The new DS 7 takes inspiration from the 50s and 60s classic models but brings it up to date with futuristic technology. The flagship model is packed with luxury touches but starts at just £28,000.
FANCY fledgling French firm, DS Automotive, is stepping out of Citroen’s shadow.
While DS Automobiles was only formed three years ago – trading on it’s alternative allure of DS-badged cars of the late 50s and 60s – it was done so with a line-up of pimped Citroens.
The 7 Crossback is not only the car-maker’s first SUV but the first bonafide, built from the ground up, DS.
Yet for all the evocative marketing talk of Parisienne haute couture and audacious avante-garde savoir-faire they’ve essentially plumped for a compact SUV – one more in an increasingly saturated and most popular sector.
Taking on the premium likes of the Audi Q3, Range Rover Evoque and now the Jaguar E-Pace is a bold move for the presently boutique-sized brand.
But DS is intent on being a worldwide manufacturer – flying the Tricolore for French luxury whilst giving customers a genuinely premium ownership experience.
It seems challenging external aesthetics extolling radical reinterpretation isn’t how DS wants to make it’s mark – perhaps given their recent DS 5 flop – but instead by offering a rich combination of interior design and innovative tech.
Now, that’s not to say the 7 Crossback doesn’t look the premium part externally – in fact, far from it.
But beyond the rotating jewel LED headlamps it’s ostensibly safe profiling doesn’t reinforce DS’s avante-garde marketing pretensions.
However, inside the cabin and it’s a different story.
DS’s designers have certainly run – and kept on running – with the diamond motif from the DS logo.
It’s everywhere – from the courtesy lights to the air vent controls, the speakers to the scratch plate around the door handles.
‘Detect the diamonds’ could be a great alternative game to ‘i-spy’ with the nippers on a long journey.
All but the entry-level 7 Crossback gets a striking widescreen 12-inch HD infotainment touchscreen and digital instrument cluster – which again just can’t leave that diamond theme alone for a second.
That said it’s an impressively intuitive system with crystal clear legibility to match the crystal glass detailing on the dashboard’s stylish touch buttons.
There is a choice of four ‘inspirations’ to tailor your cabin from the bronzed simplicity of Bastille to the generously alcantara-adorned Performance Line and up to the quilted-leather opulence of Rivoli and top-of-the-line Opera ambience.
These themed environments slot in with the 7 Crossback’s four specifications – all fittingly labeled and in tune with DS’s penchant for posh – from entry-level Elegance to DS Performance Line, Prestige and up to Ultra Prestige no less.
There is plenty of room inside the well appointed cabin too – certainly compared to an Evoque.
But while headroom is a little limited in the rear, distraction can be found in the electric reclining seats – only available, as are massaging front seats, on Prestige and Ultra Prestige trim levels.
The boot delivers a very useful 555-litres of shopping opportunity with a variable height floor and tailgate that operates, naturellement, at the touch of a button.
As the brand that is charged with leading the PSA Group’s tech charge – a group that includes Peugeot, Citroen and now Vauxhall – all the safety and semi-autonomous toys have been thrown at the DS 7 Crossback.
The DS Connected Pilot system combines adaptive cruise control with lane keeping assist to make motorway driving a very nearly hand and foot-free doddle.
And while it will happily park and un-park itself in the orientation of your choosing it also allows you to see in the dark with a novel night vision system that alerts you to any potential hazard of the animal or human variety.
But, all this fancy kit and caboodle aside, what’s the 7 Crossback like to drive? Well, it’s pretty fine – a fact that’s aptly assisted by, yes, another tech tour-de-force, Active Scan Suspension.
This SUV, when set to Comfort mode, will scan the road ahead and automatically adjust the dampers to tackle any lumps, bumps and busted bits in your way before you encounter them.
The ride is nicely refined and hushed – even on the largest available 20” rims. 18” and 19” rims are also available which marginally improve things further.
DS 7 CROSSBACK
Price: From £28,050 (£36,335 as tested)
Engine: 2.0-litre diesel (178hp)
Economy: 57.6mpg
Emissions: 128g/km
0-62mph: 9.9 secs
Top speed: 134mph
On sale: March 2018
Steering is a tad numb but accurate nonetheless and firms up suitably in Sport mode along with rortier engine note.
And any potential body-roll given, it’s higher than any other DS perch is kept well in check on the twisty country back roads we tested it on.
The range starts with 1.5-litre diesel (128hp, 68mpg, 107g/km) 6-speed manual at £28,050 with a more powerful 2.0-litre diesel (178bhp, 57mpg, 128g/km) 8-speed automatic from £36,335.
There is only one petrol unit currently on offer, a 1.6-litre turbo automatic (222bhp, 47mpg, 135g/km). And all options across the range, despite the SUV’s suggestive styling, are front-wheel-driven only.
There is however no hybrid option from launch, but I have tested a ‘work in progress’ prototype of the forthcoming plug-in hybrid petrol drivetrain with 300hp (including two electric motors), 4WD and a pure electric range of 37 miles.
This PHEV will be available by mid-2019 marking another first for the PSA Group.
It’ll carry a hefty price tag too mind, set to weigh in at a premium-sized £50k.
The DS 7 Crossback represents a savvy move for the aspiring French brand. It feels, for the most part, acceptably upmarket, delivers some nice party-tricks and will guarantee a degree of exclusivity.
The only trouble is, while DS is rather late to the compact SUV party – not to mention the PHEV come 2019 – you’ll still likely have some explaining to do at your dinner party when the Jones’s say, “DS?”
