New-look Citroen DS3s revealed

Citroen has revealed a facelifted DS3 range in Europe – complete with a new LED and xenon lighting signature, new engines and extra standard features – ahead of its arrival in Australian showrooms early next year.

Covering both the two-door DS3 hatch and DS3 Cabrio models, the upgrade is claimed to bring more style, safety, better visibility and improved efficiency to the pint-sized prestige French cars, which have attracted 300,000 buyers globally since 2010 – two-thirds of which were new to the brand.

At this stage it's unclear how many of the changes will make it Down Under, where the five-seat DS3 hatch was launched in September 2010, followed by the Cabrio last August. So far this year Citroen Australia has sold just 44 DS3s – 57 per cent less than the same period in 2013.

The Australian line-up comprises the DStyle hatch (from $27,740) and DStyle Cabrio ($30,990) – powered by a 88kW/160Nm 1.6-litre four-cylinder petrol engine – and the DSport hatch ($29,740) and DSport Cabrio ($32,990), powered by a 115kW/240Nm 1.6-litre turbo engine.

New additions to the facelifted range in Europe will include new Euro 6 emissions-compliant BlueHDi 120 and BlueHDi 100 diesel engines with Selective Catalytic Reduction (SCR), which is claimed to reduce NOx emissions by 90 per cent and CO2 emissions by four per cent.

Citroen says the BlueHDi 100 will be class-leading in terms of emissions, producing just 79g/km of CO2, while the BlueHDi 120 emits 94g/km.

Also unconfirmed for Australia is a new Euro 6-compliant petrol powertrain dubbed PureTech e-VTi 82 ETG. Matched with Citroen's automated five-speed manual Efficient Tronic Gearbox (ETG), it's said to produce just 95g/km.

From July production, selected European-market DS3s will be fitted with an automatic low-speed braking system dubbed Active City Brake, plus new headlights inspired by the Numéro 9 and Wild Rubis concept cars, combining LED and Xenon modules and new first-in-class sequential indicators.

Citroen says that apart from enhanced looks and visibility, the new lighting tech reduces energy consumption by 35 per cent in low-beam mode and 75 per cent in high-beam mode, while the LEDs last up to 20 times longer than halogen lights, with a lifetime of 20,000 hours.

The existing LED daytime running lights compliment the new lighting signature at the front of both the DS3 and DS3 Cabrio, which retain their 3D-effect LED rear lights and chrome finished DS logo in a black embossed DS pattern.

In Europe, selected DS3 models will be available with the choice of a laser-etched dashboard strip and screen-printed rear window.

Exterior body colour options have also been enhanced, with the addition of Pearl White on both models and Belle-Ile Blue for the cabrio, while some models will also be available with new 17-inch diamond-cut alloy wheels.

Rounding out the changes for Europe's updated DS3, which is claimed to offer the biggest boot in its class, is the option of a reversing camera with some models.