DS Automobiles Logo PNG
Brand cars came from the future. The DS logo is a stylish, futuristic design. The emblem shows the ease of construction and control, requiring minimal driver intervention.
DS: Brand overview
DS Automobiles is a French car brand that produces premium cars. Citroen formed it and was its subsidiary from 2009 to 2014. Then, the firm gained legal independence and became a separate brand. From 2025, she plans to manufacture hybrid and electric vehicles. Its headquarters are now located in Rueil-Malmaison.
The company’s founders are Groupe PSA, which includes Citroen, Peugeot, and Talbot. None of them had the status of a luxury car brand. Therefore, it was decided to experiment with prices and brands, as Volkswagen (which created Audi) and Chevrolet (which founded Buick) did. The project began in 1976, but the manufacturers lacked the technical capabilities to justify the car’s higher cost.
This continued until Citroen launched the DS series, promoting one of its older models (1955-1975), designed by Andre Lefebvre and Flaminio Bertoni. The lineup started in 2010 with a Citroen DS3 model based on the C3 Pluriel and DS Inside concept lines. Top Gear praised the novelty, and JD Power magazine called it a supermini four times.
In 2013, the subcompact became the best-selling car in its class and held 40 percent of the European premium segment. So, the DS series became widely known, although the company continued to produce similar cars on the same base, simply improving them. As a result, the updated concepts DS4 (in 2010) and DS5 (in 2011) appeared. They were based on the previous lines of Hypnos (2008) and C-SportLounge (2005).
Meaning and History
The abbreviation DS is old, with several stories of its origin. According to the first, the brand name is an abbreviation for “Different Spirit.” According to the second, these are the first letters from the phrase “Distinctive Series.” The third assumption is more romantic and says that such an abbreviation in French means the word “goddess.” And it is pronounced that way – “DS,” from the term “deesse.” This shape was the basis for the logo, which has hardly changed.
What is DS?
DS is the name of an automotive brand believed to be derived from the phrases “Different Spirit” or “Distinctive Series.” DS Automobiles was introduced in 2009 but became independent only in 2014. It is owned by the French company Citroën and was founded to revive the futuristic design of the Citroën DS model.
1955 – 1975
At first, the famous chrome triangles on the DS logo were double arrows. She was at the junction of the first and second parts of the car company name, pointing up. It was a symbol of growth, progress, development, and movement. The thin, angled lines resembled birds soaring into the air and the classic herringbone tire track. The word “Citroen” was bold, with capital letters and a diacritic above the “E,” while the abbreviation “DS” was subtle and elegant.
2009 – 2014
When Citroen opened its division, it immediately provided it with a personal logo. The badge was placed on the back seat and did not reflect the parent company’s identity – it was completely different. Graphics and text have been combined because the two silvery shapes are abbreviated for “DS.” The designers made the first letter in a triangle or an arrow pointing to the right. They presented the second symbol as a zigzag, in which the outlines of “S” are guessed. It is elongated vertically, and its top resembles a mirror image of “D.” All elements are silvery and exhibit reflections and shadows; therefore, they are perceived as three-dimensional.
2014 – 2019
He did not change the logo after the brand was separated from the parent company and became independent. The only innovation is the appearance of the “DS Automobiles” lettering. The font is thin, in upper case, with a balanced outline and wide letter spacing. The graphic part has remained the same, with two pointers pointing at each other, symbolizing the letters “D” and “S.”
2019 – today
The label has been changed, but the icon has not. Instead of thin letters, bold, elongated ones are used. They are grouped more tightly than before, so they look serious and imposing.
Font and Colors
It has always been the same: the abbreviation “DS” is stylized in metal. The latest redesign is related to the merger of PSA and FCA, which will form the Stellantis group.
Until 2019, the brand name on the emblem was set in a typeface resembling Rival Sans Regular or Arkit Regular, a thin sans serif font. After 2019, a different writing style was approved, as close as possible to Althawra Fikra Bold or Config Condensed Medium with minor changes.
The corporate palette consists mostly of shades of gray, which makes the logo look three-dimensional. Silver, cold white, graphite, chrome, ash, and other colors are used.