In the late 1960s, the French pilot Guy Ligier decided to make his own sports car. The JS concept, unveiled in 1969 and designed by Frua, bears the initials of Jo Schlesser, another French pilot who died in 1968. The Ford V6 of the prototype was replaced by the 6-cylinder of the Citroën SM on the production model. The career of the JS 2 ended when the SM was discontinued, in 1975.