Note from Mr. Delerive to Paul Magès regarding grievances against the Dowty company (21 February 1957)

In this document

This note, dated 21 February 1957, is addressed by Mr. Delerive to Mr. Magès, then at the B.E.A. (Citroën's Automotive Design Office).

Delerive refers to "our telephone conversation the other day" and announces the upcoming holding of a conference with the people from Dowty whose purpose is to "settle the financial question" p. 209.

He asks Magès to "summarise, in a few lines, the grievances" that he has against the Dowty company, and sets a deadline: "during the course of next week" p. 209.

The document bears the number "52" inscribed in red ink at the top right, as well as a blue handwritten signature above the typed name of A. Delerive.

No detail is given in the text regarding the precise nature of these "grievances" nor the terms of the financial dispute: they remain, at this stage, unspecified.

Context

The British company Dowty, specialising in hydraulic systems (notably for aeronautics), was a supplier or technical partner in the development of certain components of the Citroën hydropneumatic suspension, in particular the seals for the cylinders and spheres.

In 1957, Magès is already one of the recognised architects of this system: having joined Citroën in August 1925 (autobiographical notes), he drew up the first plans for hydropneumatic suspension as early as February 1944 (plans of 17 February 1944), conducted the first tests on 2 CV in 1946 (notebook of the first tests) and saw the system equip the DS presented on 6 October 1955. It is therefore logical that it is to him that Delerive turns to establish the technical argument against Dowty, two years after the launch of the DS.

It is well known that the development of this suspension required numerous tests and technical adjustments with external suppliers, where issues with part quality may have led to commercial disputes or financial claims — without this being confirmed here by the document itself.

Archivist's perspective

This short administrative note, although sober, offers an interesting glimpse into the strained relations between Citroën and its supplier Dowty regarding seals, probably linked to the problems encountered with the hydropneumatic suspension.

It seems that Magès, as the engineer in charge of the technical file since the origins of the project, was solicited to support a financial negotiation with a precise technical argument — the mention of "grievances" suggests defects or non-conformities observed on the supplied parts p. 209.

This document probably finds its place in the same documentary set as the folder "Theoretical study – hydropneumatic suspension 1943/44", which traces the technical developments of this system over more than a decade, as well as in the continuity of the summary of folder 41-59 devoted to the hydropneumatic suspension and its evolutions.

A piece of primarily administrative interest, but revealing of the industrial and commercial stakes surrounding a major technical innovation, at a time when Magès would continue his career at Citroën for another seventeen years before his retirement in September 1974.