With Citroën deciding to create a luxury new splinter group – DS Automobiles – the new business has announced its intentions in grand style with the launch of the new Citroen DS5.
The Citroen DS models manufactured to date have been impressive, so it’s easy to see why Citroen would see the marque as a class apart. The new range of DSs is planned to be exciting, outrageous and invigorating.
The new DS5 comes with classic Citroen design quirks such as aluminium sabres on the bonnet, a fridge, panoramic roof and split front shades. The rear windscreen is split horizontally. There’s even a cubby hole for sunglasses, thanks to the central roof bar. Boring, the DS5 isn’t.
But the main facelift is at the front, where a new DS logo replaces the Citroën chevrons. It’s not dissimilar to the old DS logo, but it certainly makes a statement.
So does the rest of the car. It looks beautiful and prestigious, in a compact way. The panoramic glass and grand windscreen create a feeling of space. For drivers the knobs and dials feel a little distant, as if you’re in a people carrier rather than a big hatchback but that just adds to the sense of grandeur.
The centre console is quite high and the dash comes with a dozen buttons fewer so it all looks a little more minimalistic. The leather is sumptuous and the headrests are delightfully different.
You choose from two trim levels – Prestige and Elegance. Standard on both are seven-inch touchscreen, keyless entry, Bluetooth and satnav. Also provided are automatic lights, wipers and folding door mirrors. If they’re your thing, you can order scrolling indicators and LED headlights. With the Prestige pack you can have a heads-up display that rises from the top of the driver display hood.
The big plan here is to position the brand as avant-garde with a premium product produced by though leaders – one that definitely makes you think. You’ll be able to choose from petrol or diesel, both will be efficient and come with low emissions. The BlueHDi 120 is likely to be the most popular option, although the BlueHDi 180 kicks a little better.
The new DS5 provides a pretty smooth ride in either manual or auto. The auto is a six-speed affair that responds pretty well when you put your foot down. There’s a pleasing high ride and forgiving suspension.
The DS5 starts at around £25,000 and you get quite a lot of car for your money, but you might want to go the whole hog and pay £29,000 for the Prestige. The new cars will be in showrooms from 1 July 2015.
Howards Group is an authorised Citroen retailer in the south west of England. Call in to our Weston-super-Mare and Taunton showrooms to test drive the Citroen range.
Image credits; Zavatskiy Aleksandr, Shutterstock