AS far as the DS 3 Crossback is concerned, diamonds are forever when it comes to design.

Sitting in the Ultra Prestige model I felt moved to play the Bond theme sung by the legendary Shirley Bassey as it seemed completely appropriate for the surroundings.

With the Welsh songstress belting out the lyrics to one of my favourite 007 films I could sit and appreciate the diamond motifs festooned throughout the cabin with the window switches, parking brake, ignition switch and air outlets all given the treatment.

The striking exterior also sports sharp angles - particularly the headlights which are shaped like jewels - and innovations Bond's ‘Q' would love including flush door handles which pop out like a jack in the box when you unlock the car.

They provide access to an interior that makes many of this compact SUV's competitors look a tad dull thanks to innovative design including ‘watchstrap' leather upholstery, a pyramid theme for the switchgear plus a top notch fit and finish.

A raft of kit is included so even the basic model sports an eight-inch touchscreen with mirroring for Apple CarPlay and Android Auto, rear parking sensors, air conditioning, DAB radio and keyless start, while safety equipment sees reversing camera and blind spot monitors plus lane keeping assist and emergency braking enter the equation.

By the time you reach the refined altitude of the £33,155 Ultra Prestige there's a ten-inch touchscreen with sat nav as well as active cruise control, LED headlights and 18-inch diamond cut alloys - obviously they had to be diamond cut.

Other goodies include electronically folding and heated door mirrors, leather-covered multi-function steering wheel and LED rear lights.

One small quibble is that the air con controls can only be accessed from the touchscreen display which means you have to come out of the sat nav map to alter the settings before returning from whence you came. It's even irritating to write.

That aside there is much to admire with lots of smart touches catching the eye.

It is reasonably spacious for four adults with those up front particularly feeling the love while the two in the rear have acceptable amounts of leg and head room. A third person can be squeezed on to the rear bench but this obviously tightens things up considerably. Boot space comes in at 350 litres expanding to 1,050 litres with the rear seats folded.

The driver gets a decent position behind the multi-function steering wheel as everything adjusts to suit while the elevated ride height gives the required king of the road feel.

The 155bhp petrol engine under the bonnet provides plenty of punch which is appropriate as it is the most powerful of three versions of the 1.2-litre PureTech unit.

In cahoots with a slick eight-speed automatic gearbox it propels the car to 62mph from a standing start in a shade over eight seconds on its way to a top speed of 129mph. Fuel consumption is good with a week of mixed motoring equating to a figure of around 45mpg while emissions are 128g/km.

Sitting on a new Common Modular Platform, the DS 3 Crossback corners well thanks to confidence-inspiring levels of grip while coping with the potholed-ridden carriageways of the nation with aplomb. The ride is smooth with the chassis resisting body roll admirably.