Citroen's C5 will make way next year for this graceful hatchback -- the DS5 -- which was one of the star exhibits at the Shanghai motor show.
The newcomer is loosely based on the 2005 C-SportLounge concept, with flowing lines, minimal front and rear overhangs and a coupe-like roofline.
It measures 4.52m from bumper to bumper and 1.85m across the bows, which means it's about 250mm shorter than the C5 sedan, but Citroen claims the cabin still provides genuine seating for five adults.
The styling progression heralded by the DS5 is obvious, but arguably the most significant difference is that it reverts to a hatchback configuration, whereas the second-gen C5 (introduced in 2007) had adopted a traditional sedan format.
The car displayed at the Shanghai show is likely to be more or less the production reality, although the latter will be offered with more conservative wheel/tyre combos (with rim diameter ranging from 16 to 19 inches) and a less dramatic paint job.
Visual highlights include an LED-laden headlamp cluster, a large chrome-finished grille housing the chevrons and chrome-finished 'sabre' inserts stretching from the top of each headlamp to the windscreen.
The heavily tapered roofline leads to a rounded-off rump with a pair of trapezoidal tailpipes protruding from the bumper diffuser.
The DS5 is billed as the first model to feature Citroen's Hybrid4 diesel-hybrid powertrain, which ekes out 150kW through the combination of a 122kW 2.0-litre turbodiesel engine and a 28kW electric motor on the back axle.
Citroen says the system can operate on electric power alone during low-speed city driving -- and that it gives the DS5 CO2 emissions of 99g/km.
The cabin is said to offer a coupe-like driving position with a near-vertical steering wheel and a wide central console. An array of buttons, switches, scroll wheels and toggles are grouped on two central consoles, one low down and one above the driver's head, 'pilot-style'.
The company's blurb adds: "The colour Head-Up Display projects essential information into the driver's line of sight and the ambient lighting bathes the cockpit in a heady mix of red and white."
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