DS 3 Crossback makes global debut

Citroen's premium brand, DS, has unveiled the DS 3 Crossback, a new small SUV to challenge cars like the Audi Q2.

Almost certain to become its best-selling model in both Europe and China, the small DS crossover was unveiled overnight at an event in Paris.

Based on PSA CMP (Common Modular Platform) that will eventually underpin the next Peugeot 208, the DS 3 Crossback measures in at 4118mm long, 1791mm wide.

Standing 1534mm tall, the DS brand's first small SUV is 73mm shorter, 3mm narrower but 26mm taller than an Audi Q2.

Borrowing some styling cues from its bigger brother, the DS 7 Crossback, the smaller SUV features a pair of headlights that employ both LED running lights and also the car-maker's powerful Matrix LED lighting system.

Other design details that weren't expected are a set of flush-fitting door-handles that were previewed by the DSXE-Tense Dream Car concept shown at the Beijing motor show.

If you're wondering, the door-handles deploy as the key holder gets within 1.5 metres of the car and retract when the car is started or the vehicle locked – expect all future DS model to feature the new door-handle tech.

The big news is what's happened under the bonnet of the baby DS.

As well as the usual 1.2-litre turbo PureTech petrol engine that comes with 74kW, 96kW and 114kW, plus a 1.5-litre turbo-diesel that makes do with just 74kW, for the first time Citroen's premium brand will offer its customers a pure-electric powertrain.

Combining a 100kW electric motor with a 50kWh lithium-ion battery, DS claims its new DS 3 Crossback E-TENSE will offer a range of 300km under the WLTP test cycle.

Better still, the underfloor-mounted batteries are claimed not to rob any interior space and take just 30 minutes for an 80 per cent charge, using a 100kW fast charger – although a full charge using an 11kW wallbox still takes a lengthy five hours.

Performance for the new small battery-powered SUV is brisk, with the E-TENSE version taking 8.7 seconds to hit 100km/h, says DS.

DS hasn't revealed the performance of the other normal combustion engines but has announced the small SUV will come equipped with its latest semi-autonomous cruise control system that accelerates, brakes and steers to keep in its lane at speeds of up to 180km/h.

Safety hasn't taken a back seat in the small French SUV's development and the DS 3 Crossback should be among the safest in its class with a predicted five-star Euro NCAP crash test. Its active emergency autonomous braking is also capable of now identifying both cyclists and pedestrians at night.

Inside, the Audi Q2 rival's interior is dominated by diamond shapes and comes equipped with a full digital instrument panel and 10.3-inch infotainment system.

Finally, the DS 3 Crossback will be among the first vehicles offered by DS that can be unlocked and driven without a key. Instead, owners can download a new app that gives access to a virtual key that can be shared with friends and family.

On sale in Europe in 2019, the DS 3 Crossback has already been mooted as the indirect replacement for the current aging DS 3 hatchback.

In recent history, senior PSA bosses have hinted that the DS brand could one day return Down Under and, if it does, we expect both the DS 7 and DS 3 Crossback to spearhead the charge.

That said, the local revival of DS is said to be dependent on the resurgence first of both Peugeot and Citroen sales in Australia.