First drive DS 7
Stylish premium SUV will come at a cost for fleet buyers. Sean Keywood
When the DS 7 first arrived in 2018 it was a significant model, as the first new car from DS since it became an independent brand from Citroen. Now, it’s lost the former ‘Crossback’ tag from its name, and received a mid-life facelift. A medium SUV, it shares underpinnings with Stellantis group cousins such as the Peugeot 3008 and Vauxhall Grandland – though given DS’s premium brand positioning it has more upmarket aspirations than those models. Design elements of the facelift include sharper front-end styling, with slimmer headlights – featuring LED pixel technology – and daytime running lights.
Slightly unusually, there is no pure petrol engine option with the DS 7. Instead, you have a choice of a 130hp diesel, or 225hp, 296hp, or 355hp petrol plug-in hybrids. We sampled the middle PHEV, which offers impressive shove for a family SUV, with a useful slug of performance when we needed to overtake a cyclist on a country road, for instance. However, the 1.6-litre petrol engine can sound a little uncouth under acceleration. A new, larger 14.2kWh battery allows an increased range of up to 42 miles between charges, meaning the BIK tax rate for company car drivers is reduced to 8%.
DS 7 Opera E-Tense 4x4 300
P11D £56,485 On sale Now Residual value 32.9% Depreciation £37,904 Fuel £7,049 Service, maintenance and repair £2,374 Cost per mile 78.87p Fuel consumption 41.5mpg CO2 (BIK %) 27g/km (8%) BIK 20/40% a month £75/£151 Luggage capacity 555 litres Engine size/power 1,598cc/200hp with 110hp and 113hp electric motors
The DS 7’s chassis is well up to coping with the power, with four-wheel drive offering an element of extra traction, and responsive steering even adds a slight sense of sportiness, which we found a bit surprising but not unwelcome. Ride quality we would generally describe as good, but not great – there can be an element of pitching about on undulating roads, possibly due to the effects of the heavy hybrid battery.
With our Opera-spec test car – one down from the top of the range – we found a very stylish and, to our eyes, attractive interior, particularly with cream-coloured trim highlighting some
6/10
interesting contouring, and helping the analogue clock in the centre of the dashboard to stand out. A 12in infotainment touchscreen – redesigned with the facelift – is impressively large, clear and responsive, and well- integrated into the dash, rather than looking as if it was just plonked on top as many do these days. It also offers impressively clear images from the rear-view/360-degree camera system. A 12.3in driver display – now with updated graphics – also provides a useful range of information, integrating sat-nav instructions well.
Rear seat passengers benefit from their own climate controls and USB ports, and reasonable legroom. With the Opera grade’s standard sunroof, taller adults might be a bit squeezed for headroom, although this can be mitigated since the back seats recline electrically. The 555- litre boot is a good size, and unlike with some plug-in hybrids isn’t compromised by the battery compared with the diesel DS 7.
When we reviewed the DS 3 last month, we noted that as a premium electric small SUV it didn’t really have any direct rivals. This is not the case with the DS 7 as a larger plug-in hybrid – and comparison doesn’t flatter it. Not only is the equivalent (in fact slightly more
Standard equipment: 19in alloy wheels, pixel LED lights, dark tinted rear windows, Alcantara seats with leather- eff ect inserts, 12in touchscreen infotainment with 3D connected sat-nav, 12.3in driver display, natural voice recognition, over- the-air updates, autonomous emergency braking, blind spot detection, lane keep assist, extended traffi c sign recognition, driver attention alert
Engines: Diesel: 131hp 1.5 Plug-in hybrid: 225hp 1.6, 296hp 1.6, 355hp 1.6
Equipment grades: Performance Line, Performance Line +, Rivoli, Esprit De Voyage, Opera, La Premiere
Transmissions: Eight-speed automatic
powerful) BMW X1 £6,000 cheaper to buy, it also offers significantly stronger expected residual values, with the DS 7 receiving a poor 32.9% rating from our data provider Kee Resources. This means that over a three-year/60,000- mile cycle, the DS is expected to cost nearly a whopping 22p-per-mile more to run than the X1 – and in fact even the larger equivalent BMW X3 comes out 6p ahead. Therefore, while the stylish DS does offer some good points, from a hard-nosed financial point of view it’s difficult to recommend.
Positive
Impressive interior trim and technology, 8% BIK rate
Negative
Expensive to buy, poor residual values
36 | May 2023 |
www.businesscar.co.uk
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