FRENCH firm DS - the upmarket division of the Peugeot/Citroen group recently dived into the compact SUV sector with its DS 3 Crossback.

With its funky looks and flashy interior it has been designed to tackle the likes of the Audi Q2 and BMW X2 as well as models from the volume brands.

It certainly offers something quite different and it is a bold effort from DS that arrived as a brand in 2015.

It won't suit all tastes but it does offer an alternative to those that want to stand out from the rest of the pack.

It certainly looks striking with its swooping roofline, large distinctive grille, round headlights and its Velar-style pop out door handles.

There's a choice of four trim levels - Elegance, which comes in at £21,500, then Performance Line from £22,950, Prestige from £24,955 then Ultra Prestige which costs from £30,950.

There's also a special launch edition called La Premiere that I have been sampling which starts at £32,450.

There is a choice of three different power outputs from the PSA group's 1.2-litre three-cylinder turbocharged PureTech petrol engine - 99bhp, 129bhp and 153bhp - plus one diesel, a 1.5-litre BlueHDi at 99bhp and by the end of this year an all-electric model will arrive.

A three-cylinder 1,200cc turbocharged petrol engine mated to an eight-speed automatic gearbox powered this model and it was good for a top speed of 129mph and took 8.2 seconds to tackle the sprint to 62mph.

There was the usual throaty noise from the three-cylinder when it was pushed hard but most of the time it was smooth and quiet. The ride was on the firm side but it dealt well with poor surfaces and provided lots of grip on country roads.

Owners can select from three driving modes - eco,normal or sport and the economy is reasonable with a WLTP combined figure of between 41.7 and 45.7mpg.

Inside the cabin provides room for four adults to travel in comfort and the comfortable seats in this top version were in Nappa leather with a padded design.

The rest of the materials were all soft-touch and of good quality but I found the chic dash design and controls a bit too flashy for my taste. I found it difficult to make simple changes and even changing radio stations and adjusting the heating on the touchscreen was too fiddly.

I could not fault the level of equipment in the car as it had all you could wish for as standard as well as stacks of the latest safety equipment.

On the practical side the boot holds up to 350 litres but the tailgate is not powered.

This La Premiere model cost £33,995 and by the time metallic paint and a premium audio system were added it finished at £35,605.