Citroen DS4 (2011) first official pictures

Hot on the heels of the new Citroen C4 comes the new Citroen DS4, the second of the French car company’s 21st century DS models. Designed to take on sleek models like Alfa’s Giulietta and Vauxhall’s forthcoming three-door Astra, it mixes humdrum hatchback underpinnings with a more adventurous styling direction on the outside, and more luxurious materials on the inside.

Essentially, yes – think along the lines of how Citroen turned the mundane C3 into the much more exciting DS3. And although the DS4 sticks with five doors (the five-door C3 morphed into the three-door DS3) it does have unique styling. It is still recognisably C4-based, but there’s now a new nose, more curvaceous flanks, and hidden rear door handles. Citroen says the look combines ‘coupé style with 2+2 door practicality’, and because it’s designed to be stylish and attractive there’s a smaller boot too, down from the C4’s 408-litres to 370-litres. Expect lashings of chrome and leather inside.

There are a choice of five engines, two of which are diesel, and available in 108bhp and 158bhp guises. The three petrol engines are all based on the 1.6-litre turbo co-developed with BMW, and beyond the familiar 118bhp and 152bhp variants, there’s the same 197bhp unit that’s found in the Peugeot RCZ. 

The new Citroen DS4 will be unveiled at the 2010 Paris motor show, and UK sales will start in 2011.

By Ben Pulman