OPEN DSIRE? (some text hidden) --NONE--

By Jonathan Crouch

Introductionword count: 94

The DS3 Cabrio is anything but a conventional convertible - but then, that's exactly why you might buy one. You don't get a full-blown folding roof, but then neither do you get the usual compromises in rear seat and luggage space - and there are no speed restrictions on soft top use. If you thought you could neither justify or afford a cabriolet, then this car aims to make you think again. Between 2013 and 2015, this car was badged as a 'Citroen': does this design represent best used market value in this form?

Modelsword count: 13

3dr Cabrio (1.4, 1.6 petrol, 1.6 diesel [DSign, DStyle, Dsport, Black, White, Racing])

Historyword count: 265

The small affordable cabriolet. It's a lovely idea in principle, inexpensive open-roofed motoring for those rare occasions when the sun makes an appearance. In practice though, there are often frustrating compromises to be made in a car of this kind. Here's one though, that doesn't require you to make too many: the DS3 Cabrio. This model was originally launched with a 'Citroen' badge back in 2013 and instantly made sense as an affordable open-topped model for the real world, where it suited buyers asking questions like these: 'Wouldn't it be nice if a model of this sort didn't buffet you roof-down and shimmy over bumps?'; 'Wouldn't it be neat if you could react instantly to the weather and retract its top at almost any speed?'; and 'Wouldn't it be good if you could actually fit three people in the back if need be - and more than a token amount of luggage?' None of the cars which most readily come to mind as affordable open-tops - say the MINI Convertible, the Fiat 500C or even the Mazda MX-5 - can satisfy on all these counts. This one can. No, it's not a full-blown convertible - but then at launch, Citroen argued that to be a good thing, the resultant design better suited to enjoyment of our testing roads and changeable climate. This model was updated in 2014 with the option of smarter LED front headlights and BlueHDi diesel power. It then sold with Double Chevron badges on the bonnet until the end of 2015. For 2016 though, it was re-branded as a full 'DS' model.

What You Getword count: 691

You'd be forgiven for not realising this to be a Cabrio at first glance. After all, the profile of this model is identical to that of its fixed-top counterpart, which means you get the same cool 'shark fin' B-pillar, the same 'floating' two-tone roof and the same sculpted front end with its distinctive LED light signature. Unique to this model from the 2013 to 2015 era are lovely 3D rear light clusters made up of 31 LEDs with semi-reflecting mirrors. What you don't get is a lot of unwanted extra ballast: rival small cabrios usually have up to 100kgs of it to try and stop the body shaking over bumps, something this DS3 simply doesn't do thanks to its fixed side panels. What stiffness is lost to the canvas top has been regained by replacing the hatch model's flimsy rear parcel shelf with steel braces that have added a mere 25kgs to the overall kerb weight. The soft top design itself, a joint effort between Citroen and specialists Webasto, is a bit more complicated than it looks, made up of over 180 different parts and electrically operated by a button on the overhead console that works to three main settings - 'intermediate', 'horizontal' and 'total' - all of which, impressively, are accessible at any speed up to 75mph. Prodding the button once will slide the canvas back so that it concertinas like a busker's accordion above a rear screen which, if you continue to press the button, will hinge forward to lie on the parcel shelf, before the folded canvas sandwich motors back to take its place. As with the folding tops provided by most rivals, you'll find that when retracted, this one almost totally blocks rearward vision - hence the standard parking sensors. The roof acrobatics take only 16s from start to finish and when the whole thing's open, there's a pop-up wind deflector that springs out of the top roof rail to quell the worst of the turbulence. Of course, when you do have the roof down, you don't want it to take up so much space at the back that there's no room for people or packages. In this DS3 it doesn't. Take rear cargo space, accessible via a cantilevered bootlid that rises neatly outwards and upwards in a circular motion that means you can open it even when parked close to obstructions. It's unfortunate that once it is open, the aperture available is pretty small, though actually, the capacity on offer is greater than it first appears - 245-litres in all, just 40-litres less than you'd get in the ordinary hatch version. That's 30% more than you'd get in a rival Fiat 500C and twice as much as you'd find on a rival MINI Convertible. Plus you can extend it by folding down the same 60/40 split-folding rear bench you'll find on the DS3 hatch, revealing up to 980-litres. Even more impressive, given the size of this car, is the rear seat space on offer. Getting into the back isn't quite as easy as it would be in a full-blown soft-top like a MINI Convertible because you have to duck under the roof pillar as you would in any three-door hatchback. Once you're there though, there's an unusual bonus. This is the only model its class - and one of the very few convertibles you can buy - that can actually take three people across the back seat. True, space is fairly tight in the back, but it's OK for short journeys and fine for kids. At the wheel, you get the same high quality cabin that's done so much to promote sales of the standard DS3 hatch, with its piano black finishes and cool white lighting. The instruments are set into a trio of circular dials, in a motif that appears again in the round clusters of ventilation controls on a centre console that original buyers could colour-match to your own personal choice. With the exception of an armrest that slightly impedes the handbrake, the control layout is pretty faultless with an upmarket feel and a small, grippy leather-covered steering wheel that feels good to hold.

To see the full road test text contact us on 0330 0020 227