AFTER driving the DS3 you could never accuse Citroen of being boring.
The DS3 is a stylish interpretation of its 3 series model and harks back for its inspiration to the iconic DS model of the 1950s – a car that revolutionised thinking over car design and made three box designs of the time look old hat.
The sweeping DS has been described as one of the milestones of motoring so it is hardly surprising that Citroen has created a modern tribute to it which is a pure sizzler.
The DS3 pitches in against the MINI, Fiat 500 and Alfa Romeo MiTo in the battle to be the king of cool.
And like its competitors the DS3 offers the scope to virtually personalise your car with a seemingly unending list of features. For instance this car was resplendent with zebra stripes on the roof.
And this is where the DS3 scores highly. It's competitors, especially the Fiat 500 do something similar but the DS3 is French chic and French chic is always clever chic.
Don't for a moment think that this car is an attempt to recreate the DS because although there are a few features harking back to this famous car such as a painted dashboard this is a totally new and very daring attempt to net sales in a marketplace where image takes centre stage.
On the road the DS3 offers a much sharper driving experience that the C3 and comes into its own when precise cornering and sharp handling is required.
If I had a problem with this car it is that the ride is just a little too hard.
There is a tempting array of engines on offer and this car, a DSport version featured the now well-known Citroen 1.6 HDi engine which is a high-pressure common rail direct injection unit and which can propel this car to a maximum speed of 118mph with a 0-60mph sprint factor of a creditable 9.8 seconds.
Full marks go to the low CO2 readout of 118g/km which means that this sporty little car only costs £30 per year in road tax
The gearbox is a slick six-speed unit and there is standard fit of electronic stability control.
And two important deciding factors are that the DS3 is not overpriced at £16,500 and reaches towards the magical 70mpg mark with a combined readout of 62.8mpg.
FAST FACTS
Citroen DS3 DSport 1.6 HDi
Price: £16,500
Mechanical: 90bhp, 1,560cc, 4cyl diesel engine driving front wheels via 6-speed manual gearbox
Max speed: 118mph
0-62mph: 9.8 seconds
Combined mpg: 62.8
Insurance group: 18
CO2 emissions: 118g/km
BIK rating: 13%
Warranty: 3yrs/ 60,000 miles