New Citroen isDSigned 4 style

The DS4 is described by the French company as a coupe but there are two rear doors, although the hidden handles might fool some onlookers into believing this is a three-door model.

It certainly has got the looks to stand out and the sleek exterior appearance is matched inside by a well designed and quality finish interior.

The test model had optional mistral and red Claudia leather upholstery which added to the luxury and also included heated front seats.

It is a particularly bright cockpit and that’s mainly down to the large panoramic windcreen.

The multi-function steering wheel brings all sorts of controls to the driver’s fingertips although I didn’t quite have enough time with the car to master them.

There are three versions, DSign, DStyle and DSport, and five engines, three petrol and two diesel.

I sampled the mid-spec DStyle which has an excellent 2-litre HDi 163bhp diesel engine

This is a pretty quiet and refined unit which had plenty of punch when required moving up and down the six-speed manual gearbox.

The car was responsive enough and displayed superb agility and road holding. The disadvantage of this is that some drivers might find the suspension a bit too firm although I must admit I liked it.

This model was no slouch, moving from standstill to 62mph in 9.3 seconds and commanding a top speed of 132mph.

Yet it can still achieve excellent fuel consumption figures of 55.4mpg combined, 65.7mpg extra urban and 42.8mph urban, with CO2 emissions rating of 134g/km.

While it was all pretty comfortable up front an inspection of the rear seats revealed that there is limited legroom and, despite this being a five-door model, the rear windows don’t open.

The 359 litre boot is spacious enough and expands to 385 litres with the under-floor storage section. The split/folding rear seats tumble forward for more versatility.

Entry level DSign models have a fair spec which includes air conditioning, daytime-running LEDs, 17-inch alloy wheels, front for lights with cornering functions, six speaker audio system and cruise control with speed limiter.

The DStyle equipment includes 18-inch alloys, automatic windscreen wipers and headlamps, front sports seats with electric lumbar adjustment and massage function, part-leather upholstery, automatic digital air conditioning, aluminium drilled pedals and rear parking sensors.

The range starts at £18,150 and you can add all sorts of Signature options to suit your taste. The DStyle HDi test car’s price of £22,950 rocketed by more than £4,000 with its options of leather Signature pack (£1,390), pearlescent paint (£550), security Signature pack (£320) eMyWay Hi-Gi Signature (£1,190), side rubbing strips (£150) and Xenon headlamps (£690).

Citroen’s DS4 is a car you can stamp your own style on – but it will be at a substantial cost.