Mini is one of the BMW Group’s greatest success stories, so much so that it inspired Fiat (with the reborn 500), then Citroen (with the DS3 you see here) and most recently, Audi (with the A1), to go for a slice of the action. It’s almost an art form, this business of making and marketing size XS cars with outsize price tags and upmarket pretensions, but BMW-Mini has mastered it perfectly. Can Citroen do the same with its DS3?
It certainly looks the part, although it lacks the rich design heritage of the post-modern Mini. In fact, the DS3 has no design precedent at all, let alone a famous classic predecessor to supply styling inspiration. But Citroen’s designers have done well anyway, creating a compact car that looks nothing like the current C3 on which it’s based and appears to have enough presence and flamboyance to at least match the Mini. Helping the DS3 to attract eyeballs is its rarity on the roads, which makes it “noticeably” more unique than the Mini, of which there are many driven around looking cute, and all. “Many” is relative, of course, with just over 1,300 Minis in Singapore, which is around the same population as Saab. Interestingly, that is still more than the total number of Citroens in town, which just breached a thousand units.
It remains to be seen how the DS3 will add to the tally, but every unit that hits the road will certainly boost Citroen’s reputation as a maker of naturally attractive cars, which include the C4 Picasso five-seater (one of the most stylish people-movers ever) and the C6 flagship
(a truly avant-garde limousine for the lateral thinker).
In a way, the DS3 is like the C6, because it looks like nothing else of similar dimensions and its aesthetic is edgy without trying too hard. Delightful designer details include a funky rendition of the Citroen “corporal” grille, vertical strips of bright LED daytime running lights on either side of the front bumper, and “reversed” B-pillars said to resemble shark’s fins, but without the soup.
The real souping-up is done with the car’s colours and chrome bits. In Singapore, you can mix and match seven different paint jobs with four roof tones, seven roof graphics, five side mirror housing hues and three 17-inch wheel patterns. You can even choose one of six colours for the rim’s centre cap. About the only limitation is that you have to specify everything in sets, so it’s not possible to, say, have one wing mirror in white and the other in black.
If the DS3’s level of exterior customisation is expressive, then the Mini’s is downright explosive. The accessories catalogue alone is over triple the thickness of the whole DS3 brochure, itself hardly a lightweight in terms of layout and print quality. The wheels section, for instance, lists 21 different designs across three sizes, along with a choice of valve caps, either Union Jack or Checkered Flag. As for roof decals, Mini offers no less than 20 options, including the national flags of England, Scotland and the USA, but sorry, “Singapore” is not allowed. Various other stickers are also available to further personalise your Mini. The automaker even puts together special editions to save some buyers the “hassle” of doing the personalisation themselves.
Inside the cockpit, the DS3 and Mini continue their catwalk conflict. Again, the British machine offers even more design options for the individualistic driver, which extend to your own choice of lettering for the illuminated door sill strips (on request). Less fancy but undoubtedly pretty are the multiple trim choices for the Citroen’s dashboard, upholstery and floor mats.
Even the key is colour-coordinated with the car’s paintwork.
If all this talk about how these two models can be accessorised and customised is starting to sound like some metrosexual magazine, we apologise. The fact of the matter is that the Mini and the DS3 sell on their style, so much so that they can safely sacrifice driveability and practicality and still score with their fans.
The two cars differ on their priorities, however, with the Mini being less practical than the Citroen but more driveable. In Cooper guise as tested, the Mini runs on essentially the same engine as the DS3 – a 1.6-litre 120bhp 4-cylinder. But the Mini’s standard 6-speed automatic, in place of its French compatriot’s 4-speeder, allows slightly better acceleration (a half-second advantage from standstill to 100km/h) and more economical cruising (at 90km/h the engine is working 500rpm less hard). Just as importantly, the Cooper gearbox is slicker and quicker than the French transmission when swopping ratios, whether upward or downward. There are also playful (but plasticky) little paddles for DIY shifting.
The whole car, in fact, is playful by nature, whereas the Citroen plays it cool and prefers to be restful. The patches of tarmac that have the Mini bobbing and weaving would see the DS3 cruising comparatively calmly, its supple suspension taking the rough with the smooth, and this is on sizeable 17-inch wheels, an inch up on the Mini Cooper. There is some tyre patter from the 205/45 Bridgestones, but they are always a little quieter than the run-flat Goodyears of the noisy and jumpy Mini. It’s fun for the keen driver, but it might get tiring after a while. Always enjoyable, however, is how the Cooper stops and steers, which feels more “connected” than the laid-back Citroen.
The driving position is more relaxed in the DS3, whose hot seat is also more supportive than the Mini’s overstyled affair. Passengers, too, are more comfortable in the Citroen cabin, which is roomier overall than its rival’s literally mini interior and also easier to enter or exit. The Mini, however, feels airier and gives clearer views outward, thanks to its vertical pillars and ample glass areas. The DS3’s front windscreen is relatively steep and deep, while its elaborate A and B pillars are thicker and curvier than those on the Mini.
Quality-wise, the DS3 is a bit hit-and-miss. Its structure, doors and tailgate are as solid as they come and the dashboard is debonair, but the glovebox doesn’t shut tightly, some of the materials and fixtures seem rather cheap on closer examination, and the leather behind the driver’s seat of our test car came off. The Mini is generally better built, be it major elements like the body shell and door panels or minor parts like the buttons and seat adjusters. The Mini’s premium feel is enhanced by the bespoke switches and instruments. Although the DS3 has a few unusual touches and its share of shiny stuff, some of the dash devices and displays are obviously from the Citroen-Peugeot parts bin.
In conclusion, the DS3 makes a decent alternative to the Mini (Cooper in this case), complete with a price advantage of over 10 per cent. The Citroen gives you as much driving funk as a Mini, but with more day-to-day functionality. However, the DS3 is less customisable compared to the British-German hatch, whose “wardrobe” extends to apparel and accessories for its owner. This might be a deal clincher for the fashion-conscious, even if they’re driven to distraction by the Citroen.
Mini Cooper 1.6 (A)
ENGINE: 1598cc, 16-valves, inline-4
MAX POWER: 120bhp at 6000rpm
MAX TORQUE: 160Nm at 4200rpm
GEARBOX: 6-speed automatic with manual select
0-100KM/H: 10.4 seconds
TOP SPEED: 197km/h
CONSUMPTION: 14.9km/L (combined)
PRICE INCL. COE: Unavailable
Citroen DS3 1.6 (A)
ENGINE: 1598cc, 16-valves, inline-4
MAX POWER: 120bhp at 6000rpm
MAX TORQUE: 160Nm at 4200rpm
GEARBOX: 4-speed automatic with manual select
0-100KM/H: 10.9 seconds
TOP SPEED: 190km/h
CONSUMPTION: 14.5km/L (combined)
PRICE INCL. COE: Unavailable
