DS No8 Review 2025: Price, specs & boot space

If you want a luxury-focused EV and are determined that it isn't going to be from Audi, BMW or Mercedes-Benz, quite possibly. You might have also looked at other more leftfield options like the Polestar 4, and decided that you want something that'll help you stand out even more. We have a sneaking suspicion that, if we're describing you, you'll be in the minority, and that we won't be seeing many DS No8s on UK roads..We're happy to be proven wrong, of course. 

The entry-level DS No8 Pallas is already loaded up nicely with equipment, so we'd be tempted to steer you towards that, and probably with the Long Range battery, unless you don't think you'll make the most of the extra range it brings. 

We're still a little torn on the motor. Although the single motor setup will provide more than enough performance for most, the dual motor arrangement did seem more 'fitting' for a car with premium aspirations. You have to just bear in mind that it's only available with the range-topping Etoile trim and with the bigger battery, so it ends up being an expensive choice.

Although nothing else out there right now is quite like a DS No8, there are plenty of alternatives kicking around. Along with the BMW i4 and Audi A6 e-tron we've already mentioned, the Polestar 4, while more expensive, is one option. Another, if you're intending on going for something not so obvious, is the Genesis GV60.

Normally in a review of a Stellantis product, we'd be able to rattle off a list of very similar products, but although we've experienced many of the parts that make up the No8 in other products like the Peugeot e-5008, they're very different propositions. Perhaps the incoming Lancia Thema will be closer in ethos, but it's yet to be revealed, and we don't know if it'll even be sold in the UK. 

DS has mostly done what it needs to with the No8's cabin quality to have it seriously considered as a premium car. Most of the materials come across as expensive-feeling, and everything is finished well. One exception is the Clous de Paris stuff, which looks and feels a bit cheap, and dare we say it, chintzy. However, the No8 wins back points for not overusing our most loathed car interior material  – scratch-prone gloss black plastic. 

Although the DS No8 does a better job than most Stellantis products of hiding its shared DNA, the infotainment screen is a big giveaway. Well, we say 'big', but despite measuring 16-inches, it doesn't offer a huge amount of useful 'real estate' for your fingers to prod. 

The problem is it's an ultra-widescreen unit, with the far edges taken up by temperature shortcuts for the two climate zones. This just leaves a more modestly sized bit in the middle featuring small on-screen controls that aren't the easiest to use on the move. Its responsiveness is OK, but loading certain functions can be a laggy experience. 

The navigation is perfectly useable, if not good enough for us to want to ditch it for Google Maps instead. Should that be your preference too, wireless Apple CarPlay and Android Auto feature as standard. There's also a wireless charging pad plus four USB-C ports – two in the front, and two in the rear. 

Audiophiles might be interested in the optional 14-speaker sound system from French firm Focal. It both sounds and looks good, with some of those 14 speakers housed in special laser-cut trim pieces for the doors.

The DS No8 gets a capacious boot offering 620 litres of boot space, eclipsing the 526 litres offered by the Polestar 4. The rear bench folds in a 40/20/40 split if you want more, but so far as we can work out, there isn't a figure available for the total space this opens up. 

The centre console is like a bridge that 'floats' over a shallow storage area with a sliding lid, incorporating two cupholders. Door bin and glovebox space are both fairly typical. 

As a car stretching to nearly five metres in length, there is, as you'd hope, quite a bit of rear legroom. Where taller rear passengers might be less happy is in terms of headroom, because of the way the car's roofline slopes towards the back. You can recline the rear seats by up to 30 degrees, which might alleviate the issue. 

The DS No8 is available with either a 74kWh battery or a 97.2kWh 'Long Range' pack. In terms of motors, the base setup involves a single one powering the front axle, providing 230PS and 245Nm of torque with the smaller battery, or 245PS (torque unchanged) if combined with the bigger one. 

That extra power isn't enough to fully offset the extra weight of the bigger battery, so the FWD Long Range needs 7.8 seconds to hit 0-62mph, while the smaller battery car manages the same in 7.7. The single motor car doesn't feel slow, but it never seems in a massive hurry either.

The dual motor car, on the other hand, gives a prolonged feeling of strong acceleration that pins you back in your seat. 350PS and 511Nm of torque mean it'll do 0-62mph in 5.4 seconds. It can only be combined with the larger battery. 

The FWD Long Range can manage up to 466 miles on a full charge, a seriously impressive number that makes it one of the longest-range electric cars currently on sale. Even once you knock a good chunk off to account for the fact EV range figures are notoriously difficult to achieve in real-world driving scenarios, the Long Range will still be able to go a long way (we reckon well over 300 miles) without needing a charge. 

Speccing the dual motor powertrain sees that figure drop to a still very good 411 miles. If you stick with the standard 74kWh battery, meanwhile, you're looking at up to 327 miles according to the WLTP figure. Bank on that being about 250 miles in reality. 

Ride comfort is only one part of the equation for something hoping to be considered a luxury car. It also needs to be quiet, which thankfully, the DS No8 certainly is. It's hushed on the move, with little in the way of wind or road noise entering the cabin. It helps that the No8 doesn't have to worry about engine noise, but on the flipside, this means any sound from other sources wouldn't have anywhere to hide, making it all the more impressive how hushed this car is on the move. 

At the time of writing, the DS No8 had not been crash-tested by Euro NCAP. There's a reassuringly generous level of standard safety equipment, with autonomous emergency braking, blind-spot detection, lane assistance and a driver attention monitor included as standard. 

That's a pretty typical assortment of safety features at this price, but there's one interesting addition we've not seen before – pedal misapplication prevention. It uses the parking sensors to figure out if the driver has suffered from the phenomenon of pedal confusion, reacting to hopefully stop the potentially disastrous consequences. 

As a young brand whose cars are slow sellers in the UK (it sold only just over 1,000 cars here in 2024), there's not enough ownership data to place DS in the HonestJohn.co.uk satisfaction index, our usual go-to source for reliability information. 

However, it doesn't bode well that of the 10 least reliable car brands in the most recent survey, six (including Citroen and Peugeot) were from the same Stellantis group of manufacturers. On the other hand, as an EV, the DS No8 has fewer moving parts than a petrol, diesel or hybrid equivalent, so in theory, there's less to go wrong. 

The warranty is nothing special at all, at three years and 60,000 miles (whichever comes first). As is the norm for EVs, the battery is covered by a separate 100,000-mile, eight-year warranty. 

An insurance group wasn't available for the DS No8 at the time of writing. As an EV with a relatively high value, it'd be sensible to expect reasonably chunky insurance costs. Shopping around for a competitive quote will be especially important. 

EVs are no longer exempt from paying Vehicle Excise Duty (VED) or car tax. It's now £195 a year across the board, regardless of how your car is powered. That's not the end of the world, but what might sting more is that electric cars are also now liable for the government's premium car tax surcharge. All versions of the No8 are well beyond the £40,000 threshold, which is based on RRP with options, so you'll need to shell out an extra £425 from years two to six of ownership. 

DS makes life easier than most in the configurator, offering only two well-specified trim levels and just a handful of optional extras on each. 

The base spec Pallas includes 20-inch alloy wheels, tinted rear windows, acoustic glass, an eight-speaker sound system, a 16-inch infotainment system, wireless Android Auto/Apple CarPlay, dual-zone climate control, front and rear parking sensors with a rear camera, electrically heated and folding door mirrors, a heated steering wheel, an electric boot and keyless entry/start. 

The range-topping Etoile adds an illuminated front grille, DS Pixelvision adaptive headlights, 3D LED rear lights, a front parking camera, comfort seats with neck warmers, an extended head-up display, a wireless smartphone charger, a hands-free powered boot and a digital rear-view mirror.