Radical new DS No7 set to rip up the automotive rulebook

DS Automobiles doesn’t like to do things like everyone else, and the incoming next-generation DS No7 will be proof of that, with the UK MD telling us the new SUV will take the brand into a “very different space”. 

We’ve already seen the replacement for the now defunct but longstanding DS 7 testing on public roads, and recently, design director Thierry Métroz gave us our best look yet at the new model via a selection of camouflaged teaser images.

The new DS No7 was supposed to be revealed at this month’s Brussels Motor Show, but delays have pushed the unveiling back to the spring, Auto Express understands.

“We’ll bring on the replacement for DS 7 later this year,” DS UK managing director, Jules Tilstone told us. “We go into a very different space with what we offer as a brand. It's a more extreme expression of what we started to do with the phase-two products”.

This, along with the teaser images and spy pictures, gives us a clear impression of how the new DS No7 will look. Expect a bold, heavily illuminated front end with blanked-off grille, slim headlights and angular, vertical daytime lights to feature. The overall shape will be less rounded than before, with a tall, clamshell bonnet, high belt line and flush door handles.

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Inside, there will be more inspiration from the No8. That’s likely to mean a luxurious combination of materials such as Alcantara and leather, plus metal-like trim elements and lots of ambient LED lighting. It’s not yet known if it’ll adopt the X-shaped steering wheel, but the 16-inch touchscreen display will be shared, as will its internal software. 

Tilstone hopes that by lifting the long-range electric powertrain from the No8, the new SUV will see the brand snatch sales from European premium manufacturers such as Audi, BMW and Mercedes: “BEV is changing people's consideration set”, he told us. “Your traditional German, premium-brand buyer is saying, well, actually if I'm going to go BEV, then let's have a look at what else [there is]. 

“Because actually, the powertrain differentiation of yesterday is now different in terms of what BEV offers. Range is king, particularly on bigger cars; if you’ve got 466 miles of range and you’ve got a home charger, when are you ever going to public charge? That’s a big plus for us”.

Possibility of hybrid power

The 7’s blockier shape means it won’t quite match its sibling’s colossal range. But with the same 97kWh battery, we can expect in excess of 400 miles on a charge. DS isn’t closed off to the idea of offering hybrid powertrains further down the line, either. DS product director Audrey Amar previously told us that "combustion is under study” for the maker’s larger cars – models such as the No8 and forthcoming No7.

“No8 was not conceived to be ICE,” she told us – despite the car’s STLA-Med platform already supporting hybrid and plug-in hybrid motors in other Stellantis models, such as the Peugeot 5008 and Citroen C5 Aircross. 

“We'd have to redo the front face and the rear [end]. A lot of change. We need to study if it's interesting. Not all customers are okay to go to an electric version, but we have 750km (466 miles) of range”.

Due to be revealed later this year, the No7 should cost from around £45,000, and will be pitched as a rival to the Audi Q4 e-tron and BMW iX1. It will also target the Tesla Model Y, which can be had in brand-new Standard guise from under £42,000 via the Auto Express Buy A Car service.

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