What's all this then?

Don't you mean ce qui est tout cela alors?

OK, yes. La plume de ma tante est dans le jardin and all that.

That's more like it. This is the DS E-Tense, Citroen's luxury brand's idea of a futuristic electric super-coupe that will be the star of DS's Geneva Motor Show stand next week.

It's a low-slung two-seater with a 402hp, 516Nm electric motor (related to that used by DS's Formula-E electric racing car), which can go for longer than 192 miles between recharges.

Forget the electric tech though, as this is all about style, and it's a good hint as to what future DS models (and we are being promised a full range of new cars by 2018) will look like. The big, square mesh grille is familiar from the current DS range, but either side are clever new LED headlights (DS says they're made to watchmaker standards), which can swivel by a full 180 degrees and have built-in presets for motorway, country and bad weather driving.

Inside, the cabin is seriously luxurious, and DS says it took more than 800 hours to design and build. It's dominated by a huge steel sculpture across the top of the dash (using DS's trademark quilted look) and a 'tulip-shaped' steering wheel. There's a big 10-inch touchscreen infotainment system, which is connected to a hand-held 12-inch tablet for controlling all of the car's systems by remote.

DS has also created a clever air filtration system to keep the cabin air pure, and there are a number of high-end luxury French touches in there. There are leather luggage straps (for holding crash helmets, according to DS) by Moynat, a sound system by Focal and a gigantic watch by BRM Chronographs, which can be clipped to the dash and used as the car's clock.

The innovation doesn't end there either - the tyres have been specially designed by Michelin to deal with the instant-on torque characteristics of an electric motor.