Two iconic cars eternally associated with two iconic presidents, JFK’s Lincoln Continental and Charles de Gaulle’s Citroen DS. Together at curbside to remind us of the time fifty years ago when the American “New Frontier” and the French Fifth Republic were young. I’ve been passing these cars lately whenever I visit my parents. Finally yesterday the late-model econobox usually parked between them was out of the frame.
Soon after his 1961 inauguration, US President John F. Kennedy received delivery on a new Lincoln Continental limousine. Like the new administration, the new Continental had just been introduced in the fall of 1960.
Is anyone or anything more quintessentially French than Charles de Gaulle and the Citroen DS? Gen. de Gaulle led the French resistance through the dark years of Nazi occupation, and became President in 1959, shortly after the Fifth Republic was established. “Fiercely independent” applies to both. After surviving a 1962 assassination attempt thanks in part to his unarmored Citroen’s superior suspension system, he believed he and his wife owed their lives to the DS, and he made sure Citroen stayed in French hands.
Can’t see much of the Lincoln, what we can see of Elwood Engel’s elegant design is rough but complete and quite restorable. Except, is that a Studebaker hubcap?
Apparently this Continental, like its limo brother, once served an employee of the federal government. I’ll leave it to the commentariat to identify the exact years and models of these cars. We’ll see more of the DS soon.
Well the Continental is a 61 for sure, that was the only year the very Thunderbird style headlight treatment was used. The X100, aka, the Kennedy Limo, was delivered with the 1961 front end, but it was updated with new grilles everytime the regular Lincolns updated the front end, early photos of the X100 show it with finned wheelcovers like a Mark II-III though at somepoint it got the 56-57 style regular Lincoln wheelcovers added.
Terrific two-fer; the best ever here at CC!
Gosh, thanks! It’s just whatever the Curbside presents to us.
I’ll take the Citroen over the Lincoln any day. I don’t care much for de Gaulle, but I respect his taste in cars.
Either can be very menacing depending on the paint scheme, tint job, and/or way that it’s being driven.
The slammed attitude of the DS sends shivers through my spine. When I went outside in the morning to drive my dad to the train station, the low stance, as in the photo, would tell me that the Goddess had once again bled to death. Thankfully the Citroen dealer wasn’t far away so I could generally drive the afflicted 19 there to be fixed. Never cheap, and never for too long. Great car, crappy quality. Couldn’t keep the damn thing working even in France!
I was wondering whether it was normally that low when parked or not. The hydropneumatic suspension does rise up when started. You’ve confirmed as I suspected it is not normal to be this low, thanks.
In this case the Citroen dealer is far away. Best I can tell, the closest one to Portland is 3599 miles away, in Guatemala City.
Just this morning I saw a white DS with North Carolina plates, here in Mexico City! I had to go back and take a look twice.
After reading BOAL with the BMW featured today I came here. What do you know, more BMW’s in the second picture. I figured they ought to be Harleys for our president but if I can still see, thats Willy Brandt with him and he’s probably in Berlin. Could be losing my touch. Sometimes cataracts make everything cloudy but sometimes it’s clear as a bell.
Yeah, the West Germany flag on the car is kind of a giveaway that the photo wasn’t taken in the US…
Sharp eyes on the BMW bikes.
Id take the Citroen since I already have one, a classic DS to round out the fleet would be good and @$2.23L currently my wallet wont stretch to a Lincoln
Great photograph that brings back a lot of memories.
In the September 1962 Motor Trend there is the iconic photo of the newly designed Kennedy limousine with the various top combinations for the car alongside it. The photo is part of an article on The Cars of State that includes De Gaulle’s Citroen and the cars of various other heads of state (and those of some who are not, e.g., a Lagonda drophead coupe owned by Prince Philip). There is a photo of a 1960 Oldsmobile 98 four door hardtop for Mexican President Mateos though the author assures us that it is used only for “everyday travels” and that “On official state occasions, the President and his guests move into a Mercedes 300-D convertible limousine.”
It is unfortunate that the design and engineering of the original SS-100-X included insufficient attention to safety or performance in dangerous situations but it certainly was a beautiful, stately car. It appears that a less elegant but more practical sedan with a good suspension helped to save De Gaulle.
The Citroen looks incredibly long and sleek when it’s that low. I want it for the style, and the Lincoln for the toughness and easily-fixability. Decisions, decisions!
Is the hydraulically-suspended DS the original lowrider?
(Don’t worry, this picture is not real.)
Mike, this picture may not be real all right… but I remember seeing worse than that on French streets in the early 1980s, when custom cars became popular and DSs could still be bought (hard to believe but true) dirt cheap.
The BIG trouble was, the guys who were into DS customizing did not turn them into lowriders as sheer logic and plain common sense would have dictated (hell, these cars already had functional hydraulics): lowriders were still almost unheard of over there back then.
They turned them into would-be street machines, complete with side pipes and everything. And of course the first thing they did was gladly cut out the fender skirts in order to squeeze fat tires in. The result was abominable.
Problem solved: I don’t want the white DS or the Lincoln, I want this red one you’ve posted MikePDX! Seriously, it looks awesome! Just needs a Mazda rotary engine in it to complete the weirdness factor!
A fabulous photo to be sure. Either one is a rarity, but both together (with your Presidential tie-in) is a phenomenal find. Back when, the Citroen did not much appeal to me, and I was a Lincoln-guy through and through. Today, I find them both ultra-cool. As for the Citroen, I fear that she would be a more demanding mistress than I would be prepared to handle. The Lincoln, however, I would be willing to take a chance on.
Calling our resident Studebaker expert! Is that a Studebaker hubcap on the Lincoln? It’s not the original and I think I can see the lazy S in the middle.
What a fantastic find. I know which I’d pick if offered one – no question it would be the DS.
Mike, I think you have nailed it.
Ha! Excellent. Even if finding a DS next to a ’61 Continental was common, what would be the chances of finding them with a Studebaker involved?
Between this and today’s Rapier CC, it’s find “Studebakers in Non-Studebaker Articles” day. AKA “Where’s Stude?”
If we are playing “Where’s Stude” today, I point to the Cherokee piece – it’s predecessor the Wagoneer was styled by Brooks Stevens who also did the Stude Wagonaire, both of which made their debuts as 1963 models. How’s that!
But on the service center piece and the 2012 Checker, I got nuttin.
Excellent! Your Wagoneer – Stude connection is stronger than my “Beechcraft Car” photo over there.
In 1965 Studebaker had shut down South Bend engine production, started using GM engines, and needed an adapter for the Borg Warner transmissions. Turns out Checker had just developed one, so they did a deal. ’65-66 Studebakers have Checker parts. I’ll bet you didn’t know that. (PS: Nor did I, but Google did.)
Any idea what’s the black ’30s sedan in the service center’s third picture? That’s the best I can do on that one.
I really wanted to ID the black sedan as a Stude for our game today, but alas I cannot. It looks to me like a 1941-ish Buick.
The best I can do to tie in the last piece to our Stude theme is to cite that in 1963 Studebaker had a color of gold paint very similar to the 63 Buick at the service center – Champaigne Gold. Admittedly a stretch, but it is the best I can do.
I figure the older black sedan in the background at Pinecrest Exxon to be a 1940 Buick Special (Model 41).
The clean sides of the Hawk – not to mention the rear fins & stainless trunk trim – look very familiar in this context. If Lincoln had decided to produce a ‘personal size’ Continental, it might have turned out quite similar. And small-c ‘continental’ was always the image the Hawk was selling.
“We’ll see more of the DS soon.”
All right! Looking forward to it.
Has anyone here read “Crash” by J.G, Ballard? A Continental has a key role as the transport of a very sinister and perverse character- I think it was picked because of its macabre association with the Kennedy assasination….
Also in the film adaptation of the novel.