* The DS7 Crossback above and below.
DS7 Crossback road test by Steve Rogers
Goddess. What a wonderful name for a car, particularly
one that lit up the motoring world.
That was the incomparable Citroen DS of 1955, the car
that changed the face of motoring with its ground breaking design and technology.
In French DS, or rather Déesse, means goddess, a nugget of information imparted
by my wife who speaks the lingo.
Fitting then that Peugeot Citroen should choose DS to
front its luxury marque and DS7 Crossback is its first completely new model, as
opposed to DS3,4 and 5 which were rebadged Citroens before the brand was
launched last year.
That is why there are not too many DS7s around ... yet.
It takes a while to establish a new luxury brand, look how long it has taken
Lexus to get a decent foothold, and DS7 is up against Audi, BMW, Mercedes, all
of whom have established, prestige SUVs.
Yes, DS7 is an SUV when you might have thought a
luxury saloon would be the way to go given the DS heritage. But this was a
smart move by the brains at Peugeot Citroen who figured, correctly as it turned
out, that SUVs were the future.
So how is DS7 Crossback fairing in this difficult old
world? At just under 4.6m it sits between an Audi Q3 and Q5 and is a smidgen
longer than Volkswagen's Tiguan.
The target market is the luxury end so a lot of time
and money has gone into creating something special. Special enough to turn
people's heads away from the mighty German trio.
And DS has the perfect setting to model its 'special'
car. Paris. So the stylists homed in on the glass pyramid at the Louvre and the
Rue de Rivoli, the most fashionable street in Paris for inspiration.
Let's move on from the car's body shape, which is a
bit flat, and concentrate on the chic styling. The LED light clusters are just
exquisite. Up front are three individual ice cube style modules while the
diamond design strip at the rear is even more spectacular. That is the first
introduction to the diamond theme (remember the Louvre's glass pyramid) which
runs riot in the cabin.
There are four interior styles, or inspirations as
they are called, and my test car was Rivoli. This is French chic in full flow
with a variety of classy materials and attention to detail. Here diamonds are
DS7's best friend, diamond shaped dials, screen graphics and grey diamond
quilted leather upholstery.
Elsewhere crystal effect switches lodged between the
front seats conclude the eye candy show. It sounds over the top but as a visual
spectacle it works and more stunning than anything the German SUVs can offer.
A 12 inch touchscreen dominates the dashboard from
where you can access just about every function. A row of touch sensitive
switches give quick access but it is all a bit challenging for the driver.
Voice control is available but didn't always respond to commands.
Ahead of the driver is a 12.3in digital instrument
cluster, interchangeable of course, with a full width navigation map among the
features.
This is a comfortable five seater and will easily
accommodate three adults in the back where head and legroom is ample. It is
also well off for storage space with good sized door bins and a huge box between
the front seats.
As with most French cars ride comfort is key so don't
expect DS7 to have the pure driving dynamics of a similar Audi or BMW. Yet
there is a decent compromise here with three drive modes, and on the more
expensive models a sensor in the windscreen which can spot poor road surfaces
and adapt the suspension to give the smoothest ride.
My test car came with the turbocharged 1.6 litre
petrol, a feisty number mated to an eight speed automatic box, but not the best
option for big economy. Best I could manage was 33mpg overall so look to the
diesel or even the hybrid for better results.
DS has made a pretty good fist of its first bespoke
model although one thing that needs sorting is the poor definition of the rear
camera, a problem that goes across the board with all Peugeot and Citroen
models.
Make no mistake DS7 is a worthy contender in the
prestige SUV arena and the interior styling is ahead of any of its German
rivals. It is also very good value for money with a long spec list.
The elephant in the room for me is its cousin, the Peugeot
3008 which shares many components. It is better looking, has an equally
impressive cabin although it falls below the level of quality, and is cheaper.
So it is still my favourite SUV.
Key facts
DS7 Crossback Prestige
£41,085
1.6 litre turbo; 225bhp
0-62mph 8.3secs; 145mph
36.2-40.4mpg combined
125-130g/km. 1st road tax £170
Boot 618 litres
Insurance group 29
