I’ve driven the DS4 E-Tense and it’s slick, avant-garde and remarkably tactile

FANCY French car maker DS did a survey recently.

It found electric and hybrid car owners feel less stressed than those in petrol or diesel cars.

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Rather handy, it must be said, for a brand that is striving for full electrification in just two years’ time.

So has range anxiety died a death?

No. It hasn’t.

But the result could reflect the fact that the refinement of hybrids certainly has come on in leaps and bounds.

And the DS 4 E-Tense is one shining example of that.

This is the plug-in hybrid version of the Golf-sized hatch and as such delivers around 20 miles of pure electric driving, plus more power (225hp) than the rest of the range.

Starting at £38,450, that’s a premium of £7,740 on a same-spec petrol (130hp) and £5,840 on a diesel (also just 130hp).

Bejewelled lightshow

Combined with a compact 40-litre fuel tank, the DS 4 E-Tense is not bestowed with long legs and as such suits a family that doesn’t often adventure too far from home yet wants to pootle in plushness and silently glide more than a regular mild hybrid allows.

The ride is well sorted, steering is on point and there is enough poke to satisfy without trying to be something it’s not.

When the DS 4 arrived on the scene in 2010 still badged a Citroen, its alternative proposition to mainstream hatchbacks was not helped by the fact the rear windows of the five-door family car were fixed closed.

Seriously. They could not open.

I’m pleased to report that they do now – once you find the designer switches which are positioned unusually high and integrated into the aluminium-effect trim flourishes.

The classy dash and interior are the best in DS’s entire portfolio to date. Slick, avant-garde and quite remarkably tactile, given it doesn’t cost what it looks like it could.

Yes, boot space and pure electric range is not as big as many rivals but there is not another medium-sized hatchback that looks this damnably handsome.

From side profile to broad stance, and crisp angular detailing to its bejewelled lightshow, it’s “mange tout” all around.

Some people might still not know DS is an actual car brand.

 But to those who do it is definitely, and against the initial odds, finding its way in a very different market to that which it met on its 2015 arrival.