Discussion
500x said:
Forgot to say I was wondering if the firmware update i installed today would change it to an IRIS type system.
I wonder if it's not possible because the new system may perhaps require better hardware. I'll ask DS if there are any plans if i call them.
Would be very interested in the answer I wonder if it's not possible because the new system may perhaps require better hardware. I'll ask DS if there are any plans if i call them.
The carpet mats that come with the DS9 are OK but not special. They are pretty standard PSA fare. I decided to do better.
Easirider (www.easirider.com) does lambswool over-rugs. Their main market is Rolls Royce and Bentley, especially vintage, but they will make rugs for basically any car that exists. I contacted them and asked them for a set of rugs for a DS9. They didn't have the template, but the owner said that he was in South East London on such and such a day and he would be happy to come round and measure the car and make a set of templates.
They do loads of different colours. I dithered between dark grey and black. In the end I went for black, in order to avoid the interior being a sea of grey.
A few days later they turned up, and they are magnificent.
Front driver's mat, with leather heel pad:
Rear passenger area - fully covered including central transmission tunnel:
Boot area. The faint grid pattern near the back is from a storage crate that I moved, it is not a design:
They fit extremely well, including the floor fastenings. They are not the most practical thing, but they are unusual and they look special, and that somehow fits the character of the car. They are quite heavy. Cabin road noise is definitely down.
Easirider now have DS9 templates, in case any of the other 76 owners want a set
All hand made in the UK, superb quality and lovely service. No connection other than as a satisfied customer. I will be using them for all my cars going forward
Easirider (www.easirider.com) does lambswool over-rugs. Their main market is Rolls Royce and Bentley, especially vintage, but they will make rugs for basically any car that exists. I contacted them and asked them for a set of rugs for a DS9. They didn't have the template, but the owner said that he was in South East London on such and such a day and he would be happy to come round and measure the car and make a set of templates.
They do loads of different colours. I dithered between dark grey and black. In the end I went for black, in order to avoid the interior being a sea of grey.
A few days later they turned up, and they are magnificent.
Front driver's mat, with leather heel pad:
Rear passenger area - fully covered including central transmission tunnel:
Boot area. The faint grid pattern near the back is from a storage crate that I moved, it is not a design:
They fit extremely well, including the floor fastenings. They are not the most practical thing, but they are unusual and they look special, and that somehow fits the character of the car. They are quite heavy. Cabin road noise is definitely down.
Easirider now have DS9 templates, in case any of the other 76 owners want a set
All hand made in the UK, superb quality and lovely service. No connection other than as a satisfied customer. I will be using them for all my cars going forward
In general I'm very impressed, they do look great. Nice to know the noise reduces too... Is it quite significant?
I always prefer non invasive ways of cutting noise and this looks a great idea. Removing the carpet across the interior would be a big job and not one I'd want to tackle.
Not sure I'd do the boot mat. I'll probably soundproof the boot floor in the next few days and then try and stuff a bit more sound deadening over the rear wheels arches without removing the surrounds.
What did you pay if you don't mind me asking? If it was itemised what would it cost for the floor mats excluding boot mat?
I always prefer non invasive ways of cutting noise and this looks a great idea. Removing the carpet across the interior would be a big job and not one I'd want to tackle.
Not sure I'd do the boot mat. I'll probably soundproof the boot floor in the next few days and then try and stuff a bit more sound deadening over the rear wheels arches without removing the surrounds.
What did you pay if you don't mind me asking? If it was itemised what would it cost for the floor mats excluding boot mat?
The interior mats were about £770 all in. The boot mat is a very big piece and was another £480. Not cheap but not unreasonable for a hand made product and I think they are worth it.
I did look at other sources of nice car mats, but none of them had templates for the DS9, and none of them had anything close to this. They are really rather lovely.
Interested to hear how your soundproofing project goes. I find that the over-rugs have reduced some road noise for sure. Wind noise is obviously unaffected, but overall it is still very refined compared to other cars I have been in. I think that of all the cars I have had, the Lexus GS is the closest in terms of ambience. Indeed I believe that DS said that Lexus is their target.
I would definitely not do anything irreversible like cutting the floor carpet, I would be worried about getting it wrong and also affecting resale value. I guess that one could have a better floor carpet made, with more soundproofing, but it would involve removing the entire interior, and it would be hard to make everything fit together again...
I did look at other sources of nice car mats, but none of them had templates for the DS9, and none of them had anything close to this. They are really rather lovely.
Interested to hear how your soundproofing project goes. I find that the over-rugs have reduced some road noise for sure. Wind noise is obviously unaffected, but overall it is still very refined compared to other cars I have been in. I think that of all the cars I have had, the Lexus GS is the closest in terms of ambience. Indeed I believe that DS said that Lexus is their target.
I would definitely not do anything irreversible like cutting the floor carpet, I would be worried about getting it wrong and also affecting resale value. I guess that one could have a better floor carpet made, with more soundproofing, but it would involve removing the entire interior, and it would be hard to make everything fit together again...
That's a fair old price, but like you say not unreasonable for top quality handmade. To an extent I quite like the performance line mats I have, but could do with affixing maybe 5mm of sound deadening underneath. I could even get carpet acoustic underlay perhaps.
Drove from London to Sheffield yesterday, fair bit of traffic and a few slow parts, spent most of it in eco mode, and had the air con on constantly.
50.3 mpg. Nice going, 5-10 mpg more than I expected. For a 5m long petrol I'll take it all day.
Spent an hour this morning covering the boot floor with my left over dodomat. I perhaps shoulda done a db test before and after but didn't bother. Can't really tell if it's quieter because haven't driven at speed but it must have made some positive difference, however incremental that is. Pics below. When you put all the stuff back in you don't notice it's there.
All of a sudden my car feels bumpy at low speeds, I think it's because of the poor roads. However, we got 2 ubers yday for short trips. One a 71 reg octavia etec auto with definitely a worse ride and the ambience in the rear was awful, the doors had awful thin scratchy plastics. Coming home we rode in a 19 reg superb manual, again felt low rent, albeit slightly better than the octavia but still nowhere near the ds9. What also surprised me is the legroom in the superb... Don't get me wrong it is good but it feels like the ds9 has a fair bit more.
Drove from London to Sheffield yesterday, fair bit of traffic and a few slow parts, spent most of it in eco mode, and had the air con on constantly.
50.3 mpg. Nice going, 5-10 mpg more than I expected. For a 5m long petrol I'll take it all day.
Spent an hour this morning covering the boot floor with my left over dodomat. I perhaps shoulda done a db test before and after but didn't bother. Can't really tell if it's quieter because haven't driven at speed but it must have made some positive difference, however incremental that is. Pics below. When you put all the stuff back in you don't notice it's there.
All of a sudden my car feels bumpy at low speeds, I think it's because of the poor roads. However, we got 2 ubers yday for short trips. One a 71 reg octavia etec auto with definitely a worse ride and the ambience in the rear was awful, the doors had awful thin scratchy plastics. Coming home we rode in a 19 reg superb manual, again felt low rent, albeit slightly better than the octavia but still nowhere near the ds9. What also surprised me is the legroom in the superb... Don't get me wrong it is good but it feels like the ds9 has a fair bit more.
Returned from a 5 day trip away in which we covered 545 miles and learnt more about the car.
As touched on before it's a mix of emotions. The engine and wind noise is generally top notch and whilst that is great it highlights other types of noise. Road noise is prevalent but I have managed to suppress it however slightly. As another quick no loss reduction measure I bought a £15 universal rubber boot mat from halfords measururing just over 100cm*75cm and weighing 3kg, cut it into 3 and have 3 underfloor mats. The passenger footwell one was a great fit and the other 2 just decent size rectangles really. Helps that cutting them in half makes them circa 50cm, the width of each of the footwells. I might upgrade in due course.
On the small badly maintained roads I sometimes drove on the suspension I found threw up a bit of noise, not something I'd noticed at first. Why didn't DS just add the bump stops off the C5X? or give it comfort tyres rather than the most expensive hard sporty runflat ones possible?
When driving back yesterday on the M1 the sun was to my right and just below the top of the door so I moved the seat up to a higher position to stop the glare, not something I would normally do. I liked this and will keep the seat there in the future. What I found occurred in this position is there is a little more wind noise but it seems as though I get lower amounts of other noise because I'm further away from the ground. Visibility improves a little too.
On a highly surprising positive note is the fuel consumption. In Eco mode it free wheels......however this is dependent on how you drive it. With cruise control on it never seemed to activate, but in normal driving or with the limiter it kicks in all the time. So weird to see a car showing 75mph and 800 rpm. I thought it'd feel unsafe etc but in reality all I needed to do is keep more of a gap to the car in front. Also it isnt really that noticeable as in top gear the car has very little engine braking anyway, a lot of the time to detect it's even happening you have to look at the rev counter.
Driving up and back (2 passengers and maybe 60kg of luggage) i was in cruise maybe 2/3's of the time and both 150 mile+ trips were just over and just under 50mpg, which is great. Overall average including short hops and A road trips etc the average came out above 45mpg. Very impressive for such a large car with a 225hp petrol engine. Definitely better than our diesel 500x was.
Going forward for mway trips I'll use limiter rather than CC. Next trip away is Oxford a week on Saturday.... i wouldn't be surprised if I average 55mpg on the drives there and back, and 50mpg overall.
I filled it up to the brim on Tuesday evening, drove around 194 miles yday and the fuel gauge was showing 3/4 full when I got home!
The TomTom you need to get used to, works well most of the time but has it's little quirks. Suggested driving me back over hammersmith bridge yday! It's been closed for 4 years.
One final thing I noticed is the speedo doesn't "read that fast". In the old car I checked the speedo vs waze and knew I could set the cruise to 78mph knowing in reality it was moving at circa 75mph. On the DS9 it's very accurate, 76mph on the speedo relates to 75mph.
As touched on before it's a mix of emotions. The engine and wind noise is generally top notch and whilst that is great it highlights other types of noise. Road noise is prevalent but I have managed to suppress it however slightly. As another quick no loss reduction measure I bought a £15 universal rubber boot mat from halfords measururing just over 100cm*75cm and weighing 3kg, cut it into 3 and have 3 underfloor mats. The passenger footwell one was a great fit and the other 2 just decent size rectangles really. Helps that cutting them in half makes them circa 50cm, the width of each of the footwells. I might upgrade in due course.
On the small badly maintained roads I sometimes drove on the suspension I found threw up a bit of noise, not something I'd noticed at first. Why didn't DS just add the bump stops off the C5X? or give it comfort tyres rather than the most expensive hard sporty runflat ones possible?
When driving back yesterday on the M1 the sun was to my right and just below the top of the door so I moved the seat up to a higher position to stop the glare, not something I would normally do. I liked this and will keep the seat there in the future. What I found occurred in this position is there is a little more wind noise but it seems as though I get lower amounts of other noise because I'm further away from the ground. Visibility improves a little too.
On a highly surprising positive note is the fuel consumption. In Eco mode it free wheels......however this is dependent on how you drive it. With cruise control on it never seemed to activate, but in normal driving or with the limiter it kicks in all the time. So weird to see a car showing 75mph and 800 rpm. I thought it'd feel unsafe etc but in reality all I needed to do is keep more of a gap to the car in front. Also it isnt really that noticeable as in top gear the car has very little engine braking anyway, a lot of the time to detect it's even happening you have to look at the rev counter.
Driving up and back (2 passengers and maybe 60kg of luggage) i was in cruise maybe 2/3's of the time and both 150 mile+ trips were just over and just under 50mpg, which is great. Overall average including short hops and A road trips etc the average came out above 45mpg. Very impressive for such a large car with a 225hp petrol engine. Definitely better than our diesel 500x was.
Going forward for mway trips I'll use limiter rather than CC. Next trip away is Oxford a week on Saturday.... i wouldn't be surprised if I average 55mpg on the drives there and back, and 50mpg overall.
I filled it up to the brim on Tuesday evening, drove around 194 miles yday and the fuel gauge was showing 3/4 full when I got home!
The TomTom you need to get used to, works well most of the time but has it's little quirks. Suggested driving me back over hammersmith bridge yday! It's been closed for 4 years.
One final thing I noticed is the speedo doesn't "read that fast". In the old car I checked the speedo vs waze and knew I could set the cruise to 78mph knowing in reality it was moving at circa 75mph. On the DS9 it's very accurate, 76mph on the speedo relates to 75mph.
Driven just over 1,000 miles in mine now, a lot of motorway/ A roads but a fair amount of short hops too.
The car continues to grow on me, I like the way the engine fizzes and hums rather than revs and it's a lovely unit, mated to the 8 speed auto. It's hard to imagine the mechanical refinement being any better. Brakes are superb and more than capable, take a bit of getting used to at the start because they are the same as the ones used on the 300kg+ heavier phev models.
Mpg continues to impress, all longish runs are circa 47-53mpg on the trip computer and the overall average is circa 42mpg. The freewheel function in eco mode is good as long as distance is kept to the car in front. I set the limiter and just drive as normal and the way the engine cuts in and out is almost seamless.
Not all great though, have a slight worry with the front driver side bodywork above the main lights feeling slighly loose vs the other side. I have just learnt that the front bumper has a recall on it......and I have it booked into a dealer later this week. Perhaps it's the same problem? I'll find out in due course.
The main reason for me booking it in however is the suspension noise which continues to annoy. The suspension seems to have very little play in it at anything above 15mph and bumps and crashes over minor undulations in the road. I wondered if I was making it up to an extent but then read/ googled around on the DS7 and I seem to be experiencing similar issues. Suspension is complex so I can't put my finger on it but it sounds worse from the passenger side....is it just the calibration isnt right, the bushes, bump stops, or suspension arms.......I am at a loss but hopefully the dealership acknowledges that all isn't right and remedies accordingly. I'd like to have the hydraulic bump stops as in the c5x but that may not be the solution.
The car continues to grow on me, I like the way the engine fizzes and hums rather than revs and it's a lovely unit, mated to the 8 speed auto. It's hard to imagine the mechanical refinement being any better. Brakes are superb and more than capable, take a bit of getting used to at the start because they are the same as the ones used on the 300kg+ heavier phev models.
Mpg continues to impress, all longish runs are circa 47-53mpg on the trip computer and the overall average is circa 42mpg. The freewheel function in eco mode is good as long as distance is kept to the car in front. I set the limiter and just drive as normal and the way the engine cuts in and out is almost seamless.
Not all great though, have a slight worry with the front driver side bodywork above the main lights feeling slighly loose vs the other side. I have just learnt that the front bumper has a recall on it......and I have it booked into a dealer later this week. Perhaps it's the same problem? I'll find out in due course.
The main reason for me booking it in however is the suspension noise which continues to annoy. The suspension seems to have very little play in it at anything above 15mph and bumps and crashes over minor undulations in the road. I wondered if I was making it up to an extent but then read/ googled around on the DS7 and I seem to be experiencing similar issues. Suspension is complex so I can't put my finger on it but it sounds worse from the passenger side....is it just the calibration isnt right, the bushes, bump stops, or suspension arms.......I am at a loss but hopefully the dealership acknowledges that all isn't right and remedies accordingly. I'd like to have the hydraulic bump stops as in the c5x but that may not be the solution.
I've seen a bit of condensation in the lights from time to time but hopefully thats as far as it goes.
The DS7 situation I think was a production line batch and constituted an official recall and I've seen various comments on other forums about part or full replacements being done under warranty. In some cases dealerships werent leeting people have their cars back until the mods were done so must have been quite serious. When I dropped off the DS9 on Friday and mentioned to the guy I'd been reading about the DS7 issues he was clearly aware of it beforehand. Generally though owners like yourself seen to like the DS7's comfort so this was maybe an isolated issue.
I dont think my issues with the DS9 will necessarily be a bad batch....reading AmitG's comments...in all likelihood they must have used the same parts on the same production run for his car, and he has no issues. The last 3 digits of my VIN are around 900 and I bet Amitg's isn't far away from that number. I'm guessing this because the car I originally reserved and then cancelled had a VIN just 4 digits away from the one I eventually bought.
I have been looking around to pre empt a negative outcome from the dealer. Worst case could be a "We can find nothing wrong, that's the stock ride comfort, if you wanted better you should have got the version with adaptive damping". I'm not expecting that and it's probably me being negative, but should that occur I do need to think of potential remedies.
In terms of ride firmness/ softness I do believe the car suits me and I like the way it is balanced. Not as firm as some, but not as soft and wallowy as say the PHEV version of the DS9 I test drove with adaptive dampers that made my daughter feel carsick. I could deviate slightly from what I have, say a bit softer or firmer but I wouldn't want to go far.
I have been reading around and came across a forum where a guy owned a DS5 which has a notoriously bad ride. He made 2 changes. First was to swap the PS4 tyres to Primacy which improved the ride but then more fundamental in his opinion was changing the shock absorbers to Bilstein B4's. These are just effectively simple quality OEM replacements and searching around can be as cheap as £40 each. After further reading people in general seem to like them a lot, comments seem to suggest they just add a bit of composure vs what they previously had and generally make the system a little firmer. There are a couple of Koni alternatives too. That said it's hard to be definitive on this as normally when shocks are replaced they are a replacement for old and worn. Like I have previously said, my shocks at the moment feel like they are bottoming out regularly.
I asked via webchat this morning though and Bilstein say they don't make B4's for the DS9, whether this is just some guy reading from a database or not I don't know but I won't take it further right now. I'll cross the bridge when i come to it.
This was one of the reviews I originally read months ago and saw it as an outlier in terms of ride quality comments. At this moment in time I can fully appreciate what they mean. https://www.evo.co.uk/ds/205086/ds9-e-tense-2022-r...
Like all reviews they do get a lot wrong. It feels like the Germans competition can get away with small iterations on what went before, adding a bigger battery, a bit more chrome, a larger uglier grill, and more touchscreens and all is ok while the DS9 is always compared to the revolutionary original 1955 DS and if it falls short of that it's seen as a failure.
Of all the reviews I have seen on the DS9 (bucketloads) this is one imho which most accurately reflects the car.....apart from the driving section where he swaps to the 360hp version so it's not really comparable https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=s0l3BB2wp1s&ab...
The DS7 situation I think was a production line batch and constituted an official recall and I've seen various comments on other forums about part or full replacements being done under warranty. In some cases dealerships werent leeting people have their cars back until the mods were done so must have been quite serious. When I dropped off the DS9 on Friday and mentioned to the guy I'd been reading about the DS7 issues he was clearly aware of it beforehand. Generally though owners like yourself seen to like the DS7's comfort so this was maybe an isolated issue.
I dont think my issues with the DS9 will necessarily be a bad batch....reading AmitG's comments...in all likelihood they must have used the same parts on the same production run for his car, and he has no issues. The last 3 digits of my VIN are around 900 and I bet Amitg's isn't far away from that number. I'm guessing this because the car I originally reserved and then cancelled had a VIN just 4 digits away from the one I eventually bought.
I have been looking around to pre empt a negative outcome from the dealer. Worst case could be a "We can find nothing wrong, that's the stock ride comfort, if you wanted better you should have got the version with adaptive damping". I'm not expecting that and it's probably me being negative, but should that occur I do need to think of potential remedies.
In terms of ride firmness/ softness I do believe the car suits me and I like the way it is balanced. Not as firm as some, but not as soft and wallowy as say the PHEV version of the DS9 I test drove with adaptive dampers that made my daughter feel carsick. I could deviate slightly from what I have, say a bit softer or firmer but I wouldn't want to go far.
I have been reading around and came across a forum where a guy owned a DS5 which has a notoriously bad ride. He made 2 changes. First was to swap the PS4 tyres to Primacy which improved the ride but then more fundamental in his opinion was changing the shock absorbers to Bilstein B4's. These are just effectively simple quality OEM replacements and searching around can be as cheap as £40 each. After further reading people in general seem to like them a lot, comments seem to suggest they just add a bit of composure vs what they previously had and generally make the system a little firmer. There are a couple of Koni alternatives too. That said it's hard to be definitive on this as normally when shocks are replaced they are a replacement for old and worn. Like I have previously said, my shocks at the moment feel like they are bottoming out regularly.
I asked via webchat this morning though and Bilstein say they don't make B4's for the DS9, whether this is just some guy reading from a database or not I don't know but I won't take it further right now. I'll cross the bridge when i come to it.
This was one of the reviews I originally read months ago and saw it as an outlier in terms of ride quality comments. At this moment in time I can fully appreciate what they mean. https://www.evo.co.uk/ds/205086/ds9-e-tense-2022-r...
Like all reviews they do get a lot wrong. It feels like the Germans competition can get away with small iterations on what went before, adding a bigger battery, a bit more chrome, a larger uglier grill, and more touchscreens and all is ok while the DS9 is always compared to the revolutionary original 1955 DS and if it falls short of that it's seen as a failure.
Of all the reviews I have seen on the DS9 (bucketloads) this is one imho which most accurately reflects the car.....apart from the driving section where he swaps to the 360hp version so it's not really comparable https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=s0l3BB2wp1s&ab...
I collected the car today from the dealer, things not fully resolved yet.
The rear chrome below the tail light just above the badge they acknowledged as a fault but can't just replace the chrome trim, they need to replace the full light as it's part of that. Overkill for sure but as they say i'm not paying for it.
The front bumper recall that they have is actually the issue i have apparently....but it's not quite the bumper, its the strip below the bonnet which has the badge on it. On my Drivers side it rattles ever so slightly.....again I'd have hoped for a simple solution like gluing it down a little more but they say it needs the part ordering, spraying, then fitting. As they have never done one before the mechanic doesn't even know if it'll fix the problem.
When the parts arrive it'll go back in.
I went for a test drive with the mechanic to test the suspension and only afterwards when i was driving home through Barnes/ Putney on the rough did I notice the problem I have. The test was on a lot smoother roads near the dealership at lower speed and wasn't that apparent. I'm now gonna talk to a local recommended garage and see what they can do.
The rear chrome below the tail light just above the badge they acknowledged as a fault but can't just replace the chrome trim, they need to replace the full light as it's part of that. Overkill for sure but as they say i'm not paying for it.
The front bumper recall that they have is actually the issue i have apparently....but it's not quite the bumper, its the strip below the bonnet which has the badge on it. On my Drivers side it rattles ever so slightly.....again I'd have hoped for a simple solution like gluing it down a little more but they say it needs the part ordering, spraying, then fitting. As they have never done one before the mechanic doesn't even know if it'll fix the problem.
When the parts arrive it'll go back in.
I went for a test drive with the mechanic to test the suspension and only afterwards when i was driving home through Barnes/ Putney on the rough did I notice the problem I have. The test was on a lot smoother roads near the dealership at lower speed and wasn't that apparent. I'm now gonna talk to a local recommended garage and see what they can do.
Fingers crossed you get it resolved. I don't seem to have that noise on mine. The only unusual noise I can detect is a very slight gurgling sound coming from the aircon when the engine is hot but on on low load (e.g. just come off a motorway and now doddering around at 30mph). It's probably normal and it doesn't bother me so I'll ask them about it when I get it serviced.
I just came back from a short break in Northumberland. Lots of sightseeing. Around 1,000 miles in 3 days. No issues to report. The car is really comfortable on all types of roads. You can drive for hours and not feel fatigued. I genuinely loved driving it around.
Handling wise - it's FWD, it's the size of an S-class, and it's built for comfort. It is most certainly definitely not a B-road weapon. You need to adopt a more sedate pace. But then it's fine.
A standard 360 degree camera would have been good. Mine has one of those reversing cameras which tries to reconstruct a 360 degree view. It's OK but a proper 360 degree camera would really help with car parks and the like.
I was pleasantly surprised by the average fuel economy of 45.1mpg. That is more than I expected considering that I disable stop start, I have the climate control running all the time, and I have a heavy right foot. I am getting just over 600 miles per tank in the real world. IMHO that is not bad for a 5 metre long petrol saloon.
The infotainment is IMHO the bit that needs the most improvement. The first annoyance is that it doesn't take up the whole screen. The second annoyance is that browsing through MP3 albums is very fiddly; there is a "CoverFlow" feature which should let you do it easily, but it's a pain to use, requiring endless tapping on the screen. But the most annoying feature is that when playing an album, by default it plays MP3 tracks in alphabetical order rather than using the track number property! Who on earth decided that was a good idea?
And it gets worse. You may think that you can work around it by just putting a numerical prefix in front of the track name, for example "00 - My Song". But if you do this, it suddenly gets clever and strips off the prefix and you are back to where you started!
There is a workaround but it involves even more taps and it's a bit of a pain. The newer Iris system solves this problem and is generally so much nicer to use. I still hold out hope that existing cars might get upgraded.
The sat nav works great; it's standard TomTom with live traffic and accident reports so I guess it should do.
Despite my best efforts, I did not see a single other DS9
But that exclusivity is one of the things that I love about it.
I wonder whether this is the last big French saloon that we will ever see. This type of car has been a running joke in the UK motoring press for decades, famous for avant-garde styling, dodgy reliability, single-digit sales and cliff-edge depreciation. Nobody bought them in the 1990s, and nobody buys them now. The DS9 feels in some ways like the end of an era. This would be extremely sad. Cars like the DS9 may not sell, but they need to exist. The world is a better place with them. So DS, if you are listening, please continue the tradition of ignoring your accountants and your market research team and instead making the cars that you really want to make.
I just came back from a short break in Northumberland. Lots of sightseeing. Around 1,000 miles in 3 days. No issues to report. The car is really comfortable on all types of roads. You can drive for hours and not feel fatigued. I genuinely loved driving it around.
Handling wise - it's FWD, it's the size of an S-class, and it's built for comfort. It is most certainly definitely not a B-road weapon. You need to adopt a more sedate pace. But then it's fine.
A standard 360 degree camera would have been good. Mine has one of those reversing cameras which tries to reconstruct a 360 degree view. It's OK but a proper 360 degree camera would really help with car parks and the like.
I was pleasantly surprised by the average fuel economy of 45.1mpg. That is more than I expected considering that I disable stop start, I have the climate control running all the time, and I have a heavy right foot. I am getting just over 600 miles per tank in the real world. IMHO that is not bad for a 5 metre long petrol saloon.
The infotainment is IMHO the bit that needs the most improvement. The first annoyance is that it doesn't take up the whole screen. The second annoyance is that browsing through MP3 albums is very fiddly; there is a "CoverFlow" feature which should let you do it easily, but it's a pain to use, requiring endless tapping on the screen. But the most annoying feature is that when playing an album, by default it plays MP3 tracks in alphabetical order rather than using the track number property! Who on earth decided that was a good idea?
And it gets worse. You may think that you can work around it by just putting a numerical prefix in front of the track name, for example "00 - My Song". But if you do this, it suddenly gets clever and strips off the prefix and you are back to where you started!
There is a workaround but it involves even more taps and it's a bit of a pain. The newer Iris system solves this problem and is generally so much nicer to use. I still hold out hope that existing cars might get upgraded.
The sat nav works great; it's standard TomTom with live traffic and accident reports so I guess it should do.
Despite my best efforts, I did not see a single other DS9
But that exclusivity is one of the things that I love about it.I wonder whether this is the last big French saloon that we will ever see. This type of car has been a running joke in the UK motoring press for decades, famous for avant-garde styling, dodgy reliability, single-digit sales and cliff-edge depreciation. Nobody bought them in the 1990s, and nobody buys them now. The DS9 feels in some ways like the end of an era. This would be extremely sad. Cars like the DS9 may not sell, but they need to exist. The world is a better place with them. So DS, if you are listening, please continue the tradition of ignoring your accountants and your market research team and instead making the cars that you really want to make.
Good to hear from you Amitg and glad to hear you are still enjoying the car.
Great to hear you enjoyed your long trip. I havent got time to reply in detail atm but have just taken delivery of 2.4sqm of 5mm mass loaded vinyl. Only 50 quid inc del. My god it's heavy at 24kg/ 10kg sqm. I intend to use half or a bit more of it for under car mat soundproofing, just cutting to size and sliding underneath... non invasive. Then I had a quick exploratory look yesterday and I think i can get to the rear wheelarches in the boot. If I can and major soundproof the rear wheelarches I think it'll be a game changer for road noise. The front wheelarches through the footwells look a bit more problematic so i'll probably just leave them.
So far with the boot job I think I might have added 5kg max of sound deadening weight.....irrelevant. Am happy to add another 25-50kg or so if it makes it noticeably quieter.
Not got time to do it now but I will in the next few wks.
Great to hear you enjoyed your long trip. I havent got time to reply in detail atm but have just taken delivery of 2.4sqm of 5mm mass loaded vinyl. Only 50 quid inc del. My god it's heavy at 24kg/ 10kg sqm. I intend to use half or a bit more of it for under car mat soundproofing, just cutting to size and sliding underneath... non invasive. Then I had a quick exploratory look yesterday and I think i can get to the rear wheelarches in the boot. If I can and major soundproof the rear wheelarches I think it'll be a game changer for road noise. The front wheelarches through the footwells look a bit more problematic so i'll probably just leave them.
So far with the boot job I think I might have added 5kg max of sound deadening weight.....irrelevant. Am happy to add another 25-50kg or so if it makes it noticeably quieter.
Not got time to do it now but I will in the next few wks.
Hi AmitG
Just got a window so I thought i'd post.
Don't get me wrong I love the car in general, feels quite majestic in a number of ways and it does attract looks. Seems like people are more willing to let me out at junctions too, etc. I wonder if the mpg meter is too optimistic, i did a quick test last month and thought it was a bit high so might do a brim test this weekend on a long jaunt up north.
With the knocking i dont know if i more object to the noise or the actual setup itself. Today ive cut 4 undermats from MLV which was very easy, adds about 10kg. That might bring noise down a bit. But before i go balls deep I wanna raise the issue with DS again when i take the car in for the warranty repairs, it might be improvable by them. Also I've noticed the wheel arch surrounds are a bit plasticky when i tap them, seem to have vibration and perhaps resonate the road noise. I'd like to get in behind them and put a layer of dodomat in and reaffix, It's tight around there so not sure it'd be possible without taking the wheels off which I wouldn't do.
Then subject to what happens I'll then do the rear wheelarches in the boot, and i might even look at putting a layer under the rear seat. I know all this might sound OTT but many times it's quite straightforward adding soundproofing to areas that are easily accessible. Like I've said before the boot job is very easy. I just wanna get it all done and out of the way, then I can enjoy the car more.
Regarding your comments on the infotainment I agree but I would suggest giving android auto a try if you are having issues to see if that could remedy it. I've used it on and off with waze as navigation and find it a bit snappier (and more accurate) than the tom tom, and it is customisable. I have used bbc sounds on it which works fine but unlike you don't go down the mp3 route. Note: to plug in the phone you need to use the USB closest to the driver as the other one is charging only. I'd raise this matter with the dealer if it was my baby but the suspension obviously is and I don't wanna come across to them as somebody who moans about everything.
I know the camera aint 360 degree and like so much of the car feels "old tech" which almost all the reviewers have picked up on (especially carwow) but it works fine enough imo.
Saloon cars are a dying breed, and only recently Volvo said they are stopping producing them. I think the DS9 future equivalent has a good chance of staying. It would be a bit weird if the biggest "French" car was a C5/ C5X/ Peugeot 508, and the fact the platform is scaleable means it's not much in terms of R&D etc to size up and then dress. I don't know if I've mentioned before but I see a 508 parked every day in the same place and it does look like a shrunken DS9, albeit a lot smaller than I'd expect. it's 4750mm long, about the same as an Audi A4 but does look smaller in the flesh.
If i'd have gone C5X over the DS9 I'd probably be spending a little less time on it. Infotainment for example would be far better. That said in terms of what matters to me I know I've made the right decision. The build quality is top class and I still love the simple things like how the doors open and close beautifully.
Just got a window so I thought i'd post.
Don't get me wrong I love the car in general, feels quite majestic in a number of ways and it does attract looks. Seems like people are more willing to let me out at junctions too, etc. I wonder if the mpg meter is too optimistic, i did a quick test last month and thought it was a bit high so might do a brim test this weekend on a long jaunt up north.
With the knocking i dont know if i more object to the noise or the actual setup itself. Today ive cut 4 undermats from MLV which was very easy, adds about 10kg. That might bring noise down a bit. But before i go balls deep I wanna raise the issue with DS again when i take the car in for the warranty repairs, it might be improvable by them. Also I've noticed the wheel arch surrounds are a bit plasticky when i tap them, seem to have vibration and perhaps resonate the road noise. I'd like to get in behind them and put a layer of dodomat in and reaffix, It's tight around there so not sure it'd be possible without taking the wheels off which I wouldn't do.
Then subject to what happens I'll then do the rear wheelarches in the boot, and i might even look at putting a layer under the rear seat. I know all this might sound OTT but many times it's quite straightforward adding soundproofing to areas that are easily accessible. Like I've said before the boot job is very easy. I just wanna get it all done and out of the way, then I can enjoy the car more.
Regarding your comments on the infotainment I agree but I would suggest giving android auto a try if you are having issues to see if that could remedy it. I've used it on and off with waze as navigation and find it a bit snappier (and more accurate) than the tom tom, and it is customisable. I have used bbc sounds on it which works fine but unlike you don't go down the mp3 route. Note: to plug in the phone you need to use the USB closest to the driver as the other one is charging only. I'd raise this matter with the dealer if it was my baby but the suspension obviously is and I don't wanna come across to them as somebody who moans about everything.
I know the camera aint 360 degree and like so much of the car feels "old tech" which almost all the reviewers have picked up on (especially carwow) but it works fine enough imo.
Saloon cars are a dying breed, and only recently Volvo said they are stopping producing them. I think the DS9 future equivalent has a good chance of staying. It would be a bit weird if the biggest "French" car was a C5/ C5X/ Peugeot 508, and the fact the platform is scaleable means it's not much in terms of R&D etc to size up and then dress. I don't know if I've mentioned before but I see a 508 parked every day in the same place and it does look like a shrunken DS9, albeit a lot smaller than I'd expect. it's 4750mm long, about the same as an Audi A4 but does look smaller in the flesh.
If i'd have gone C5X over the DS9 I'd probably be spending a little less time on it. Infotainment for example would be far better. That said in terms of what matters to me I know I've made the right decision. The build quality is top class and I still love the simple things like how the doors open and close beautifully.
It is a nice place to be for sure. I decided to rename the clock a Bernard Matthews clock, it's bootiful! Not sure what the R stands for in BRM though.
I've just done a brim to brim test on the car, writing it up on here as I work it out.
Trip computer reads:
Miles 388
MPG 39.7
Lower mpg vs normal because I have been doing only short hop London driving in the last 5 weeks and not using SS.
I filled it up weeks ago till the first pump click and did the same tonight.
47.79 litres used = 10.51 gallons.
Equates to 36.9mpg. So nearly 3mpg under what the trip says, but still decent. I'm not complaining.
Considering our last car, the 500x 2.0l diesel 4*4 auto was 40 ish I think this will end up being at leat as good or better, perhaps 40-42 over the long haul.
There is a disclaimer in all this: Most of our mileage is done with an extra 80kg-90kg of passengers and at least one suitcase.
I've just done a brim to brim test on the car, writing it up on here as I work it out.
Trip computer reads:
Miles 388
MPG 39.7
Lower mpg vs normal because I have been doing only short hop London driving in the last 5 weeks and not using SS.
I filled it up weeks ago till the first pump click and did the same tonight.
47.79 litres used = 10.51 gallons.
Equates to 36.9mpg. So nearly 3mpg under what the trip says, but still decent. I'm not complaining.
Considering our last car, the 500x 2.0l diesel 4*4 auto was 40 ish I think this will end up being at leat as good or better, perhaps 40-42 over the long haul.
There is a disclaimer in all this: Most of our mileage is done with an extra 80kg-90kg of passengers and at least one suitcase.
Hi All, I am looking for something newer as my car will be soon 7 years old and the warranty will finish...
I was already sitting in one DS9 (didn't drive it yet)
and I liked the interiour and generally the whole car too.
I am interested in this model, but a bit worry about the Warranty and about the Stellantis,
because on some other forums or in the comments under some youtube videos are not much positive reviews
about reliability and about the service level of the Stellantis...
For example, somebody from 12 months had the car 4 out of road...
Other with warranty had to wait weeks and without curtesy car etc.
Not too many owners of this car on the UK roads and what about the main dealer's service netwowk?
Also, how long take to have fixed anything faulty?
What are your thoughts?
I was already sitting in one DS9 (didn't drive it yet)
and I liked the interiour and generally the whole car too.
I am interested in this model, but a bit worry about the Warranty and about the Stellantis,
because on some other forums or in the comments under some youtube videos are not much positive reviews
about reliability and about the service level of the Stellantis...
For example, somebody from 12 months had the car 4 out of road...
Other with warranty had to wait weeks and without curtesy car etc.
Not too many owners of this car on the UK roads and what about the main dealer's service netwowk?
Also, how long take to have fixed anything faulty?
What are your thoughts?
Speaking for myself:
No faults to report after around 8,000 miles of driving, in all conditions. Everything seems solid.
I visited 2 DS dealers before I bought. Both were very nice, I can't really fault the service at all. I get the impression that DS are still trying to build up their sales and so they are trying extra hard to win customers.
The DS9 is based on the Peugeot 508, which in turn uses many standard Stellantis parts, so I would hope that availability of drivetrain, mechanical and electrical parts would not be too much of a problem. Body panels, lighting units and interior trim may be another matter but I have not needed any of those.
The windscreen is a Peugeot 508 part and is readily available. I know this because I got a stone chip and I rang Autoglass to check. They said no problem, we have the screen in stock. Which surprised me. I'll probably get it repaired this year and then replaced if it gets worse.
As you say, these are very rare cars in Europe, so there is not much experience to go on. I have not needed any repairs, so I can't speak from experience, but I feel like it wouldn't be any worse than other modern cars. You could maybe ask the dealer about availability of anything that you are particularly worried about.
No faults to report after around 8,000 miles of driving, in all conditions. Everything seems solid.
I visited 2 DS dealers before I bought. Both were very nice, I can't really fault the service at all. I get the impression that DS are still trying to build up their sales and so they are trying extra hard to win customers.
The DS9 is based on the Peugeot 508, which in turn uses many standard Stellantis parts, so I would hope that availability of drivetrain, mechanical and electrical parts would not be too much of a problem. Body panels, lighting units and interior trim may be another matter but I have not needed any of those.
The windscreen is a Peugeot 508 part and is readily available. I know this because I got a stone chip
and I rang Autoglass to check. They said no problem, we have the screen in stock. Which surprised me. I'll probably get it repaired this year and then replaced if it gets worse.As you say, these are very rare cars in Europe, so there is not much experience to go on. I have not needed any repairs, so I can't speak from experience, but I feel like it wouldn't be any worse than other modern cars. You could maybe ask the dealer about availability of anything that you are particularly worried about.
In response to the post 2 above.
I have had a DS7 Louvre for 2.5 years and 20k miles since new. It shares many features with the DS9- engines, interior is near identical, it’s just in an SUV body. The car has been bulletproof in terms of reliability. The only issue I have had is a known issue with the rear light ( water leak) which was dealt with very quickly and under warranty.
No car is perfect and it is easy to go onto forums and get spooked as people only generally post when they have problems. But having had lots of different cars and brands over the years I can honestly say the DS I have now is the best in terms of build quality.
I have had a DS7 Louvre for 2.5 years and 20k miles since new. It shares many features with the DS9- engines, interior is near identical, it’s just in an SUV body. The car has been bulletproof in terms of reliability. The only issue I have had is a known issue with the rear light ( water leak) which was dealt with very quickly and under warranty.
No car is perfect and it is easy to go onto forums and get spooked as people only generally post when they have problems. But having had lots of different cars and brands over the years I can honestly say the DS I have now is the best in terms of build quality.
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