It’s been a while since we’ve heard news from DS, but the brand has been busy setting the stage for this big boy – the DS 7 Crossback. DS, for those who aren’t in the know, is Citroen’s premium brand.
The DS 7 Crossback rides on the brand’s EMP2 platform, which is the same as the new Peugeot 3008. This however, is strictly a five-seater, and it’s about the size of a Mercedes GLC, BMW X3, and Audi Q5.
Up front, the DS 7 gets a large honeycomb grille framed in generous amount of chrome, flanked by full LED headlamps with up to six lighting modes to suit various driving conditions. The tail lamps are also full LED with illumination resembling scales. Yes, it’s very much French still, but the icing on the cake is a 12-inch 12-inch screen on the dashboard.
A total of six variants are offered: three petrol engines (2 THPs and one BlueTech), two BlueHDi oil burners and a plug-in hybrid. All variants will have power delivered to the front wheels via an eight-speed Efficient Automatic Transmission (EAT8). The hybrid meanwhile has a hang-on rear electric drive axle.
The plug-in hybrid petrol powertrain, called the E-Tense, has a 200 hp petrol mill paired to two 80 kW electric motors located on each axle. This produces a total output of 300 hp and 450 Nm of torque. Its 13kWh lithium-ion battery, located under the rear passenger seat floor, can provide up to 60 km of pure electric mileage on a full charge.
It also gets semi-autonomous capabilities through the brand’s ‘Connected Pilot‘ system, of which include stuff like adaptive cruise control, lane position assist, park pilot, and night vision system. The Active Scan suspension system is also available in this DS, using high-mounted cameras to scan road surfaces ahead before adjusting the electronic variable dampers.
Production for right-hand drive DS 7 Crossback will commence by early 2018, with an early indicative pricing of £28,000 (approximately RM152k). Judging from that, the DS brand could well be a nice addition to the NAZA stable, and this might even do well here in Malaysia!
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