i test drove a couple of 07 Gs and when i put them in "sport" mode, on the dash one of them indicated "S" and the other said "DS".
Is there a difference?

 

yes... DS is more aggressive than sport mode... take corners fast and you'll notice the difference.

 

is there a way to switch between them?

 

Interesting.. mine only shows DS..

 

It should show D, DS, or a number for forward gear choices. That S must have been a 5?

 

What? I don't think this is accurate. When you move the shifter to the left you enter DS from D. You probably upshifted which put you in tiptronic so it was showing a 5.

 

DS = fun in turns
D = always fun

 

No such thing as "S"

 

just never turn off VDC whilst in DS....lol

 

what weird is... ds mode without shifting feels as if the G is amped up compared to D mode.

car does shift gears on its own, not me manually tapping the shifter.

I dont know this is all new to me.

 

^Yeah DS puts it in sport mode which holds revs higher and keeps you in a lower gear so you are more able to accelerate. The downshifts are also harsher.

 

What he said

 

good to know, thanks

 

Is there any harm in driving in DS and then letting the car force its own shifts automatically?

I assumed DS was so that the driver must take over the shift points.
I've read the manual (I'd like to paste some things I read, kind of funny) but it almost makes it sound like you don't need to touch the shift lever if you don't want to.

 

^ DS is still fully auto. YOU DON'T need to shift.
It's not 'manumatic' 'tiptronic' 'Geartronic', 'Touchshift', 'Sporttronic' until you push or pull it fwd or back.