Meet the Owner – Rob Haycock and his 1965 Slough-Built Citroën DS

Quite simply, I crave Rob’s Citroën DS. Aside from being one of the most beautiful cars in the history of the world, his 1965 example is not only to Pallas specification but also assembled in the Home Counties.

In 1926, Citroën established its Slough factory to circumvent import duties in the UK. By 1961, their brochure stated the cars were “assembled with components, mostly British, selected to meet British tastes and to answer British requirements”. This translated as “over 50% of components are locally sourced, so the DS may be classed as a domestic product”. Rob points out his Citroën has Jaeger instruments, including a rev counter, and the Slough versions also featured leather upholstery and Lucas lights.

Citroën launched their rival to the likes of the Mercedes-Benz 220S ‘Fintail’ in 1964. It could immediately be recognised via its self-levelling Cibie quartz-iodine auxiliary lamps and aluminium C-pillar panels. 1965 saw the Pallas gain the DS21’s 2,175cc engine, and Citroën GB commenced sales in September of that year.

Buyers had a choice of the familiar semi-automatic gearbox or ‘M’ manual versions, with enthusiastic motorists often preferring the latter. With such a car there was no need for modesty, and the sales copy boasted: “Citroën has achieved the impossible in its quest for perfection” as well as “the most magnificent Citroën ever made”.

Autocar believed: “Without doubt, this is the most luxurious, as well as the fastest, Citroën ever marketed”.

The Pallas was capable of 112 mph, and the price was £1,977 3s 9d, which meant it was just under the £2,000 threshold for tax relief on ‘business cars’. Your local Citroën dealer would probably claim a Pallas had no rivals, but a buyer might have also looked at the Rover P5 3-Litre Coupe for £1,935 or the Jaguar 3.8 S-Type for £1,813. Yet neither of these fine machines entirely possessed the indefinable appeal of the DS.

The earlier UK-market DS arrived in Slough from France in completely knocked down (CKD) form. By 1965, they were built from a semi-knocked-down (SKD) state, with the engines and the suspension already in place, and paint and trim being applied in this country. The works closed on 18th February 1966.

Rob’s DS has been retrofitted with the later DS23 2,348cc engine and five-speed manual gearbox. In addition, there is a Webasto sliding roof and rear headrests, the latter inspired by the Presidential DS used by Charles De Gaulle. The result is the car favoured by Peter Bowles or Peter Wyngarde as they attempted to rule the world in The Avengers, only to be defeated by Steed and Mrs. Peel.

As the 1965 UK market launch advertisement memorably boasted: “The all new Citroen Pallas is the sort of car you fall in love with”. Or, as the Slough works put it: “Quand vous avez dit ‘Citroën’, vous avez tout dit”; “When you have said ‘Citroën’, there is nothing more to say”.

With thanks to Rob Haycock for his time and for the permission to use the images in this blog.