DS presents another reason to abandon touchscreens: they are not elegant

Although it seems that all modern cars come with an infotainment screen and even other screens to house the instrument cluster and other vehicle elements, some brands believe these screens are being overused. We have already seen how some brands are removing these screens from their dashboards and returning to physical controls. But for DS, there is another reason to do without them in its future models.

The problem that screens in the cabin pose for DS’s design concept is the very presence of the screens themselves. For Thierry Métroz, chief designer at DS Automobiles, screens are not pleasing to the eye, and his intention is to create a more luxurious and pleasant interior to look at and use.

For the head of design at the French brand, screens do not project the image of luxury that the brand wants to convey in its vehicles. His starting point is that when the screen is switched off, all that remains is a black surface that also shows a multitude of fingerprints. An image that goes against everything DS wants to show with its cars.

DS’s position runs counter to the transformation of dashboards, which are being taken over by large screens. These replace physical controls, and they do not seem to be to the liking of DS’s managers. That is why the brand will go against the current trend and offer a different solution for presenting the information these screens provide, in another way.

According to Métroz, a way must be found that allows these screens to be integrated into a more user-friendly environment, without losing the elegant touch that should be a benchmark for the French premium brand. Another element the DS design team is reconsidering is the grilles.

Just like screens, the latest trend is to offer large, eye-catching grilles. With the shift towards electric vehicles, grilles will stop being useful. Grilles will have to change their function, and the designs of future electric DS models want to get ahead of that.

Not much has been revealed about the ideas the brand will present in the near future, but it has mentioned that it can play with the placement of the lights, changing their traditional location and offering more shapes and designs to improve the exterior appearance of the vehicle.