Great drivetrain and impressive handling, standard everything
Polarizing design, fixed rear windows
The DS4 DSport is a very unique vehicle, and not simply because of its French eccentricities. It is designed as a crossover/hot-hatch/wagon alternative, offering space, ride height and a fair amount of poke without forcing its driver to resign to a humdrum hauler or compact SUV.
Based on the C4, the DS4 is a hotter and sportier version of its base car brother, in the same way the DS3 is to the C3. And it suffers none of the base car’s dowdy looks and uninspiring performance traits. For what it is, the DS4 DSport is one heck of a drive.
Citroen DS4 DSport Engine
The DS4 range consists of the DStyle and DSport, with the latter featuring the more powerful 1.6-litre PSA-built turbo petrol four with 147kW/275Nm.
It runs through the front wheels via a six-speed manual only.
Diesel drivetrains and semi-automatic EGS boxes are saved for the DStyle, keeping the DSport, err, sporty.
The engine is wonderfully efficient too, sipping 6.5L/100km on a minimum of 95RON fuel, and earning a five-star green rating in spite of the turbo and the weight of luxury appointments.
Citroen DS4 DSport Interior
The kit considering the price tag is right up there on value, with dual-zone climate control, cruise control, a cooled glove box, and heated electric seats with massage function all standard. The seats are fantastic, with chunky woven leather on the inserts and excellent lateral and lumbar support, the latter adjustable via inflating air bags in the seats, not just a mechanical pivot.
Safety is also extremely high, with six airbags and a five star crash rating, cornering lights, blind spot warning system, reversing and forward sensors, electric park brake and a hill holder.
However, the French car is not without its sacrifices of function for form, and the rear windows of the car are fixed. So swooping is the rear door design around the wheel arches to the C-Pillar mounted door handle, that there is no room for the window glass to drop down into the door. Therefore you cannot even open the window a crack, which is not cool for kids or indeed any rear seat passenger. Particularly if they get car-sick…
The front suffers no such restrictions, with an enormous raked windscreen that actually extends past the conventional A-Pillar. It is almost panoramic, with the roofline not starting until the top of the driver’s head, and a blind which slides down to form a more conventional roofline, complete with the standard flip-down visors. As the sliding blinds retract into the roof lining, it does eat into the headroom slightly.
Citroen DS4 DSport Exterior & Styling
The DSport looks like the bland C4 should have: aggressive but quirky, and very much a unique car on the road.
The car sits high on its suspension – the huge 19-inch two-tone painted rims barely fill the arches.
The doors sweep upwards from the front to the rear, with the door handles for the rear doors hidden in the top corners by the C-Pillar to maintain the fluid look – though, as mentioned above, it is at the expense of the rear windows rolling down.
The boot is wedge-shaped and helps to make the car look smaller than its actual dimensions, while the twin tailpipes are covered in chrome and accentuate the sporty look from the rear.
Citroen DS4 DSport On The Road
The DSport’s ride and handling is surprisingly sweet for a lifted car with front-driven wheels and a conventional torsion-beam axle at the back.
The turbo is sharp and responsive; the exhaust suitably sporty and quite boomy in the cabin under full throttle, and the car feels quite strong and light in the turbo torque band. The six-speed manual offers a lovely, precise throw, and the gearing is well calibrated. While the clutch is overly light with a narrow friction point, one does get used to it.
The higher ground clearance doesn’t seem to detract from the car’s handling, which is surprisingly deft thanks to stiffer anti-roll bars and well-worked rebound control, but without being overly firm on such skinny rubber and 19-inch rims. The grippy Michelin Pilot Sport tyres are hardly the norm for a ‘crossover’…
Citroen has gone a bit overboard in some areas; the steering wheel has far too many buttons and rolling switches that are not intuitive in their operation; the radio is easier to operate via the centre console.
However, pretty much everything has been thought of, thought out, and added in. The only options on the DSport are metallic paint, two-tone alloys, bi-Xenon headlights and an uprated stereo; everything else is standard. It feels like a pretty expensive car, and while the price isn’t exactly dirt cheap, the bang for buck is impressive.
Citroen DS4 DSport Challenges
While the DSport must be applauded for offering a fun drive while accommodating room inside and underneath it and sticking to the crossover ideas, it’s hard to actually position the car in any particular niche - which may be part of its success as well as a possible failure when it comes to sales. It is a polarizing look, and indeed a polarizing drive, considering its intended demographic.
The fixed rear windows are real disappointment, particularly given its purpose as a wagon/compact SUV alternative.
Citroen DS4 DSport Competition
The most obvious opponent for the DS4 is the Mini Countryman ($33,700 – $54,900), though the ultimate all-rounder, the five-door Golf GTI ($40,490) would no doubt be on a buyer’s shopping list. Other quirky Frenchies such as the Peugeot 3008 ($36,490 - $43,490) and Citroen AirCross compact SUV ($31,990 – $33,990) will also be of interest.
Citroen DS4 DSport Verdict
A surprising drive, fantastic value, and excellent safety. Looking past the odd design quirk, it’s a pretty impressive proposition for those seeking a luxurious but still sorta-sporty all-rounder.
