It's funny what can happen when you're out and about. You know, you get talking, and sometimes the subject of cars comes up. While this is not always a good thing, occasionally it's a very appropriate topic, and things just flow from there.
So when recently Carolyn and I popped into a Citroen branch to have a none-committal look at their current range we mentioned we're quite enthusiastic 'Citroenians' and one thing led to another. We discovered if you didn't know, that Citroen has decided to spin off their DS range to be grouped under a new brand called DS Automobiles. This coincides with the 60th anniversary of the launch of the original car. The Citroen name has been removed for reasons I don't really understand and which, quite frankly, will fool no one with a brain.
Anyhow, when the salesman found we had an original DS, he asked if we would display our DS20 at the new brand launch event alongside the modern variants of the marque.
Despite my reservations about the authenticity of giving a new car an iconic name (which has absolutely nothing in common with the highly innovative original), the commercial arrangements involved helped me to hold my tongue. More about that later and why things didn't really go to plan.
So when recently Carolyn and I popped into a Citroen branch to have a none-committal look at their current range we mentioned we're quite enthusiastic 'Citroenians' and one thing led to another. We discovered if you didn't know, that Citroen has decided to spin off their DS range to be grouped under a new brand called DS Automobiles. This coincides with the 60th anniversary of the launch of the original car. The Citroen name has been removed for reasons I don't really understand and which, quite frankly, will fool no one with a brain.
Anyhow, when the salesman found we had an original DS, he asked if we would display our DS20 at the new brand launch event alongside the modern variants of the marque.
Despite my reservations about the authenticity of giving a new car an iconic name (which has absolutely nothing in common with the highly innovative original), the commercial arrangements involved helped me to hold my tongue. More about that later and why things didn't really go to plan.
What I wanted to discuss here is my ongoing ire re the current vogue for re-launching' classic cars by aping the styling cues of the originals but basing them on modern running gear. I've had a mini (sic) rant about this in a previous blog but I'm afraid to say, despite my protestations, it's getting worse.
Prime suspects here, as you'll know, are BMW Mini, VW Beetle and Fiat 500. All have nicked the original and creative design thinking of true pioneers like Issigonis, Porsche and Giacosa and appropriated the bits they like while discretely binning the other vital elements such as the economy, easy-maintenance, air-cooled engines, democratic appeal and smart minimalist design.
The worse offender is, of course, Citroen for not even attempting to revamp the DS but merely appropriating the name and putting it onto a series of hot hatchbacks with not a scintilla of the styling or USPs of the classic Goddess.
Prime suspects here, as you'll know, are BMW Mini, VW Beetle and Fiat 500. All have nicked the original and creative design thinking of true pioneers like Issigonis, Porsche and Giacosa and appropriated the bits they like while discretely binning the other vital elements such as the economy, easy-maintenance, air-cooled engines, democratic appeal and smart minimalist design.
The worse offender is, of course, Citroen for not even attempting to revamp the DS but merely appropriating the name and putting it onto a series of hot hatchbacks with not a scintilla of the styling or USPs of the classic Goddess.
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| Spot the DS... |
It's worse than that in fact. These market-hungry manufacturers, having proven the appeal, are now expanding into new market niches with their 'historic' ranges by blowing up their first efforts into new variants known today as SUVs and MPVs and other acronyms that didn't exist when these cars were originally built. They're now creating ludicrous, steroidal versions. Look at the Mini Countryman, the new souped-up version of the Beetle and worse, much worse, the Fiat 500L.
What the hell are they thinking? Some of the cars now look like horror-film mutations. The cute faces of the original cars are being transplanted, Frankenstein-like, onto the inflated bodies of more modern car types. They're now creating insidious Mr Hydes as opposed to the gentle and intelligent Dr Jekylls that they once were.
What the hell are they thinking? Some of the cars now look like horror-film mutations. The cute faces of the original cars are being transplanted, Frankenstein-like, onto the inflated bodies of more modern car types. They're now creating insidious Mr Hydes as opposed to the gentle and intelligent Dr Jekylls that they once were.
What irks me most is the cynicism involved and the laziness of both makers and buyers of these pastiches. Manufacturers, instead of coming up with designs that do the same things in a modern, challenging way, have simply grave robbed the past.
But it's not as if they aren't capable of developing interesting vehicles that will cause us to do a double take. Look at the Nissan Juke or indeed the Figaro. Fiat appalled us with the Multipla and Chrysler raised our intrigued eyebrows with their PT Cruiser. Even Citroen can still innovate and provoke: look at the C4 Cactus for a great example of this.
For the buyers of these cars, I say this: If you like and admire the looks of a classic car why not buy one? Have the whole frustrating, expense-ridden, joyful experience that comes with such ownership instead of some pale, air-conditioned facsimile. I can guarantee you'll get more of the attention and kudos you desire by doing this than from the leased and lazy motor you've plumped for. The short term thrill it gives you is, I guarantee, very temporary especially when you find everyone on your street has the exact same car.
But it's not as if they aren't capable of developing interesting vehicles that will cause us to do a double take. Look at the Nissan Juke or indeed the Figaro. Fiat appalled us with the Multipla and Chrysler raised our intrigued eyebrows with their PT Cruiser. Even Citroen can still innovate and provoke: look at the C4 Cactus for a great example of this.
For the buyers of these cars, I say this: If you like and admire the looks of a classic car why not buy one? Have the whole frustrating, expense-ridden, joyful experience that comes with such ownership instead of some pale, air-conditioned facsimile. I can guarantee you'll get more of the attention and kudos you desire by doing this than from the leased and lazy motor you've plumped for. The short term thrill it gives you is, I guarantee, very temporary especially when you find everyone on your street has the exact same car.
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| Hey, Citroen is that a real DS? |
OK, enough of that. I think you get the message. So where were we? Oh yes, we'd agreed to allow the local Citroen dealership to display our D alongside the new versions at the DS Automobiles launch event proving what a hypocrite I actually am. And, as if to punish me for my contrariness, our DS provided the sting in the tail to my story. We'd taken the D away the week before the planned event for a 'staycation', and while it had got us there without issue, it decided not to bring us back and petulantly spat off its exhaust thereby requiring a tow truck home and a big bill some days later.
Luckily, we were able to arrange for a superior alternative DS to do the display, and the prospective DS Automobile purchasers were treated to a beautiful 1972 DS23 EFI to admire so it all worked out well for our local Citroen team. I suspect if we'd gone away in a modern DS we wouldn't have broken down at all but, then again, we wouldn't have had the smiles, questions and admiration of people along the way that only a 'proper' DS can garner.
All this proves is that in practical terms a modern classic is undoubtedly more reliable. But in the end, it's an easy choice which is the best, and I'd still always go for the original because that's what it is - a true original - which is way more than I can say for the newer versions we have discussed!
Luckily, we were able to arrange for a superior alternative DS to do the display, and the prospective DS Automobile purchasers were treated to a beautiful 1972 DS23 EFI to admire so it all worked out well for our local Citroen team. I suspect if we'd gone away in a modern DS we wouldn't have broken down at all but, then again, we wouldn't have had the smiles, questions and admiration of people along the way that only a 'proper' DS can garner.
All this proves is that in practical terms a modern classic is undoubtedly more reliable. But in the end, it's an easy choice which is the best, and I'd still always go for the original because that's what it is - a true original - which is way more than I can say for the newer versions we have discussed!
