It would seem that the Citroen brand and its premium offshoot DS have long abandoned hydropneumatic suspension, but if top management needs such a suspension, it will be brought back into service. Emmanuel Macron will ride out his second presidential term in comfort!
For the latest Bastille Day, French President Emmanuel Macron was provided with another new car, even though he received the previous one — the DS №8 Presidential — relatively recently, in May of last year.
As I recall, during his first inauguration as president, Macron rode through Paris in a DS 7 Crossback crossover in a special Presidentiel version. Its main difference from the standard car was a sliding fabric roof — it allowed Macron to stand at full height in the crossover during the ride and greet citizens.
Later, a lengthened and armored DS 7 Crossback Elysee was made for Macron, then it was replaced by a facelifted DS 7 Elysee (without the Crossback suffix), followed by the aforementioned DS №8 Presidential, and now the French leader has switched to the DS №7 Elysee.
The original production DS №7 premiered in March of this year — it is a five-seat crossover at the intersection of the C and D segments, with a wheelbase of 2790 mm and an overall length of 4660 mm. For Macron, the wheelbase of this car was extended by 250 mm, and the side body panels were organically redesigned. The body is, of course, armored, but the armor class is not specified in the press release.
What Macron's presidential DS cars previously lacked was hydropneumatic suspension, and now it has finally been "bolted on" to the presidential car for added comfort. Technical details are classified, meaning it is unclear whether this suspension was taken from some retired Citroen, newly developed, or purchased from an external supplier. The last production Citroen with hydropneumatic suspension was the second-generation mid-size C5 in sedan and station wagon body styles, whose production in France ended in 2017.
The DS №7 Elysee is painted in an exclusive blue color called Liberty Blue, and is equipped with special signals and flagpole mounts. The interior is not disclosed for security reasons, but the description mentions exclusive leather and Alcantara upholstery, and the front panel is trimmed with ash wood veneer, on which a portrait of Marianne (a symbol of the French Republic) is laser-engraved.
The powertrain of the DS №7 Elysee is standard, electric, from the E-Tense AWD Long Range version: two electric motors (front and rear) deliver a combined 350 hp. The battery capacity is 97.2 kWh, the range on a single charge is not specified, but it is clearly less than that of the standard DS №7 E-Tense AWD Long Range (up to 740 km on the WLTP cycle). The dynamic characteristics of the DS №7 Elysee are not disclosed. The standard DS №7 E-Tense AWD Long Range accelerates to 100 km/h in 5.4 seconds, with a top speed limited to 190 km/h.
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