Seattle Citroën
1958
UPDATED
9/2024
Lots of stuff associated with American and Canadian DS's happened in 1958.
THE ID19 ARRIVES IN THE USA
It looks like Citroën’s dealership at 300 Park Avenue in New York had one of the very first ID19's in the USA in February of 1958. Challenger Motors in LA also had a very early ID19 a few weeks later, in March.
Road and Track, June 1958
THE DS ARRIVES IN CANADA.
It was the spring of 1958 when the DS and ID were introduced in Canada, almost exactly 2 years after they arrived in the USA. These early Canadian cars were almost exactly the same as the cars Citroën was selling in the USA. But by the mid-1960's, the configuration of Canadian DS's began to diverge a bit from US cars, only to return to USA style configurations in mid-1971.
In the beginning, Citroën took a very strange approach to selling cars in Canada. You can read about their unusual strategy HERE.
FRONT TURN SIGNALS
For 1958, all USA DS’s were equipped with round Lucas front turn signals. For 1956 and 1957, USA DS’s had the euro front turn signals.
These Lucas lights caused a minor change to the front fenders, since these lamp housings were secured with three screws in lieu of the two screws needed for the Euro lights. There was also a wiring change in the fender harnesses to accommodate these Lucas lights (they had a dual-filament bulb; one for the turn signal, one for parking lights, whereas the Euro turn signals only had a single filament bulb).
The Lucas lenses were clear on these early cars, but for 1964 and on, the lens color turned to amber.
Bringatrailer.com
Bringatrailer.com
Euro front turn signal lamp (left), Lucas front turn signals with white lens (right)
Chris Dubuque
Chris Dubuque
Moss Motors
Details of Lucas front turn signal
The parts books for these early cars have no specific parts identified for Canadian cars. However, Canadian cars followed the pattern for USA cars and received Lucas turn front signals in 1958.
Vancouver Sun, April 1959
Canadian DS19 with Lucas turn signals
DS19 REAR TURN SIGNALS
Starting in 1958, USA DS19's started receiving the ubiquitous Lucas lamps with the twist-off lenses that were on many British cars of the era for the rear turn signals. At the same time, the housings on USA cars changed to stainless steel (no more red plastic housings). Before this, USA DS's used the Euro turn signals.
A summary of sedan rear turn signal configurations can be found HERE.
Chris Dubuque
USA DS19's in 1956 and 1957 had Euro rear turn signals
Greg Long
Lucas "twist-off" rear turn signal lamps were used from 1958 to 1966 in the USA
Lucas twist-off lens
Canadian DS19's followed the pattern for USA cars and received Lucas rear turn signals.
ID19 REAR TURN SIGNALS
The first ID19's reached North America in early 1958 and all of them had the same Lucas rear turn signals (with the twist-off lens) that North American DS19's started using in 1958.
However, these first American and Canadian ID19's had a very strange rear turn signal housing. It was stainless steel, but with an odd shape at the forward end.
By the end of 1958, these odd housings had disappeared in favor of the standard stainless steel housings that were used on North American DS19's. These odd housings, that were used for less than a year, doesn't seem to be included in the parts books.
nuancierDS.fr
Unusual turn signal housing on 1958 ID19's in North America
Greg Long
More common turn signal housing used on most North American DS's and ID's
SEDAN TAIL LAMPS
Starting in 1958, US and Canadian DS/ID sedans started receiving Lucas lamps with the twist-off lenses for the rear tail lamps. These were identical (or near identical) to the lamps they used for the sedan rear turn signals. Before this (in 1956 and 1957), USA DS's used the rectangular Euro tail lights.
A summary of sedan rear turn signal configurations can be found HERE.
Chris Dubuque
USA DS19's in 1956 and 1957 had Euro rear tail lights
Chris Dubuque
Lucas twist-off rear tail lamps were used from 1958 to 1964 in the USA
ID19 ROOF TRIM
All USA and Canadian ID19 sedans had stainless steel roof trim (same trim as used on DS19's). European ID19's had aluminum roof trim.
bringatrailer.com
ID19 TURN SIGNAL SWITCHES
The first ID19's came to North America in early 1958. Right from the start, all USA/Canadian ID19’s had different a turn signal arrangement than Euro cars. The difference was caused by a requirement in the USA that a burned out turn signal bulb be somehow indicated to the driver, usually by a significant change in flashing rate. The dashboard-mounted egg-timer switches used on early Euro ID19's apparently did not comply with these requirements.
To meet the USA requirements, North American ID19's had unique turn signal switches with an external flasher made by Klaxon (shown below). The flasher unit was initially 6V, then changed to 12V in May of 1959 when the change to 12V occurred on North American ID's.
Eventually ID’s got the stalk-type switch but still used the external flasher shown below.
Chris Dubuque
Chris Dubuque
Klaxon turn signal flasher for USA cars
nuancierDS.fr
Egg timer turn signal switch on early ID19
B-PILLAR PARKING LAMPS
All 1956 and 1957 DS19’s in the USA had the little parking lights on the B-pillar, the same ones that European cars had.
But by 1958, they disappeared from USA cars. Removing these lights caused more wiring changes, a different B-pillar trim, and removal of the parking light switch on the dash. The parts books show that these parking lights continued to be used on Euro DS19's for a few more years.
USA model 1957 DS19 with B-pillar lights (S/N 22334). They were gone for 1958
Chris Dubuque
The parts books show that Euro ID19’s and wagons used these B-pillar lights from 1959 to early 1962. But US and Canadian ID19’s and wagons never received them at all. Below are two examples; George Dyke's Canadian 1960 ID19 and a 1959 Citroën USA brochure photo of an ID19.
George Dyke
Two early ID19's showing no B-pillar parking lights
Citroën ID19 Brochure
WIRING
The parts books and repair manuals do not clearly identify the differences with USA wiring. I think that the four main wiring harnesses (front harness, rear harness, and left/right front fender harnesses) were 'near' identical between USA and Euro models until 1958. I say 'near' identical since a close look at Greg Long's very early 1956 DS, its seems that the wiring to the headlights was slightly altered to accommodate the sealed beams. But for 1958 and on, the Lucas exterior lighting and the turn signal switch differences on USA cars caused the main harness and the front fender harnesses to start deviating from the Euro models. As the years went on, the wiring deviated more and more between USA and Euro cars.
ENGLISH LANGUAGE ON ID19 DASHBOARDS
Early ID19’s had their switches and controls on the dashboard identified with words etched into the aluminum facia. Most of these early ID19’s in the USA had dashboards printed in English, while French cars had wording in printed in French. There are a few ID19's in the USA with French language on the dash, but we think these cars were probably imported through a non-normal method.
It looks like Canadian models also received English language dashboards. Mark Krahn’s beautiful 1960 wagon, that was sold new in British Columbia, has a dashboard in English. Also, George Dyke's Canadian specification 1960 ID19 has the dash wording in English.
A summary of DS/ID dashboard configurations can be found HERE.
Mark Krahn
English dash markings on Mark Krahn’s 1960 Canadian wagon
ID19 REAR REFLECTOR
The rear reflector on the first USA ID19’s was different than on Euro cars.
Round reflector on an early USA ID19's
Below is a photo of a European model ID19 with a very similar small round reflector. While it looks like the one on the USA cars, it is in fact a different part number (DM 579 1d for the USA version, vs. DM 579 1b for the Euro version). Why did the USA and Euro reflectors have a different part number even though they looked the same? We think that the Euro reflector did not meet USA standards (automotive reflectors have a surprisingly complicated set of design standards).
USA ID19’s used this round reflector until July of 1959.
nuancierDS.fr
Round reflector on very early Euro ID19’s
HEATER VALVE
On all of the USA 1956 and 1957 DS19’s I can find, the heater valve is labelled in French. But by 1958, the wording on USA cars was in English. Later on in 1961, the valve design changed and only had symbols, so at that time, the valve became the same between USA and Euro cars.
nuancierDS.fr
French language for 1956 and 1957 on USA cars
nuancierDS.fr
By 1958, the wording changed to English on USA cars
ID 19 FRONT BUMPER
The first ID19’s to reach North America were in early 1958. These early ID19’s in the USA had a different front bumper than their Euro counterparts. I believe that early USA ID19’s had stainless steel blades with chrome-plated Zamak risers (like DS19's of the era), while their Euro counterparts initially had an un-plated aluminum front bumper.
What is Zamak you ask? It is an alloy of zinc, aluminum, magnesium, and copper.
In 1963, the front bumpers between US and Euro ID19’s became the same (all stainless steel).
I think the same is true of Canadian models.
nuancierDS.fr
bringatrailer.com
Aluminum front bumper on early Euro ID19, Stainless Steel on USA ID19's
ID19 ROOFS
For DS19’s, USA and Canadian cars used the same roofs that Euro cars did; painted fiberglass.
For ID19’s, the story was not so simple. Early ID19’s in Europe (1957-1961) were equipped with translucent fiberglass roofs. These were un-sanded on the exterior, so they had the characteristic glass fiber texture, well suited to catch and retain dirt.
Typical translucent fiberglass roof on a Euro ID19
Chris Dubuque
The translucent fiberglass roof was never imported to the USA. Instead, most (or all) early USA ID19's received painted aluminum roofs.
There is a long-standing rumor that someone at Citroën thought that the translucent roof wasn't suitable to American tastes, so they wanted painted roofs. But the rumor goes on to indicate that the early fiberglass roofs weren't smooth enough to look good when painted a dark color like black, colors they wanted for USA ID19's. As a result, they gave USA ID19's the aluminum roofs instead. Is this rumor true? I have no idea, but it does seem believable. One reviewer of this article thinks that on occasion, a painted fiberglass roof was used on early ID19's in the USA, perhaps when a light roof color was used. We have heard similar stories, so there is a chance that a few fiberglass roofs were mixed in with the aluminum roofs.
But at some point, USA ID19’s quit using the aluminum roofs and transitioned to painted fiberglass, just like DS’s. When did this transition happen? We are not sure. Probably early 1960’s.
Canadian cars seemed to have matched USA cars for the roof configuration. As an example, George Dyke’s Canadian 1960 ID19 has an aluminum roof.
ID19/WAGON REAR-VIEW MIRROR
The rear-view mirror was different on all early US model ID19’s and wagons. The parts book does not show the part number of the US mirrors, but it does indicate that it was different on USA cars. Since no part number is shown for the USA mirror, I suspect it was a USA-sourced mirror that was installed by Citroën personnel once the cars were in the USA (a port-installed part, such as the headlights). The USA mirror was noticeably wider than Citroën’s mirror and had a DAY/NIGHT function (the DAY and NIGHT wording was printed in English).
What drove Citroën to install a unique mirror? It seems that the DAY/NIGHT function was not required until 1968, when FMVSS 111 “Rear Visibility” kicked in. But even before the FMVSS, there was apparently rearward visibility requirements, probably driven by older SAE recommendations. So it is likely that the tiny ID mirror did not meet the rearward visibility criteria.
Nuancierds.fr
Euro ID19 mirror
Barnfinds.com
USA ID19 mirror
USA ID19 mirror as shown in The Motor's magazine review of a 1961 ID19
The only good datapoint we have for early Canadian ID19’s is George Dyke’s 1960. His car has an unusual rear-view mirror as well, but a different one that was used on USA cars. So, the same rear visibility requirement (or at least a similar requirement) was probably affecting Canadian cars.
George Dyke
Rear View Mirror on George Dyke's 1960 Canadian ID19
DS19’s in the USA however, were equipped with the same larger rear-view mirror as their Euro counterparts and all of them, even on the early cars, had a DAY/NIGHT function.
Chris Dubuque
Rear view mirror on a 1957 USA DS19 - same mirror as Euro cars
ID19 INTERIOR DOOR HANDLES
Early ID19's in Europe all had plastic (nylon) interior door handles and window winders. But for the USA and Canada, Citroën chose to use metal on early ID19's (chrome-plated door handles and aluminum window winders).
There are however some exceptions to this where USA ID's had the nylon handles/winders. I have no explanation for the variability other than to quote Richard Bonfond's famous quote, "...the only thing that was consistent about Citroën in the USA was that nothing was consistent...."
Canadian ID19's and wagons appear to match USA cars.
Chrome interior door handle vs nylon - Chrome used on USA ID19's
US model ID19 with plastic door handles
ID19 POWER STEERING
ID19’s and wagons started out with manual steering, but in 1963, power steering became optional in Europe and remained optional until the end. But what about power steering on USA ID19's?
Power steering started out as an option on ID19's in the USA, just the same as in Europe. Brochures and price lists clearly support this, including the following 1963 American brochure.
Below are two bits of evidence that show that power steering was still an option for US ID's in 1965 and 1966. One is a 1965 dealer price list and the second is an invoice for a 1966 ID19 that was sold new from Red Dellinger’s Citroën dealership in Pennsylvania.
Citroenet.org.uk
Citroenet.org.uk
It was not until 1971 that USA brochures started showing that power steering was standard on all of the cars.
Citroën Brochure
Citroën Brochure
Despite the fact that power steering was theoretically optional on USA ID's and D-Specials in the USA from 1958 to 1970, many (if not most) North American ID's were equipped with power steering. We think that all USA D-Specials had power steering.
We think that Canada was more-or-less the same as the USA in regards to power steering.
ID19 TRUNK LID PROP
All ID19’s sold in the USA and Canada had spring loaded trunk props, just like DS19’s. Euro ID19’s initially had a metal rod to hold the trunk open, but eventually got the spring-loaded props, after March, 1961.
nuancierDS.fr
Trunk prop on early Euro ID19's
Road and Track, June 1958
Spring-loaded struts on USA ID19 trunk lids
Photo from 1958 Road and Track magazine road test
HUBCAPS
All USA DS19’s had the same hubcaps that their Euro counterparts had. Full-sized, made from stainless steel.
In Europe, all ID19’s and wagons had small diameter hubcaps of several slightly different styles. But ID19's and wagons sold in the USA had full sized hubcaps, the same ones that DS19’s were using.*
* In full disclosure, I found a few exceptions to this where very early ID19 sedans and wagons in the USA had the smaller Euro style hubcaps. But these seem to be exceptions.
Bringatrailer.com
Citroenorigins.co.uk
Large hubcap on all USA ID19's (left), small on Euro ID19 (right)
It looks like Canadian ID's and wagons also used the large hubcaps. Mark Krahn's 1960 wagon was originally equipped with large hubcaps. Additionally, George Dyke's 1960 Canadian specification ID19 was also equipped with large hubcaps (photo below).
George Dyke