Premium, surprisingly, is not the niche in which French automakers do best. Delage, Delahaye, Facel-Vega, Hotchkiss, Voisin… However, France once lacked first-class producers. The last real success of French-style luxury in terms of cars was, of course, Citroën DS, discontinued in 1975. Although the CX (1974-1991) turned out not so bad. But since then, neither XM and C6, 604, 605 and 607, Safrane, Vel Satis and Latitude did not achieve the expected success. Not a German who wants to! While none of our three broad-spec manufacturers still offer a model at this level, the DS (built in 2014) is still present at premium sedan niche with its DS 9.

The last French sedan of its kind

Launched in 2020, it is the flagship of the Stellantis range. Lancia and Chrysler no longer have a model of this type, this is the flagship of the group in the sedan category. It relies on a extended Peugeot 508 platform, and it looks like this latest assembly in China, in Shenzhen. A large part of its sales is also intended for the Celestial Empire. Road sedans are losing momentum in Europe in favor of SUVs. DS9 is currently offered exclusively as a plug-in hybrid version was named E-Tense. Choice, in the version of 250 or 360 horsepower. The 1.6 Puretech 225 hp petrol engine will be discontinued from September 2022. Despite weak sales in France (it was not in the top 100 best-selling models in 2022), DS offers him several novelties for 2023.

Two new finishes are available

Let’s not talk about restyling, because there are no aesthetic changes. The main thing happens on board, where DS has updated the infotainment system. He is coming down now Iris System DS4 technology, faster and more intuitive. We especially note implementation of Opera processing, at the top of the range. It will eventually replace Opera Premiere’s “limited” processing. Converted, he especially carries camera driven suspensions. But also a Focal audio systemand level 2 autonomous drivingand more plush details both inside and out.

DS also jumped at the chance to present a special Spirit of Travel series. The specific lattice of chrome insertsbright interior, here and there sprinkles of black, new disks. This is how the brand harmonizes its range, thus the Esprit de Voyage collection already available on DS4 and DS7. Very subtle changes at the end for the latest French premium sedan! Prices for these two new versions have not yet been announced.