Presented at the 1955 Paris Motor Show, the Citroen DS19 was a real shock not only for the car itelf but also in socio-cultural terms. Designed by Flaminio Bertoni, its line was absolutely different from everything that had been seen up to that moment and even the technical solutions adopted seemed to belong to the future. In its initial configuration, the “19”, the Citroen DS is considered the purest version, even if collectors appreciate all the variants. The DS19 benefited from various mechanical developments over the years and remained in production until 1968.
Rio, based in Cernobbio, Italy, was founded by Reno, Nilo and Diego Tattarletti in 1962. The 1:43 scale die-cast Rio models were among the first model cars designed as collector's items. Initially all Rio models reproduced cars from the pioneering era up to the 1940s, but from the mid-1980s post-war cars were also added to the range. In 2004 Rio was taken over by M4, the manufacturer of the Art Model and Best models. In the following years, re-editions and variations on the models that had been in production for many decades were introduced.