS type plate was still on the tailgate.

This DS 20 Familiale was registered in France on May 14, 1970. We do not know what happened to the car between 1970 and 1982, but on August 31, 1982 it was sold to Buffignécourt, north of Besançon. On April 1, 1998, the car was registered in Hengelo in the Netherlands and painted there in the exterior color Gris d’Anjou AC 086. On January 3, 2023, a dealer of classic Citroën automobiles in Mainz bought it, had it technically refurbished, the seats and door panels reupholstered, the headliner and carpet replaced, and new tires fitted. Over the last few years we have had two vehicles from this dealer, were convinced of the quality of the work and have therefore added this vehicle to our portfolio. The car is a very rare Familiale with a front bench seat and is therefore registered as an eight-seater. Three people can sit in the front, three in the middle and two people on the comfortable rear sofa with two thick side armrests. But the middle folding seats are probably rarely used these days and if they remain folded in, even the tallest passenger can stretch out their legs fully and fully enjoy the comfort of the rear sofa combined with the incomparable suspension comfort that only a DS offers. A rare DS with eight seats – Huit Places.

We examined the car thoroughly and made three offers from this examination. Our Économie offer for €38,300 relates to the tested and roadworthy vehicle with a general inspection valid until November 2025 and an H report. The standard offer for €41,000 includes a major inspection and the elimination of any defects found. The supreme offer for €44,800 also includes cavity preservation and the installation of seat belts on the rearmost seat and in the middle at the front. We would be happy to send you a detailed list of the three offers by email.