1971 Citroën DS - Jay Leno's Garage

Four years ago I watched this video and commented that I could never afford the car of my dreams Today I am watching this video as the proud owner of a 1972 DS special !! Took thirty years but amazingly the dream came true !!

my grandpa was born in 1940 in lisbon, portugal. When he was a teenager, he would pass through a citroen dealership everyday on his way to art school. It was his favourite car. Later he became a successful architect, and he bought a fuel injected DS23, only 7 were ever sold in portugal, one of them to the dictator. He passed away last summer with lung cancer. Been smoking since he was 13. The car is still in our garage.

"Take a look at this ad." Youtube ad about chips comes on. Wow what an innovative car.

As a 75 year old man that was one of my dream car that I wished I had and drooled over on my teen years. Finally 60 years later my dream has come trough. Located one in Greece in pretty good shape and well kept plus it has AC and a 5 speed transmission. Happy to say that in the next 4 months will find another home in the good old USA. I guess Jay’s video was the catalyst! TK, Atlanta GA

When Jay speaks he sounds like he is not trying to convince you of anything or impress you with his knowledge, he is just wanting to share with a friend.

I didn't know I needed a Citroën DS until I watched this video.

My dad owned two Citroens, both with the same body style as Jay's: They were a 1961 ID-19 and later, a 1969 DS-21. Dad put more than 100,000 miles on each of them. They were wonderful cars in which to ride, as well as to drive. Dad had heard from his Citroen mechanic that even with a sudden front tire blow-out, these cars were so stable it was possible to take both hands off the steering wheel and not lose control. So, I remember once we were driving 75 mph on Interstate 5 in the Central Valley of California when Dad said, "Uh oh . . . I think we just blew a tire. I can't tell which one it is, I'm going to try it. (We were still going 70 mph). Dad took both his hands off the steering wheel, and began to brake, but the car continued its straight, rock-steady trajectory with no hint of wandering out of our lane. When we had finally pulled over and come safely to a stop at the side of the road, Dad got out of the car and found the right front tire had blown. Amazing engineering . . . not to lose control even with a blown front tire at 75 mph! Not surprisingly, both Citroens often turned heads . . . especially when we came to a stop sign: After about a second or two, the rear end would begin to return to its normal position, and the front end would raise back to its normal position. Because both of the Citroens were front-wheel drive, both the front and back seat floors were absolutely flat: a great convenience for carrying things on the floor. They were both exceedingly comfortable-riding cars, not only around Los Angeles, CA, but especially for our annual cross-country trips from L. A. back to the Midwest. However, because of the difficulty of parts (especially in the mountain states and Midwest) Dad did always carry a spare hydraulic pump (for the suspension/brake/steering system), should we have car trouble. We never did, though. I wish I still had Dad's DS-21. . . it was a car that was truly ahead of its time.

A car so ahead of it's time it's unbelievable. Yes it's the most comfortable car ever built I have been in one it's like a lounge chair on wheels.

The future was so much better back in the 60s

I love how Jay talks respectfully about the DS. He gives Citroen the credit it deserves.

I live in a little tiny town in northern Wisconsin. There is one here. The elderly man who owns it was shocked when I knew vaguely what it was last summer. He was out for the day. Coming out of the post office. True story. I love it so much and told him I would buy it whenever he was ready.

When we lived in Europe, my Dad went to Paris to buy a DS Safari. He kept saying the Citroen was ahead of its time. He loved driving it. Thanks for doing this. You've illuminated a bit of my childhood!

As the original owner of a 1972 DS 21 Pallas, I was delighted to see your excellent video. There are a couple of features that were not mentioned that I feel are worth sharing. As the car was self leveling, the pressure in each suspension sphere was proportional to the weight over the associated wheel. When the brake bulb was depressed, it controlled the release of the pressure in each of the suspension spheres to the associated brake. Thus the braking force applied to each wheel was proportional to the weight over it. When the car was heavily loaded with passengers and luggage, the braking force increased to prevent nose diving.

"The ride quality of Citroens were so impressive that Rolls-Royce licensed the hydropneumatic system."

When introduced in 1955 the DS Citroen was very innovative and way ahead of its time. It’s biggest problem was the extensive use of hydraulics making it expensive to maintain. I traveled hundreds of miles on dirt roads in Africa in early 1960’s and the car would just glide along as if riding a magic carpet. A really fine car.

I am 50yrs old now, and that was one of my dream cars as a kid growing up in Lagos, Nigeria ❤.

Hi Jay ..... I’m French, your video is the most beautiful declaration of love I’ve seen on this marvelous car. A big thank you for all this.

Being born European but raised in the U.S., it wasn't unusual for our parents to send us back to the old country for the summer. In '82 my dear old dad bought us a Citroen CX . During a drive we popped a tire doing 150+kph(roughly 90mph) on the highway. We had no clue until we stopped for fuel and notice the tire had a small tear. The Citroen's suspension was so good the car was balanced on 3 wheels with no lose of control.

I love how Mr. Leno is so enthusiastic about cars, and how he genuinly wants to share with us his cars and knowledge about them. Thank you Mr. Leno.

a piece of French artwork for sure! I rode in one of these as a kid, my neighbors had one. Dark green color, 2inch or more thick carpet, and the most flying carpet ride I've ever had in any vehicle. Still remember it to this day, just amazing. Floating. Not like my parent's Audi that was all bumpy over bumps.