7 minute read
Citroën C5 X Big family car with a twist of quirkiness
from sin46th magzus.org
by Thomas Swift
FIRST DRIVES
NEW CARS TESTED AND RATED
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TESTED 8.3. 2 2 , B A R C E LO N A , S PA I N ON SA LE A P R I L PR ICE £ 2 7,9 9 0 CITROEN C5 X
Evertheinnovator,Citroënridestotherescueofthe
The first question was about how to list the new Citroën C5 X under one of the online menus we have. How do we categorise it? Is it an estate, an SUV, a hatchback, a crossover, a large family saloon, a compact executive car or what? And in answer: yes, yes it is.
Citroën, prolific maker of many small cars, has also made some great big ones in the past, but it’s fickle about how often it does so –mostly, one suspects, because while they’re often cool, they’re also not universally popular.
And the market for big cars from conventional (by which I mean non-premium) brands is shrinking. They call it the D-segment. That which contains the Ford Mondeo, Vauxhall Insignia, Volkswagen Passat and historically a dozen others from mainstream brands, or “a segment that to all intents and purposes is sad, boring and steadily decreasing” , according to Citroën’s engaging CEO, Vincent Cobée.
Nonetheless, Citroën is launching a new car into it. It’s a new big car that the French firm hopes is none of the above; a car created with “a willingness and a readiness to be different” .
The C5 X, then (pronounced ‘ex’ , not ‘cross’ , although they won’t mind too much either way), is a 4.8m-long, 1.8m-wide fastback/hatchback/estate ◊
Δ(look, whatever) with a raised ride height to give it a crossover/SUV-ish appearance without all of the frontal area of an actual SUV. The looks without the inefficiency.
It sits on the platform that gives us so many Citroën and Peugeot models (the windscreen is even the same as on the latest Peugeot 308), meaning it has a steel monocoque, front-wheel drive and pure-petrol and plug-in hybrid powertrain options.
“We could do a four-wheel-drive one, but we won’t, ” says Cobée.
In the UK, there will be a 1.2-litre three-cylinder petrol with 129bhp (badged Puretech 130 and expected to be the biggest seller here) and a
V A R I O U S M O D E S O F O P E R A T I O N
The PHEV has a few driving modes. In Electric, it’s electric (obvs) and has a normal suspension tune. In Hybrid, it can run on electric and at times will, with a bit of engine too, and will run the battery flat, while the suspension is again normal. Comfort is the same but with the suspension softer. In Sport, the steering, acceleration response and gearbox response are more dynamic and the suspension firmer. In any of the hybrid modes, you can click a Maximum button to charge the battery in anticipation of arriving in a zero-emissions zone. 1.6-litre petrol with 178bhp, which not many people will buy, because it’s nearly as expensive as the 1.6-litre plug-in hybrid with 225bhp and up to 31 miles of electric-only range.
Prices go from £26,490 to £29,980 for the 130 and £35,180 to £38,670 for the PHEV. Batteries are expensive.
Suspension is by MacPherson struts at the front and multi-link at the rear. All models get Citroën’s Progressive Hydraulic Cushions and hybrids get electronically controlled dampers, too, which change according to the driving mode.
Now, some car makers chase dynamism, which makes for excellent games of lingo bingo at car launch press conferences, if not actually for making appropriately set-up family cars (‘sportiness’ 10 points, ‘fun to drive’ 10 points, ‘Nürburgring’ 20 points), but Citroën is chasing comfort.
“We want to be remembered for the elevation of comfort and lift it to the level of care, ” says Cobée.
So the large-diameter (19in) wheels that help give the C5 X its ride height are shod with plump 205/55 tyres to add absorbency to what’s apparently a softly set-up car. It’s a novel approach and, if done well, could be a seriously tempting one.
First, though, to the interior. Largely, I like it in here. The driving
Ride comfort is excellent but body control can be lacking in the PHEV
position is widely adjustable, the seats are large and comfortable and the steering wheel, pleasingly finished, has actual buttons on it. Hurrah.
Praise be, too, that the heating and ventilation controls are physical buttons with twiddly knobs for the temperature – so easy, so quick, so safe to use. There is a touchscreen, of course, and it’s slightly concerning to hear that its icons and functions are inspired by smartphones, because you’re really not meant to use those while driving at 70mph. But in the grand scheme of things, it’s not so bad: some shortcuts are very short and you can rest your finger below it.
Perceived material quality is pretty good, especially at this money. There are soft-touch surfaces where you would expect and some interesting textile choices featuring little chevrons in other places. Fit and finish is strong.
Spaciousness in the back is superb. The roofline means there’s only sound head room, but you would need to be a tall adult to complain, while leg room is really generous.
The boot doesn’t initially look as large as it turns out to be, because the tailgate glass is a bit more upright than the body, but it’s still 545 litres with the rear seats in place. Plus there’s a flat load floor and remote releases for the split-folding rear seats. We’re told a washing machine will fit in, even with the rear seats up.
Having driven both the PHEV and the 130, I prefer the petrol-only car.
TESTE R’S NOTE Alas, no rear wiper. Are we witnessing the slow and unsteady death of this most useful (if expensive to manufacture) piece of equipment? MP
Interior feels of suitable quality; touchscreen gives little cause for complaint
The PHEV is refined, no question. It’s incredibly quiet around town in electric-only mode and cabin isolation and bump absorption are spot on. As with some other Citroëns, though, I find the control weights –and steering response – curiously light and non-linear to the extent that you have to force yourself to be too gentle with it not to upset it. Coming to a stop without a secondary wobble is hard. Things settle down once there’s some load on it; it’s just the initial movements that are hypersensitive. I find cars like the Toyota GR86 (I know they aren’t rivals) less tiring even though they’re much noisier and firmer and less isolated, because l know what I’m going to get.
The 130, though, feels much better. Perhaps it’s the 1418kg rather than 1722kg kerb weight, but ride isolation is just as good, while the responses are keener, because it’s lighter, but also more predictable and with less bouncy response.
Obviously the drivetrain is noisier, with the eight-speed automatic gearbox notably shuffling more and the engine thrumming hard but mutedly as it tries to generate enough oomph to drag a duvet off a bed. But it turns really nicely, with the sort of poise and response that wouldn’t be out of place in a big Ford, yet with much lower noise levels and a genuine sense of plushness.
The C5 X is a harder case to make as a company car, no question, which is where the majority of big family cars find buyers, because it officially emits 136-154g/km of CO2, rather than 30-34g/km.
Whether either finds the kind of market traction that previous big Citroëns failed to remains to be seen.
Was it hard to convince the board that Citroën should make it at all? “It would have been a different argument to win if we didn’t have China, ” Cobée tells me, because they like big Citroëns over there. “We sold 12,000 in four months there, ” and Chengdu is where it’s made.
The Chinese being moderately keen on big, novel Citroëns means we also get one of the more interesting cars that’s “not a traditional, lowriding three-box saloon” in a segment that was once dominated by them.
Particularly in ICE form, the C5 X is a rather easy car to rub along with. MATT PRIOR @matty_prior
CITROEN C5 X PURETECH 130 SHINE
An unconventional take on the conventional and the better for putting comfort to the fore AAAAC
Price £27,990 Engine 3 cyls in line, 1199cc, turbocharged, petrol Power 129bhp at 5500rpm Torque 170lb ft at 1750rpm Gearbox 8-spd automatic, FWD Kerb weight 1418kg 0-62mph 8.1sec Top speed 130mph Economy 41.4mpg CO2, tax band 154g/km, 34% RIVALS Cupra Formentor, Volkswagen Passat Estate
