DS3 Café Racer Test Drive Review
By Motor Match • 28/10/2020
Motoring journalist, John swift got his hands on one of only 150 right hand drive DS 3 Café Racers and discovered a very unique car.
Why Should I Buy a DS3 Café Racer?
- Fun, funky and really eye-catching looks.
- Fizzy 3 cyclinder engine.
- Luxurious Nappa leather interior with cream stitching.
- Lots of lovely added touches.
- A really individual car with only 150 right-hand drive cars produced.
DS3 Café Racer Test Drive Review
No one can ever say that the DS cars lack attitude, but the Citroën subsidiary has taken its fabulous DS 3 and added an extra layer of style with this Café Racer limited edition.
What’s a Café Racer you might ask; well the Café Racer scene was part of the 1960s rock’n’ roll culture, rebellious and free spirited, a bit macho and tough, centred around bikers and their slightly anti-establishment views on convention.
It was a culture that, then and now, has influenced fashion, music and art and if you speak to anyone who was there at the time they will tell you it was fun, energising and the embodiment of being youthful.
This is what DS has set out to recapture.
What does the DS3 Café Racer look like?
You can take any DS 3 and find one of the best looking superminis going, a car that unashamedly majors on looks to catch the eye. It’s flamboyant and hey, what’s wrong with that? Every DS 3 I have tested over the past couple of years has been fun and that journey starts with the outside. I like the detailing around the front and the radiator grille, the lights and that distinctive shark fin-shaped panel just behind the doors.
So, that’s the basis and to that DS has added another layer of character with the Café Racer graphics underlining the DS brand and the 1960’s movement. These have been drawn by renowned French artist, Bruno Michaud, who’s gained respect in the art world for his free hand images which are expressive, flowing and energetic. These images are on the roof gets them with more on the bonnet, doors, rear boot and that shark fin shape.
All the cars – hatchbacks only, not cabrios – have a cream coloured roof with the graphics and there are four main body colours to choose from, Ink Blue, Perla Nera Black, Platinum Grey and Ruby Red.
It rides on black, diamond cut 17 inch alloys with centres of the same Parthenon cream as the roof, DS wings and external trim is painted in a sparkling textured black. The cars also feature a chrome license plate embellisher, gloss black door handles, door mirrors with gloss black cappings and matt black stalks and the rear window glass is tinted.
Do they make much difference? Well, the way I look at it is that the 150 owners who will be the lucky few to buy one of these cars, will think they do, and just as with the original Café Racer rebels, they won’t care very much what others think and I kind of like that attitude.
What's the DS3 Café Racer like to drive?
A standard DS 3 driving experience means hard core thrills. The Café Racer is available with a petrol engine only, the fizzy three cylinder 1.2 litre in two power outputs to choose from - 110 and 130 PS – with either manual or automatic gearboxes.
The ride is from the firm end of the spectrum, but quite acceptable on our roads and the car is an absolute hoot on a twisty road. It is light and agile, responsive and has a nice, `edgy’ feel when you are giving it the beans into and through a corner or better still, a series of them.
You’ll find the 110 PS engine is fine for such a light car and thanks to the wonders of modern engine management its torque starts from quite low down, with maximum torque from as low as 1,500 rpm, according to DS, which makes it a very driveable little car.
I suspect the tendency will be to keep a bit further up the rev range and enjoy the buzzy power. The 130 adds more of everything and is that much more urgent. As for the gearbox options, I would go for the manual box, but that’s just a personal preference. It’s a sweet six gearbox, with a nice light clutch and the ratios suit the engine. All in all the DS 3 is a cracking little car to drive.
What's the interior of the DS3 Café Racer like?
For the Café Racer you get the best that DS can fit; soft Nappa leather trim and not just any leather, but a design on the seats that’s designed to bring to mind a watch strap. The dashboard is finished in the same cream as the roof and the colour coordination is continued with the cream over-stitching in the leather of the seats, steering wheel and sun visors.
Aluminium pedals and footrest add a nice note of quality and it made me think; DS didn’t have to do all this, but chose to do so in order to make this car a bit flamboyant, to be enjoyed both inside and out.
As befits its image, the car comes fully laden with goodies. Xenon headlights and reversing camera and sensors, automatic air conditioning, automatic wipers and heated wing mirrors, a seven inch touchscreen and Sat Nav are all in there, as is Mirror Screen with all the Apple kit, so smartphones can be used safely and should trouble ever come your way it has a DS Connect Box offering emergency and assistance systems.
Should I buy a DS3 Café Racer?
So often a limited edition car is little more than a cynical way to chisel a bit more money out of a customer by charging more than the combined value of the extra features and kit added to the basic car. That certainly doesn’t apply here. The DS 3 is already one of the most fun cars on the market, a very good one in my opinion, and this takes it a step or two down the road of making owners feel more individual out there among the other metal boxes filling our roads. I completely get that.
If you come across a Used DS3 Cafe Racer, you've struck lucky! There are only 150 right hand drive cars available to the UK market, so demand for the DS3 Cafe Racer likely outstrips the supply available in the Used Car market..
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