DS has an ID. They no longer need to explain to anyone that Crossback is not a brand name

DS, as the first car brand, had to fight hard for its position, but in the end it reached the point where it should have been. Sales are growing rapidly, but increasing customer awareness is just as important. At the Polish premiere of the DS 7 model, I learned some interesting facts about the DS brand.

Although the birth of the DS brand dates back to 2014, its modern roots date back to 2009, when a car called the Citroën DS3 was presented. You can say: it’s still Citroën, but now for ds.

This is the first model in the modern history of the French manufacturer from the DS line, which was supposed to bring a “Different Spirit” to the Citroen range. The difference was to offer a higher quality, more luxurious product, made of better materials and more expensive than the standard Citroen models, which at the time were generally considered inferior products.

Two years after the debut of the DS3 model, the DS4 model debuted at the Geneva Motor Show in March, and the DS5 debuted in Frankfurt in September. These were still Citroëns, but they were not the successors of the traditional C4 and C5 models, but their first counterparts released at the same time. Something like today Toyota sells the Lexus ES as a Toyota Camry.

All cars from the DS line had the Citroen logo on the front, but the DS logo was on the back. Finally in 2014, DS was spun off as a brand, and the first model presented by Citroën was the DS 7 Crossback. It is also worth noting the difference here – the early DS3, DS4 and DS5 were written together, and from the DS 7 model there was a separation.

The PSA group (today Stellantis) did not have an easy task after the separation of Citroën and DS. And at every level. The sales areas were previously divided into a main showroom (Citroën) and a premium corner (DS brand). Over time, independent DS stores appeared. Currently, only in six Polish cities, which – as Krzysztof Gacek, director of the DS brand in Poland, assured during the presentation – is not a big problem for customers. This is a group of buyers who don’t necessarily have a showroom in their city so they don’t lose interest in the car.

As Krzysztof Gacek told us during the Polish premiere of the new DS 7, there were many events related to the brand itself. Citroen dealers could not sell DS cars. Even their training didn’t change much as long as they had Citroën customers (read: cheap cars) on one side of the showroom and DS customers (read: expensive cars) on the other. Retail distribution aimed only at DS customers yielded the desired results.

But and Customers do not necessarily know or understand this division. For many, the DS was – and for many still is – the most expensive, best equipped and finished Citroen. Even if, for example, the DS 7 or the later DS 3 Crossback model had no equivalents in the Citroën range.

• What brand is this DS 7?

Others wrote: “DS 7 model, Crossback brand.” Meeting two DS cars on the road was an event. The drivers greeted each other. You can also read about it in the interview given to Mateusz Żuchowski by the head of the entire DS brand – Beatrice Foucher.

Those customers who were attracted to DS cars knew that they were receiving Citroën technology, but in a better version. Those who bought other high-end brands, but dared to visit the DS showroom and compare cars, realized that for the same money they can often get more equipment and better equipment, although not powerful and large engines or modern systems of suspension.

Over time, customer awareness increased, as did sales. Now in 2022, DS is already in its place, it has a place among other brands, it is recognized enough. So much so that customers are not accidental and know why they come to the salon. They usually don’t consider offers other than the top ones.

Sales in the first seven months of this year alone reached 497 cars, while in 2021 they were 366, and in 2020 only 271, despite the lack of availability problems.

In 2022, a new chapter opens in the history of the DS brand, which already has an identity and can, for example, remove the “Crossback” from the DS 7 model. From this year, all models will be marked only with a number. The DS 4 Crossback has already disappeared from the sale, and the DS 3 Crossback will soon drop the “Crossback”.

New, and really refreshed The DS 7 got a similar style to the DS 4, the new Pixel LED Vision 3.0 lights that work in several ways, depending on the weather or the type of road, and new cameras with better image quality. The design of other interior materials has been slightly improved and new details have been developed.

The engine range has also been redesigned. With one exception – the 130-horsepower 1.5 diesel – all other versions are plug-in hybrids. Interestingly, this is exactly what customers expect.

Initially, it is estimated in Poland The more powerful 360-horsepower variant will be more popular with a four-wheel drive. A compact hybrid with a power of 225 HP available in 4×2 and 4×4 versions. It has an optimized chassis for better handling and bigger brakes.

Dealers have lower expectations about diesel. In the Peugeot 308 I tested, it was not an engine that gave good performance, so the DS 7, which weighs about 150 kg more, will certainly not be better. However, this variant may gain popularity in response to the still uncertain but possible problem of battery supply.

Well, the French manufacturer’s cars rely on batteries produced in China, and production there has already been shut down due to heat, lack of electricity and the upcoming wave of the coronavirus. Therefore, it may turn out that cars will not reach customers as quickly as they would like. And you can order them.

The model starts at PLN 199,900 for the Bastille base version and the aforementioned 1.5 BlueHDI engine. The hybrid starts at PLN 243,000. PLN in the same dimensions.

However, according to the brand director, DS customers will choose the E-Tense 360 ​​4×4 model in richer details of La Premiere for PLN 344,000. zlotys. This variant has everything on board. You can choose some things, but you don’t need an additional fee, including the color.

When the offer for the first and limited edition La Premiere ends, the highest specification will be the Opera, which will open the price list with PLN 247,200 for the diesel and close with PLN 328,000 for the more powerful hybrid.

More information about the prices of the new DS 7 can be found in the text below.