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JM: Were
you aware that many Slough catalogues used reversed negatives of
left hand drive cars? I have a brochure for a vehicle with the
badge 8imA on the bootlid. And there are catalogues showing the
fuel filler on the nearside.
KS:
Everything was done on a budget. We continually had to justify
our existence to Paris. I have seen catalogues in English printed
in France using such reversed images.
JM:
As a VAT and customs duties consultant, I am all too aware that the
rationale behind setting up overseas factories was fiscal. High
levels of import duty meant that if production was undertaken locally,
the amount of duty was reduced.
KS:
In order to qualify for the label “Made in England’, 51% of the content
of the car had to be sourced in England. It was straightforward
to calculate the value of components but we also had to factor in
overheads – salaries, property costs and so on.
We also
exported cars to the British Empire countries where “made in England”
right hand drive was the norm and also to Belgium and
Switzerland. This had the advantage that duty paid on those
components imported from France which were incorporated into the
exported vehicles was recovered.
Paris was quite adamant that no ‘security components’ could be sourced
locally without their prior permission. With this approval, we
used torsion bars sourced from the English Steel Corporation on the
Light Fifteen but we had to demonstrate to Javel that security would
not be compromised as a result.
JM: Was this the rationale behind the ID
19 wooden dashboard?
KS:
Ah! the plank. No, it was not a “security component”. It
was a much cheaper solution than attempting to create a mirror image of
the French dashboard. Where the DS 19 dash was concerned, we made
a plastic mirror image version of the French nylon dashboard. We
had a wood mill in the factory which had been used for the Light
Fifteen dash and we had the expertise and this was the reason for the
ID’s walnut dash.
JM: I must admit
that I always though this slab of wood looked somewhat incongruous,
sandwiched as it was between the futuristic plastic air vents.
KS: The first version of this dash was
awful. Later ones where the top of the dash overlapped the timber
were much better.
JM: What was the reason for leather
upholstery?
KS:
I never liked leather. It is not a suitable material for
seats. The Sales Department was convinced that it was essential
to have leather trim in order to sell cars.
JM: Given that you are a vegetarian, is
this a philosophical objection?
KS:
In part but my main objections are that leather is cold in the winter,
hot in the summer and makes clothes shiny. I remember driving a
British Traction which was fitted with a leather front bench seat and
when cornering rather enthusiastically sliding across the seat.
Fortunately I let go of the steering wheel and the car stayed on the
road. The Sales Department had concluded that customers of the
Traction would want leather seats and a wooden dashboard and this was
carried forward to the ID 19.
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JM: Slough
D series cars were 12 volt from the outset whereas French cars used 6
volt electrics. What was Javel’s reaction to this?
KS:
They really didn’t want to know. I demonstrated the superiority
of the 12 volt system to them – better ignition, cheaper, easier to
assemble but they didn’t want to know… during the preparation of
the three right hand drive prototype Ds in 1955 at the rue du Théâtre,
I was informed by the Electrical Section that they had no budget for
the 12 volt, positive earth system and I must prepare it myself, which
I did. It worked at the first running test and our cars avoided
some of the electrical incidents that affected early French market cars.
JM: My
Dad had the voltage regulator fail on an ID 19 while on holiday in
France and he took it to a dealer who looked under the bonnet and said,
“Well here’s the problem. Some idiot has fitted the wrong dynamo!”
KS: That must have confused them…
JM: Many Slough-built D Series used metal
as opposed to polyester roofs. Why was this? Were they
locally sourced?
KS:
No. They were all imported. We had problems with the
polyester roofs when it came to unpacking them. Even with four
people each holding a corner, a large number of them cracked.
JM: I know that the Décapotable
was never built in Slough but right hand drive versions were fitted
with many of the components – dashboard, seats, electrics, etc. that
were fitted to Slough models. Was this done in Slough or in Paris?
KS: It was done in Paris. We sent
them the bits.
JM: My Dad had a Slough-built DS19
Pallas. Was the Pallas trim locally sourced?
KS: The interior trim was sourced in
the UK.
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JM:
Early IDs had an ‘upside down’ gearshift pattern compared to later
ones. Do you know why the change was made? Was this
anything to do with the different gearchange linkage required for right
hand drive?
KS: In fact early
French and British cars had the same pattern and when the change was
made in France, we did so too. The linkage made no difference.
JM: My father owned a Connaught ID and a DW.
Given the pas inventé ici (not
invented here) mindset at Javel, what was the attitude to these models?
KS: Connaught,
who were Citroën dealers, used to buy complete cars from us and convert
them. Although there was technical liaison between us, the
conversions were not officially sanctioned. As for the DW,
eventually Paris produced a manual DS. But they were not that
keen on our model.
JM: Slough anticipated the three
dial instrument panel that Paris introduced in 1968. Were they
concerned at this innovation?
KS:
after the first three or four hundred cars, the DS and ID were always
been fitted with round instruments. We could justify this using
the 51% rule.
JM: Which do you prefer, the BVH or BVM?
KS: I think I preferred the manual.
JM:
I always felt that the hydraulic change better suited the nature of the
car. One drove the DS with fingertips and toes, not arms and
legs. Later left hand drive IDs were fitted with a foot operated
parking brake but those destined for right hand drive markets retained
the handbrake. Why was this?
KS:
the engine was offset to the right in the DS. This was done to
allow access to components mounted on the left of the engine.
Since right hand drive had been envisaged from the start, it had been
contemplated that the engine be offset to the left for right hand drive
cars but it was decided that we would just have to put up with limited
access. This meant there was not enough room to fit a fourth
pedal in the narrower driver’s footwell; for this we were duly thankful.
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JM: Since RHD production was envisaged
from the outset, what was your involvement?
KS: From
May 1946 I worked at the Slough Production Methods Department and this
meant I always had a great deal of contact with Paris regarding
adapting production methods from the large numbers built in Paris to
the much lower volumes envisaged at Slough. So when the DS was being
developed, management deemed it appropriate that someone from the
British operation should be involved at an early stage. And the choice
fell on me! Within the limits of complete confidentiality, I had
to find out all about the DS in all its details; to assess and acquire
compliance with all the British Road Traffic Acts, Construction and Use
Regulations, Vehicle Lighting Regulations and all other relevant Acts
and Orders; to assess the changes necessary in order to assemble, trim
and paint the vehicles at Slough. This was a vehicle which was
totally different from the Light Fifteen, Big Fifteen and Six
Cylinder. I had to become familiar with all the components,
units, assemblies and items in the car and to learn how they
functioned, in particular the hydropneumatic
suspension,
the hydraulically operated clutch and gearchange, brakes and steering
and to prepare a summary of components and materials for local purchase
before production could commence.From 1954, I spent 49% of my time at
the Bureau d'Etudes at the rue du Théâtre in Paris until shortly before
the launch of the DS at the 1955 salon. This meant I got to see all
sorts of ‘top secret’ studies.
JM: Can you tell me about some of these?
KS: Paul Magès
was a genius. He realised that high pressure hydraulics could be
used for many applications including window winders, windscreen wipers,
seat adjustment, cooling fan, dynamo and even transmission.
JM: Ah yes, the hydrostatic transmission
system. I am told it suffered from cavitation noise.
KS:
As was all too often the case, costs were what killed the idea. Paul
Magès had also developed an ABS system for the DS as early as 1955
along with anti-roll
suspension
where you could vary the body inclination from banking like a
motorcycle through a neutral, flat ride through to normal DS body
roll. Anti-roll suspension was first fitted to a 1955
Traction. The roll was controlled by electric motors.
JM: The idea of his that I really liked
was the one where the rear
section of the roof was hinged and was hydraulically raised through 90
degrees to act as an airdam to both improve braking efficiency and
increase the downforce on the rear wheels. But I am guessing that
costs were the reason this was never pursued.
KS: Yes, costs were always a problem.
JM: After
production at Slough ceased, UK market D series cars continued to be
fitted with Lucas tail and brake lights. Why was this?
KS: British
Road Vehicle Lighting Regulations again. The French lights were
not marked with the appropriate British Standards kitemark and it was
easier to continue to use the Lucas units until the European ‘E’
markings on the lamps were acceptable in the UK.
JM:
In the early sixties, my Dad had a car fitted with seatbelts – an
unheard of innovation. I remember arguing with him (as know-all
adolescents do) when he told me off for wearing the belt since this
indicated that I did not trust his driving. “It’s not your
driving that worries me, it is the other idiots…”
KS:
In 1960, we experimented with a four point harness. These were
fitted to our own cars. But the cost was too high so we developed
our own, three mounting harness. This will be the one fitted to
your father’s car. This was long before Volvo made a virtue out
of safety.
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