NINE LIVES? (some text hidden) SECTIONED_new_ds9_2022

By Jonathan Crouch

Introductionword count: 83

Back in 2021, French maker DS delivered what it hoped was its piece de resistance with this DS 9 full-Executive segment luxury saloon. There isn't any sensibly credible reason why you might choose one over obvious German premium rivals from this period, but life would be very dull indeed if all the decisions we made were sensibly credible. This car is deliciously different, elegant and replete with a DS dose of savoire faire. You never know; you might really like it. DS did.

Modelsword count: 15

5dr SUV (1.6 THP / 1.6 petrol E-TENSE PHEV / 1.6 petrol E-TENSE PHEV 4x4)

Historyword count: 352

If, back in the Fifties, you had found yourself seeking a luxury car with avant-garde looks and cutting-edge technology, it's likely that an automotive model name plate with two letters would have been on your radar - DS. Back then, that badge designated a classic luxury Citroen. Today, it's a brand in its own right, whose flagship model launched back in 2021 was this car, the DS 9. Prior to this DS 9's arrival, in the decades since Flamino Bertoni and Andre Lefebvre's Citroen DS was launched in 1955, we'd had a whole succession of large French luxury cars claiming to have picked up where that ground-breaking Gallic limo left off; Renault's 25 and Safrane; Citroen's XM and C6; Peugeot's 605 and 607. All ended up shipwrecked on the rocks of badge snobbery personified by the top German makers that dominate the luxury segment. Brands that prior to this DS 9's arrival had effectively repelled all serious challengers. There had never been a contender quite like the DS 9 though. At this model's launch, its maker claims this BMW 5 Series and Mercedes E-Class-sized full-Executive sector saloon conveyed 'a perfect blend of heritage, remarkable savoir-faire and cutting-edge technology'. Its detractors though, pointed out that this car was little more than a tinselled Peugeot 508, only created because the lengthened version of the EMP2 platform it sat upon had already been developed for the DS 7 Cross back SUV. Whatever your perspective, this car offers something deliciously different from its era in its Teutonically-dominated segment, primarily a PHEV and designed to give real credence to the DS brand's aspirations as a proper premium sector name plate. In the case of this model, despite all the Parisienne marketing, those aspirations lay mainly in China, where the DS 9 was made and where it was able to sell uninhibited by history and segment expectations. The initial non-PHEV PureTech 225 version was only sold in 2021-2022, after which sales were restricted to front-driven and 4x4 versions of the E-TENSE PHEV (which got a slight upgrade for the 2023 model year). DS 9 sales ceased in 2025.

What You Getword count: 694

The letters 'DS' came originally from the French word 'deesse' - 'goddess' - a fitting description for the iconic 1955 Citroen model this marque derives itself from. The DS 9 won't be fondly remembered in quite the same way because there's nothing in its design that will stop you in the street or be considered particularly ground-breaking. But it's different, be-jewelled with delicious detailing and undeniably elegant. Particularly in profile, where taut lines run from the headlights to the tail lamps above the flush-fitting door handles, emphasising the fact that this swept-back saloon is longer than it first appears, 4.93m in length. There's a two-tone black roof - and of course big wheels, either 19 or 20-inches in size. The real theatre though is at the front, where the parametric grille with its outer chromed 'DS Wings' adopts a three-dimensional diamond effect and is flanked by LED headlamps with 'guillocharge' light housings seemingly fashioned from scaly lizard skin. The pièce de resistance is the 'Clous de Paris' sabre, a chromed central bonnet embellisher that you'll either find elegant or pretentious, depending on your style perspective. There's just as much going on at the rear. The chiselled lights resume the three-dimensional scaly theme and are underlined by lateral chrome sabres supposed to reference great French coachbuilders of the 1930s. Behind the wheel, this DS delivers its boldest flourishes. If you like Teutonic simplicity and clarity of form, you won't like it at all. What's served up here is a glorious antidote to all that, a celebration, the designers hope, of everything that's cutting-edge in French fashion. It's hard to know what to look at first. Curiously bevelled 'Guillochage'-patterned buttons parade down either side of the phallically-fashioned gearstick; the centre vents that surround the unconventionally-square starter button have pearled accents; double-stitched Alcantara panels flow from either door across a fascia book-ended at either corner by strangely shaped vertical vents; and an haute couture analogue clock from French chronologist BRM pirouettes out of the top of the dash at start-up. The 12.3-inch Digital Instrument Cluster screen you view through the thick-rimmed wheel is different too, configurable in a number of ways to show the information most useful to you, including a large navigation map. Everything else you'll need to know resides on the 12-inch HD centre touch-sensitive display, which unfortunately has been burdened with all the climate control functions, but compensates with a row of useful lower short-cut buttons and is your access point to the excellent 14-speaker FOCAL Electric Hi-Fi system upgrade. In some areas, the ergonomics have been sacrificed on the altar of fashion, but you get exquisitely stitched seats plumply upholstered in Alcantara or two kinds of full leather. And there's plenty of cabin storage on offer. In the rear, it really doesn't feel any more spacious than a Passat-sized medium model like that Peugeot 508. This impression isn't helped by the swept-back roof line, which means headroom isn't especially generous, particularly if you've opted for a version with the optional sunroof. Nor does it help that there's not much space to slide your feet beneath the seat in front. At least the transmission tunnel's relatively low, so a third centrally-positioned adult could be squeezed in at a pinch - but it would be a pinch because the cabin feels rather narrow. Still, enjoy the luxury: even on the base model, you're surrounded by stitched Alcantara, which extends not only into the doors but also across the rear parcel shelf; if you've gone for a car fitted with the FOCAL Electra Hi-Fi upgrade, that'll be liberally adorned with various speakers. Overall, as at the front, it all feels very nice indeed. Let's finish by considering the boot. Here at last, the dimensions of this car actually deliver in terms of space. In fact, it's got bar far the largest boot capacity of any plug-in model in the full-Executive segment from this era - 510-litres (which, if you're interested, is 23-litres more than the 508 model this car's based upon). DS includes a rear ski hatch; and the rear bench split-folds 60:40 for those days when you simply can't resist the allure of flat-pack furniture.

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