DS 9: A French Luxury Sedan with a Touch of Elegance

The DS 9 is a new flagship sedan from DS Automobiles, the premium brand of the PSA Group that was born from Citroen's deluxe offshoot. Unlike its siblings, the DS 7 Crossback and the DS 3 Crossback, the DS 9 is not a jacked-up crossover but a perfectly conventional four-door saloon car. Remember those?

The DS 9 aims to compete with established luxury sedans from Germany, Japan, and Korea, such as the BMW 5 Series, Audi A6, Mercedes E-Class, Lexus ES, and Genesis G80. However, it doesn't try to copy them or beat them at their own game. Instead, it offers a unique blend of style, comfort, performance, and efficiency that reflects its French heritage and its collection esprit de voyage theme.

A Distinctive Design with a Touch of Elegance

The DS 9 is based on the EMP2 platform, which also underpins the Peugeot 508 and the Citroen C5 Aircross. However, the DS 9 is longer and more spacious than both of them, measuring 4.93 meters in length and 2.89 meters in wheelbase. Its distinctive design also sets it apart from its platform-mates and its rivals.

The exterior features a large chrome grille with a prominent DS logo that evokes the original Citroën DS from the 1950s. The LED headlights have a three-dimensional effect and a droopy motif that resembles eyelashes. The flush door handles add to the sleekness of the body, while the sloping roofline gives it a coupe-like silhouette. The rear end has a horizontal chrome strip that connects the LED taillights, a subtle spoiler, and dual exhaust tips.

The interior of the DS 9 is equally elegant and refined. It has a leather-wrapped dashboard with contrast stitching and pearl-shaped buttons. The 12-inch touchscreen infotainment system has Apple CarPlay and Android Auto compatibility and a networked 3D TomTom navigation system. The 12-inch digital instrument cluster can be customized to show different information and graphics. The head-up display projects key data onto the windshield.

The seats are upholstered in Nappa leather and have heating, cooling, and massage functions. The front seats also have an electric lumbar adjustment and a memory function. The rear passengers have ample legroom and can adjust their own climate and audio settings. They also have access to two USB ports and a wireless charging pad.

The DS 9 also boasts a range of advanced safety and driver-assist features, such as adaptive cruise control with stop-and-go function, lane-keeping assist with road edge detection, blind-spot monitoring with rear cross-traffic alert, automatic emergency braking with pedestrian and cyclist detection, and night vision with an infrared camera. It also has a semi-autonomous driving mode called DS Drive Assist 2.0, which can control the speed and steering of the car on highways and in traffic jams.

A Range of Efficient Powertrain Options

The DS 9 is available with three powertrain options: a turbocharged 1.6-liter four-cylinder engine with 225 horsepower (PureTech 225), a plug-in hybrid system with the same engine and an electric motor that produces 250 horsepower (E-Tense 225), and another plug-in hybrid system with two electric motors that delivers 360 horsepower (E-Tense 4x4 360). All models have an eight-speed automatic transmission.

The DS 9 PureTech 225 model can accelerate from 0 to 62 mph in 8 seconds and reach a top speed of 149 mph. It has a combined fuel economy of 40 mpg (WLTP) and CO2 emissions of 155 g/km (NEDC).

The DS 9 E-Tense 225 model can accelerate from 0 to 62 mph in 8.3 seconds and reach a top speed of 149 mph. It has a combined fuel economy of up to 188 mpg (WLTP) and CO2 emissions of as low as 33 g/km (NEDC). It can also travel up to 31 miles on electric power only at speeds of up to 84 mph.

The DS 9 E-Tense 4x4 360 model can accelerate from 0 to 62 mph in a seriously rapid 5.6 seconds and reach a top speed of 155 mph. It has a combined fuel economy of up to 353 mpg (WLTP) and CO2 emissions of as low as 19 g/km (NEDC). It can also travel up to 28 miles on electric power only at speeds of up to 83 mph.

The plug-in hybrid models have an 11.9 kWh battery that can be fully charged in less than two hours using a 7 kW wallbox or in less than four hours using a standard domestic socket.

A Competitive Price with Generous Equipment

The DS 9 starts at $54,000 for the base model with the turbocharged engine (Performance Line PureTech 225). The plug-in hybrid models start at $60,000 (Performance Line E-Tense 225) and $66,000 (Rivoli+ E-Tense 4x4 360), respectively.