CarBrandLogos archive · DS · 2017

DSDS 7 Crossback

The first car conceived as a DS rather than rebadged into one.

Photo: Vauxford · CC BY-SA 4.0

The story

A defining chapter in DS history.

Explore the ideas, engineering and context that shaped the DS 7 Crossback, then continue into its specifications and place in the marque's lineage.

2018 DS 7 Crossback Ultra Prestige PTC 1.6 Rear

Origins

Everything DS had sold before this was a Citroen with different jewellery. The DS 7 Crossback, launched in 2017, was the first vehicle designed from the start to be a DS, and the brand chose the loudest possible introduction: a black one carried Emmanuel Macron up the Champs-Elysees at his inauguration in May 2017, before the car had reached showrooms.

2018 DS 7 Crossback Ultra Prestige PTC 1.6 Rear · Vauxford · CC BY-SA 4.0

Design and engineering

Ugo Spagnolo's design leaned on precision detail rather than bulk — the diamond-pattern grille, and headlamps whose three lens modules physically rotate through 180 degrees when the car is unlocked, a piece of theatre that also served the adaptive lighting. Inside, the pattern established by the DS 5 continued with pearl-stitched leather, a clock that pivots out of the dashboard, and material choices intended to read as Parisian rather than Bavarian.

DS 7 Crossback E-Tense IMG 2552 · Alexander Migl · CC BY-SA 4.0

In production

The technology was where PSA spent its money. DS Active Scan Suspension used a camera to read the road ahead and prepare the dampers for what was coming, and night vision using an infrared camera was offered — both features usually found several classes above a compact SUV. The powertrain range covered small turbo petrol engines, BlueHDi diesels, and eventually plug-in hybrids, including a four-wheel-drive version with an electric motor on the rear axle.

DS 7 Crossback E-Tense IMG 2556 · Alexander Migl · CC BY-SA 4.0

Legacy

Built at Mulhouse in France and at Shenzhen for China, it became the brand's best-selling model and the clearest demonstration of what DS was for. It ran into the Stellantis era before handing over to the DS No. 7.

At a glance

The facts that define it.

Produced

2017–2026

Engine

Petrol:

Designer

Ugo Spagnolo

Body

5-door SUV

Technical specification

The DS 7 Crossback, in detail.

Production: 2017–2026
Class: Compact luxury crossover SUV
Body style: 5-door SUV
Layout: Front-engine, front-wheel-drive or all-wheel-drive
Engine: Petrol:; 1.2 L PSA EB2DTS Turbo I3; 1.6 L PSA EP6FDT Turbo I4; Diesel:; 1.5 L PSA DV5 BlueHDi I4; 2.0 L PSA DW10 BlueHDi I4; Hybrid:; 1.6 L PSA EP6FDT PHEV I4 (HYBRID 225 e-EAT8); 1.6 L PSA EP6CDTX PHEV I4 (HYBRID4 300 e
Transmission: 6-speed manual; 8-speed Aisin AWF8F35 automatic
Designer: Ugo Spagnolo
Assembly: France: Mulhouse (Mulhouse Plant); China: Shenzhen (Baoneng, formerly Changan PSA)
Manufacturer: DS Automobilesefn; name=manufacturer; PSA Group (2017–2021) ; Stellantis (2021–present)