It’s often a pyrrhic victory turning a hearty hatchback into a soft convertible; because in almost every way the process detracts from what was a good car to start with. Thankfully, Ray Leathern has found the new Citroen DS3 Cabriolet to be none the poorer after the makeover.
South Africans like to think of themselves as being quite European. Sure, we can sip café-lattes with the best Frenchmen; we can scowl with as much distrust as the Germans, and we can slurp spaghetti Bolognese from a bowl just as convincingly as the Italians. Or so we think.
The reality of South African life is somewhat different however. We love nothing more than cooking meat outside with a beer in one hand and a pair of braai-tongs in the other. Believe it or not but this practice is very South African. Put a South African bloke in a full-on French restaurant, in Paris, I guarantee you he won’t even be able to order. Well, I certainly wasn’t able to. I ended up with steak tartar just like Mr. Bean and a bill that emptied half my rand-stuffed wallet.
It’s the same with our car purchasing habits. We think we have European taste, but if we really did we’d all by zooting round in tiny Fiat Pandas and plastic, flobbering, Peugeot saloons. Imagine for example, shoehorning the Citroen DS3 Cabriolet I’ve been driving, through a phalanx of Hilux D4D’s on the weekend while the endless hours of Castle-draught-swilling and SuperRugby matches play themselves out to the South African public. We think we have European tastes, but sometimes even the most convincing cultural imports don’t quite translate over here.
What about this cabriolet version of Citroen’s anti-retro hatch? The regular DS3 is a pretty cool car it has to be said and a fun driving car too, depending on the engine you choose. And thankfully the cabriolet version doesn’t stray too far from that original recipe. Citroen have also revitalised their DS3 range to shift the reluctance of ‘saffas’ to buy into the Citroen DS3 since its introduction.
Several elements impacted the success of the original DS3 in South Africa. One was the pricing. Citroen trusted that a highly specced and equally highly priced model would sell well. They’ve tried to remedy this with an entry level 1.2-litre engine model and a series of packages you can specify that will keep the entry point into the market low but like any other manufacturer, if you tick a few options, the price will not remain at the level that tempted you in the first place.
The ‘Style’ package is R16 900, ‘Safety’ package is R4 500 and ‘Sport’ package is R11 000. You can add these to various cars in the range but Citroen say they’ve packaged them thoughtfully to give customers what they need. It is rather remarkable, if not unsurprising that we don’t buy more of the funky little French car. At least you’re guaranteed Bentley or Aston Martin type rarity if you commit yourself to a Citroen DS3.
When I tested the THP 155 (nomenclature for its turbocharged, power output in horsepower) Citroen DS3 I had the pleasure of testing it against its two fiercest rivals; the Mini Cooper S and Alfa Romeo Mito QV Sport. In that test, personally, the wayward Citroen was trumped by the other two. Being reacquainted with a broadly similar turbocharged DS3; although in cabriolet form, was a real treat again. I’d certainly forgotten who characterful the driving experience was.
The two models in the DS3 hatch and cabrio line up which we didn’t drive are the Citroen DS3 VTi 82 Design which sports a 1.2-litre 60 kW and 118 Nm of torque, normally aspirated engine. Then a 1.6-litre normally aspirated engine called the VTi 120 in Style specification, with 88 kW and 160 Nm of torque. Citroen claim both of these deliver good eco performance and driver involvement. The figures suggest 4.5 L/100 km and 5.9 L/100 km respectively.
The big draw card in the DS3 Cabriolet range is the 115 kW turbocharged engine with 240 Nm of torque and a 0 – 100 km/h sprint of 7.3 seconds and a top speed of 214 km/h. Emissions and fuel consumption are broadly similar to the normally aspirated 1.6-litre below it, so that surely should motivate buyers to stretch all the way to the turbo model. If they do they are in for a real treat as I mentioned, because the 155 THP is an energetic, frantic, fantastic little car to drive with the roof up or ‘down.’
About that roof, it’s not a full convertible of course; the B and C pillars stay in place and just the fabric middle folds down into a pile above the boot access. I don’t particularly mind this webasto-style roof because you don’t compromise the cars rigidity and when it’s up, for the most part, it just looks like a regular DS3 hatch with its cool B-pillar. Real peacocks may complain there isn’t enough access to the elements with the roof folded down and they may have a point, but Citroen argues this style of convertible roof has more benefits than downsides.
Citroen also say the DS3 Cabriolet is the only car of its type to seat five people comfortably and maintain 250-litres plus of boot capacity with the roof still folded down. That’s a pretty appealing prospect but it’s only made possible by the roof being piled into an inconvenient mass, restricting rear visibility in the process.
As a driving machine the DS3 is a roller coaster of a car to get ones head around. Like the Citroen DS3 Hatch, the DS3 Cabriolet makes you feel cool and funky before you even set foot behind the wheel. It’s certainly capable of pulsing life into the pseudo-European that resides in us all. And as you take in the interior with its fitted glossy dash and DS-detailing throughout, you can’t help but grin wryly from ear to ear.
When the ‘bunny chow convertible’ is deployed you can’t see the buttons or the soft orange dials and readouts but this is nothing to worry about, it’s all part of the cars charm. The cabin becomes noisier too, as you might imagine. It’s a pyrrhic victory turning the DS3 into a convertible because in almost every way, the cloth roof detracts from what was a very good car to start with. The roof does feel very well made at least.
Despite this the THP 155 model loves to drive fast. The engine is a peach and it feels as though it will spin and spin for days without any effort. It feels more powerful and torquey than it actually is. There is no Mini-type sport mode for the throttle response, so it responds instantly to your toe flexing up or down on the throttle. Simple and fun but then the gear shift from the six speed manual can go awry every now and then and the seating position isn’t all that comfortable. The steering is a bit woolly too and I’d personally like to sit closer to the ground but once you lollop the car into a bend and it settles down, the DS3 proves to be very grippy, totally lovable and without much driver aid intervention.
Sure, it’s not a Hilux or a Fortuner, but any pseudo-European-saffa who puts money down for one will no doubt become besotted with it. The DS3 Cabriolet or Hatch is unique, exclusive and most importantly quite a lot of fun. Just be sure to double-check the packages you specify so you get everything you want on your car.
Starting Prices:
Citroen DS3 Cabriolet 1.2-litre 82 Design – R219 900
Citroen DS3 Cabriolet 1.6-litre 120 Style – R 258 900
Citroen DS3 Cabriolet turbo 1.6-litre 155 Sport – R 291 900
Prices include VAT, CO2 Tax and 3 year / 100 000 km warranty and a 4 year / 60 000 km service plan.
