Monday 30 June 2014
Sunday 29 June 2014
Citroen DS4 DSport HDi 160 7 Day Diary
Following 7 days with the Citroen DS4 DSport HDi 160, here are my experiences from the week.
Day 1 – Citroen DS4 DSport HDi 160 - Let’s See It
Setting eyes on the Citroen DS4 DSport for the first time was a nice surprise. The DS4 DSport is one of the most well designed exciting hatchbacks you can buy at the moment.
The exterior design of the DS4 is fantastic. The body is extremely curvaceous, bulging up around the wheel arches, and the front of the car has a big sharply designed grill, showing off the Citroen badge.
Being the premium DSport edition, the car comes with very stylish 19″ wheels. Which are one of the best sets of wheels I have seen on any car in a while, not to mention a daily-drive Citroen.
Day 2 – Driving the DSport
The DS4 on test is powered by a 2.0-litre diesel engine that creates 163bhp and 340Nm of torque, it uses a 6 speed automatic gearbox, which puts the power to the front wheels. The driving experience is very exciting for two reasons, firstly the diesel engine packs a good punch because of that 340Nm of torque, and secondly the uprated suspension that the DSport is fitted with gives the car a solid sporty feel, and is just as much fun to drive as its baby brother; the DS3 DSport.
Taking the DS4 out for an evening photo-shoot was a great opportunity to study the details on the car. As with all of the DS range, there is a wide array of customisable options, and the DS4 on test was fitted with a custom roof design, which really makes it stick out from the rest of the cars on the road.
Day 3 – City Driving
Taking the car to the office, through central Birmingham, was a great opportunity to see how well it works in town, and I’m delighted to say that it was pretty good. My favourite aspect about this car is the engine; it has great performance when you put your foot down, but it is also really economic at the same time. Even driving in town it was difficult to drop the mpg below 40mpg. The automatic gearbox works really well, whether you’re stopping and starting in traffic, or cruising nicely on the open road. You can see that the car certainly looks the part parked up in town as well.
When it comes to tight manoeuvring, although it is a reasonable size, the DS4 is no bother to squeeze around tight car parks or switch lanes in dense traffic. The visibility is reasonably good from the driver’s seat, and the DS4 DSport comes with a Blind Spot Monitoring System which lights an LED on either wing mirror when a car is detected in your blind spot. This a very good piece of technology and works very well on the road.
Day 4 – What do others think of the DS4?
After a few days with the DS4 I became very comfortable with the car and it met all of my needs well… it looks good, it’s fun to drive and the boot is big enough for everything I need to carry. But I am always interested to see what others think of the cars I have on test. Discussing the car with a few friends, they we impressed with the exterior design of the Citroen and commented on how up to date the styling was. This is proof of how the DS range has lifted the Citroen brand to a very desirable place.
Day 5 – On the inside
As I commonly say, sitting in traffic is a great opportunity to check out the interior of a car. So during my Friday commute home, I took time to look more closely at the DS4 interior and, as it turns out, inside the DS4 is a great place to be.
Getting into the DS4 you step over some very nicely designed sill-plates, seen below. And once inside you will find yourself sitting on some very sporty black and red leather seats. Look a bit closer and you will notice that both seats are heated and have electrically operated massaging systems, so sitting in the DSport is not a bad place to be at all.
The rest of the dash in very well designed. The centre piece of the dashboard is the large media display screen, which is controlled by the buttons underneath. It didn’t take me long to figure out what they all do, and everything works very nicely without unnecessary complication.
Day 6 – Photoshoot inn the Sun
We planned a photo-shoot in Derby for the DS4 DSport. Off up the motorway Ross Jukes and I went, making good use of a few of the DS4 features – cruise control, air conditioning, & massaging seats, it was a very pleasant journey.
We must have been out, going from location to location, for around 5 hours and travelled over 130 miles, all on less than a quarter of a tank of fuel. I was very impressed indeed with the economy of the engine.
I spent most of the time moving the car from point to point with the air conditioning on full blast, whilst Ross stood in the sun getting frazzled looking for the perfect shot. Not a bad deal for me at all.
From the pictures you can see how impressive the car looks, both parked up, and also on the move. Citroen have created a really unique looking car here.
Day 7 – What have I learned?
The DS4 is a tremendous package, and there is a lot to learn about this car. Some of the cool and more unusual features include; the interior light in the boot which can be removed and used as an always-charged touch, the sun visors which hide a panoramic windscreen, so when they are slid back it gives you even more visibility in front of you, and the electric handbrake which is automatically applied when you turn the ignition off, this removes the chance of any roll away accidents. There are loads of good features like these in and around the car.
Summary – Another Great Funky Citroen
I was very sad to see the DS4 DSport go. Overall I was very impressed with the economy and performance of the diesel engine, and also how enjoyable the car was to drive. I love the uniqueness of the styling of the DS4, and the 19″ wheels, for me, just perfected the look.
Video Highlights
Supplied By: Citroen
Citroen DS4 DSport HDi 160 7 Day Diary
Glorious Goodwood: The Festival of Speed 2014
The Festival of Speed 2014
The internet is buzzing with news from glorious Goodwood and it’s annual Festival of Speed. This year seems set to be one of the best yet and we at Motor Verso, have been lucky enough to be attending. With such a wide spectrum of cars on display it’s hard to summarise what Goodwood FOS is all about, but believe me, if you are a car fan, you will love it.
Set in the spectacular grounds of Goodwood House, the festival offers so much in terms of entertainment but the main spectacle is the timed hill climb. This year has culminated in Sebastian Loeb winning the time trial in his Pikes Peak smashing Peugeot T16 with a time just over 44 seconds in an incredible run up the hill. However, the festival is about so much more than just a hill climb, it really is a celebration of all things automotive.
The big 4 on show
Goodwood has been possibly the first place on the planet to catch the four hottest cars of the moment, the Porsche 918, McLaren P1, Ferrari’s LaFerrari and the Koenigsegg One:1 and believe me, after seeing them in the flesh, they really are incredible! An added touch this year included Jamiroquai’s Jay Kay bringing out his beautiful green LaFerrari for a sprint up the hill.
The festival really does offer something for everyone including motorcycles, planes and incredible air displays from the Red Arrows. The weather even played ball this year pouring down sunshine rather than rain for a great few days. Keep checking back throughout the week for more of the fallout from a fabulous Festival of Speed.
Fore more information and to book tickets for next year, visit the Goodwood website Here
Words & Photos by Ross Jukes
Glorious Goodwood: The Festival of Speed 2014
Saturday 28 June 2014
Friday 27 June 2014
The New Type-R, But the Strangest Preview Video Ever!
Anyone who has ever been near a red badged Honda, will be looking very closely at the release of the new Honda Civic Type-R, and now Honda have released the strangest car teaser I have seen in a long time. Take a look below.
The Honda Civic Type R concept was released at the Geneva Motor Show with a complete performance body kit. From the rear, the hatchback has a huge carbon fibre spoiler with integrated rear tail-lights, that do look pretty cool, deep vertical air scoops in the front bumper, and a quad exhaust built into the divided rear diffuser.
Based on the European spec Honda Civic platform, the production Honda Civic Type R should be more fun then others we have seen in the past. Honda previously confirmed that the Civic Type R will feature a turbo charged 2.0-litre four cylinder engine, which will be more powerful then the naturally aspirated 2.0-litre in the old model.
Thursday 26 June 2014
Wednesday 25 June 2014
Tuesday 24 June 2014
Lotus E20 hoons through London, makes all the V8 noises
Being a car guy, there are certain thumbnails you see on the internet that you simply can’t pass by, and this Lotus V8 being driven around the streets of London is exactly what I’m talking about.
London Race Week – Lotus E20 Demo
To promote London Race Week, Lotus F1 brought out its retired E20 racer for a street demo inside the Canary Wharf business district. It’s unclear who’s behind the wheel of the car, but as there was no special announcement we assume that it’s not one of Lotus’s current F1 drivers.
Watch the video above and tell us you don’t miss those V8 engines.
Lotus E20 hoons through London, makes all the V8 noises
Taking A look back at the MG MG3
From time to time, your mind wonders back on previous experiences and remembers the highlights. Recently I was thinking about the MG3 that I test drove earlier this year and particularly one of the photoshoots that happened by chance.
MG3 at Silverstone
Part of the photoshoots for the car came around literally by being in the right place at the right time. Below you can see the MG3 parked up in nothing more than an overflow car park at Silverstone race circuit, but someone had recently laid down some fresh rubber for me and the sun was slowly setting in the distance, the scene it sets for the photo is very powerful.
Take a look at the picture below and let me know what you think?
Taking A look back at the MG MG3
Monday 23 June 2014
Car spotting in the capital - The full Gallery!
Car spotting in the Capital…
Car spotting in the capital is a real treat. London is no stranger to some pretty special cars but on a recent trip to the capital, I was completely mesmerised by the sheer amount of automotive porn lining the streets! I am absolutely in love with Ferrari 458 and I never thought I would ever say this, but I almost got bored of seeing them! Ok, so that’s maybe an exaggeration but there were enough to keep me entertained!
In a City where you can see a Mercedes-McLaren 722, Bugatti Veyron Rembrandt Edition and a Mclaren P1 all in the space of about twenty minutes, you need to be doing something special to get noticed in the automotive hierarchy. The P1 was a particular favourite but there were enough special cars on show to keep anyone entertained. The motors on show made for a pretty special weekend for me the only thing that could have topped it would have been being asked to shoot one of these beauties properly! Or maybe taking one for a spin!
Words & Photos by Ross Jukes
Car spotting in the capital - The full Gallery!
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