Johannesburg - Stellantis might not be rocking the sales charts but the automotive conglomerate certainly sells a whole lot of interesting products from a whole lot of interesting brands.
One of these is Citroën, which returned to the country in 2019, with a modern range of crossover products. The current flagship is what they call the C5 Aircross. If you’re in the market for something along the lines of a Toyota Rav4 or Volkswagen Tiguan, you’ve probably never thought about the Citroën alternative, which is an interesting option. But is it competitive?
The Citroën C5 Aircross recently underwent an exterior and interior makeover, and it’s a successful one in our book.
At the front end, the previous split headlight design makes way for an integrated light and grille cluster, with a three-dimensional split to keep things interesting. The alterations are less prominent around back, but the Citroën does get a new LED lighting signature designed to mimic the 3D effect seen upfront. Redesigned 18-inch “Diamond Cut” alloy wheels are also part of the deal across the C5 range, along with glossy black mirror caps.
With its price positioning of R633 900 for the 1.6T Feel model and R683 900 for the range-topping 1.6T Shine, the Citroën C5 Aircross is fighting for its dinner in a highly contested space where we see the likes of Toyota’s RAV4, Hyundai’s Tucson and Volkswagen’s Tiguan.
But how does it size up?
Measuring 4.5m in length, and riding on a 2.73m wheelbase, the C5 Aircross is a bit smaller than some of the larger contenders in this class, like the 4.6m Toyota RAV4, but it is similar in size to the Volkswagen Tiguan and Chery Tiggo 7 Pro.
Is the Citroën C5 Aircross practical?
This SUV has three individual seats in the back, all on their own rails, allowing them to slide back and forth. But, regardless of how you configure them, the rear legroom is more on the acceptable than ample side of things.
I wouldn’t call it cramped but it’s not exactly spacious either. My average-sized frame slotted into the back, with some knee room to spare, but there was hardly any stretching space, even with the seats pushed back as far as they could go on their rails.
Moving to the boot area, things look a little more generous and family friendly, with a vast and relatively deep loading area. Citroën claims a luggage capacity of 720 litres with the rear seats in place, albeit pushed forward no doubt.
New cockpit could use more switches
As mentioned, the C5 Aircross has been given something of a makeover on the inside too, with a neater-looking dashboard incorporating a larger touch-screen infotainment system that “floats” at the top of the dashboard for easier operation.
Classy to the look and touch, it follows the modern, minimalist design philosophy but, with the ventilation controls having moved into the central screen, it’s not entirely practical. Thankfully, there is a short-cut button below the screen for easy access to the climate page, but Citroën could have made things a lot easier by retaining traditional physical controls. Thankfully, there is a volume knob.
One thing we appreciate is that the start button, electronic parking brake and gear selector are all within proximity on the lower central console, making the start-up process systematically easy.
The standard features list is fairly generous, and the “Feel” variant ships with an 8.0-inch infotainment system, 12.3-inch digital instrument cluster, dual-zone climate control, drive mode select and rear park distance control.
The Shine model that we had on test is a bit more generous, with leather seat upholstery, push-button start, automatic tailgate, 180-degree park assist, lane-keep assist, blind-spot monitoring, Active Odour Filter and a larger 10-inch infotainment screen.
What’s it like to drive?
The first word that pops into our heads is comfort. The Citroën C5 Aircross has hydraulic stops in the shock absorbers which absorb more of the shock through the system than conventional stops do. It’s not as fancy as the hydraulic suspension on the older Citroëns, but it works well nonetheless, resulting in a comfortable ride quality on most surfaces.
The newly designed Citroën Advanced Comfort seats add to the cushiness factor, with their high-density foam.
Power comes from the familiar 1.6-litre turbopetrol, which is good for 121kW and 240Nm, and it pairs with a six-speed torque converter automatic gearbox, which is smooth enough for our liking.
Performance could, at bes,t be described as adequate for the package. The C5 can be a little laggy on pull-off but once on the boil, it’s got more than enough power to move it along briskly, but you will need to work it a bit at times.
What about the fuel consumption? During open road highway cruising it averaged around 7.0 litres per 100km, while town driving saw the readout rise as high as 13 l/100km at times.
VERDICT
At R683 900, the Citroën C5 Aircross 1.6T Shine is in the segment ballpark, but it doesn’t shout top value with so many other good options out there.
It’s not the most practical vehicle in its segment but it will do the family car thing if need be, and it will do it in comfort and distinctive French style. If you’re looking for something different, this could be the way to go, especially if you can get a good deal on one.
FACTS: Citroën C5 Aircross 1.6T Shine
Price: R683 900
Engine: 1.6-litre, 4-cylinder, turbopetrol
Gearbox: 6-speed automatic
Drive: Front-wheel drive
Power: 121kW at 6 000rpm
Torque: 240Nm at 1 400rpm
0-100km/h: 10.5 seconds (claimed)
Top speed: 189km/h (claimed)
Fuel use, freeway: 7.0L/100km (tested)
Ground clearance: 201mm
Fuel tank capacity: 53 litres
Kerb weight: 1 505kg
Towing capacity: 550kg (braked)
Warranty: 5-year/100 000km
Maintenance plan: 5-year/100 000km