2020 DS3 Crossback review this is the ds3 cross back it’s a brand new small SUV from the premium arm of the PSA group and if you recognize the ds3 name that’s because it’s currently

used on a hatchback in the manufacturers lineup but that model will soon cease to exist and will be indirectly replaced with this jacked-up premium small SUV if you don’t know des

2020 DS3 Crossback review

became a sub brand of Citroen back in 2009 focusing on the premium end of the market and then a standalone brand in 2014 it currently only has one model

that was built especially for the brand the D s7 cross-back everything else in its lineup used to have a Citroen badge on the nose as well and has either gone

off sale or is being phased out which is no bad thing as they were all rather disappointing products but the d7 cross back is more impressive than anything

that the brand has tried before so it’s showing that it’s moving in the right direction and now it’s hoping that launching this brand new product in an

extremely popular segment is gonna help further establish it as a premium rival to the likes of Audi and Lexus and to help it stand out even further there’s

an electric version which we’ve driven as well we’re in the South of France with the ds3 cross back and in this video we’re going to tell you everything

that you need to know about the brand new premium small SUV and considering it’s a French style focused premium brand let’s start with the styling but

before we do don’t forget you can buy a ds3 cross back or any of its rivals or any new car for that matter o you some money in the process so go to

the new car buying section on our website to find out what ZS knows that style is crucial for buyers in this sector so it’s tried to

go big on its design this striking shock fin side pillar is a nod to the ds3 hatchbacks design these LED matrix headlights look cool and they’re made up

of lots of individual lights that can turn on and off automatically so if you put the car on full beam it’ll make sure that it doesn’t blind

other road users premium features that have also made their way from the bigger seven cross back include nappa leather and alcantara interior trim options the

roof is available in three colors there are ten wheel styles and ten body paint colors to choose from as well so des is going big on customization these flush

fitting door handles are a bit of a gimmick but also kind of cool and very rare in this class they remain flush with the door until you unlock it or the

key gets within 1.5 metres of it when you get inside the deer so you cross back it does feel a bit like you’ve fallen inside of a handbag so the

striking exterior is matched with an equally striking and unusual interior so you’ve got this odd-looking arrangement of buttons on the dashboard here only

they’re not physical buttons these are touch sensitive buttons which is a bit of a pain so it means that when you press them there’s no give in them at

all and there’s no click either it just means that when you’re driving it’s lik using a touchscreen so you can’t actually know for sure if you’ve touched

them but they are kind of separated a bit by this diamond design here which will come on to later but the only physical button on this dashboard are

the hazard signs and the on and off button for the infotainment system it’s a shame they couldn’t just make them all physical buttons surely that’s an easier

more simple solution and you can see that actually echoes a diamond motif that kind of picks up from the dss badge and actually there are a lot of diamonds

in the interior like here here here here definitely here you get the idea that might not be to everyone’s tastes like the kind of layout but the quality

should be to everyone’s tastes so actually there’s a good mix of impressive materials around here on the dashboard you’ve got some nice soft

touch plastics the steering wheel feels nice as well but on the door it’s pretty inconsistent so it’s kind of nice around the top handle here and soft on the top of the

door but lower down not necessarily you’re gonna be touching or looking all the time there’s some hard scratchy plastics that do let the side down a bit

but still overall it’s not quite as consistent and impressive and well put together as the Audi q2 and MINI Countryman but it does feel a step up

from the Volkswagen T Rock as for space it’s pretty good up front there’s no problem for head and legroom for the driver and loads of adjustment in the

steering wheel on the seat but storage is a bit of a mixed bag you’ve got two cupholders here which is good a big space for your phone which

also has some wireless charging some USB ports as well as one here and one there the door pockets are a little bit thin and kind of awkward to access as well

but the most disappointing thing is in the centre console is very shallow and not very big this storage compartment and the glovebox

is enormous space in the back is good I’m sat behind my normal driving position I’m just under six foot and there’s plenty of legroom good amount of

headroom too and there’s some space for your feet on the driver’s seat as well the only thing is in the back you’re a bit of a fashion victim

that’s because remember the snazzy shark fin pillow that we pointed out earlier well you can see the effect it has on the window line in the back so it

reduces it greatly and just looks a little bit weird the three cross backs boot is measured as having a 350 litre capacity with the rear seats in place

that’s just about big enough for a family supply of weekend bags but it’s much smaller than its rivals the countryman has a 450 litre boot and the

q2 gets four hundred and five liters in the ds3 cross-back you’ve got a choice of three petrol engines well it’s actually one petrol engine three

cylinder 1.2 litre that’s available in three different states of tune so there’s a pure tech 100 a pure tech 130 and a pure tech 155 there’s also a

diesel blue HDI 111 but you can’t quite buy that just yet so let’s deal with the engines that you can buy and for the petrels we haven’t driven the pure tech

100 but on paper it looks like it’s going to be pretty weedy and it’s just not very good particularly motor eternities so you’re probably going to

want to go for the mid-range pure tech 130 around town and on occasional motorway journeys it feels perfectly peppy likes to rev out and it’s responsive the

only time where it does feel like it struggles a little bit is when you’re on twisty roads like this on in the mountains and there’s steep inclines

then it does feel a little bogged down at low revs especially so if you just want that initial burst of pace from low revs it struggles a bit there but apart

from that it’s a fine engine and really in the lineup offers the best blend of performance and economy but if pace is something that’s important to you in your small SUV or

you regularly do a lot of motorway journeys then it might be worth considering the new pure tech 155 which we’re driving now because the difference

in pace is very noticeable so in terms of nought to 60 times it’s around a second quicker but really where it’s most impressive is just how it picks up

that much better from low revs so again on these twisty mountain roads it’s just easier to thread it through and pick up the pace coming out of a corner from low

revs but predictably because it’s got more power it cost more to buy from the outset and the running costs will be higher as well but regardless of which

engine you go for you get a choice of three different driving modes there’s eco but put it in eco and it feels a bit like you’re driving in treacle normal

mode and there’s a sport as well and actually in sport it’s not just a gimmick it does actually make it feel much sharper so the steering has more

weight to it the automatic gearbox shifts are quicker and the accelerator response is really noticeably sharper too so it’s how to get the best

performance from the engine as for the ride comfort well at lower speeds the ride does fidget a little bit but when you’re on the motorway it really smooths

out and it’s pretty comfortable all round these roads really are incredible and very challenging dynamically but the three cross bike is hanging in there so

the steering is smooth and accurate but it doesn’t feel quite so sharp as an Audi q2 or a MINI Countryman it’s so actually threading it through these rows

in the South of France you probably be having more fun in an Audi q2 or a MINI Countryman it is a shame though that on the more

expensive top-end versions of the three cross back they don’t offer a more performance focus variant that you can buy because all of its rivals have a

sportier performance halo model at the top of the range now this will really make the ds3 cross back stand out from the competition there’s a fully electric

version available called the ds3 cross back feet ence we driven it but because it was such an early chance to drive it we weren’t actually allowed to film it but look

here’s a picture of me behind the wheel to show that we’re not lying so what’s it like well it was a very quick go but it still showed enough to suggest that

with a 200 mile range and 134 brake horsepower it definitely has the ingredients to make it a competitive electric car but the pricing is still to

be announced watch this space there are things to like about the ds3 cross back but its main USP is its exclusivity so for many buyers the fact that it’s not

just another German car and its styling inside and out will be enough to sell it to them however if you compare it with other premium small SUVs then it’s not

as practical and it’s not quite as good to drive either plus