Citroen C3 1.4 PETROL RANGE
The
Citroen C3 Represents A Stylish Way Into The Supermini Club. The 1.4-Litre Petrol Versions Are Some Of The Most Cost-Effective Entry Points. Andy Enright Reports
At first we were all a little confused by Citroens C3. Very nice. Big face. Five doors.
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But where was the three-door version, the sporty one that would take over the mantle from the much-loved Saxo? It seems
Citroen had other plans and slotted the C3 betwixt Saxo (now replaced by the C2) and Xsara, billing it as their little big car. Aside from the grim tweeness of that title, the C3 has a lot going for it and the 1.4-litre petrol versions represent a cost effective way into club C3.
In making the C3 subtly different to what wed come to expect as a blueprint supermini, Citroen have created a car thats more faithful to their old tradition as manufacturers of supreme lateral thinking. They claim that its a very different take on the supermini concept: three-door versions for example, will never be made. Instead, that niche is being covered by the sporty C2 citycar. The C3 will offer spacious family motoring for those that arent particularly interested in lift-off oversteer or any such lairy antics. The 1.
4-litre petrol versions of the C3 are priced aggressively, exemplars of Citroens success at tapping into the psychology of the UK market probably better than any other car manufacturer of late. Their formula has been to catch em young, tempting buyers with a credible badge that, with cashback, discounts and free insurance policies, make the cars as affordable as bargain basement Koreans. This tactic has been spectacularly effective, twenty something Saxo buyers often maturing into not-so-young Xsara buyers and so on. The 1.
4-litre range opens at £10,395 for the 75bhp 1.4i Desire, and if you needed any further illustration as to the sheer scale of Citroens financial assault the fact that this is over £1,000 less than the equivalent
Volkswagen Polo should suffice.
"Its too friendly to frighten."
This pricing policy has given Citroen such remarkable year on year sales growth. Combine that with the fact that this supermini market has increased by some 30% over the past five years and the C3 looks set fair for success. Only the small matter of the
Ford Fiesta, the
Renault Clio, the
Peugeot 206, the
Vauxhall Corsa, the
Skoda Fabia and the
Honda Jazz come between the C3 and number one spot on the podium. Pay £11,495 and you could be driving the 90bhp 16-valve version with standard SensoDrive gearbox in economical Stop and Start form and £11,995 will get you into the XTR faux 4x4.
Alongside the CD-player equipped Desire version theres the SX trim level that adds digital air-conditioning amongst other things. SX is offered in manual or automatic guises while the more powerful 1.4-litre 16-valve engine is available only with the SensoDrive transmission as a Stop and Start or an XTR. The automatic is interesting, being a four-speed sequential box.
This system boasts advanced electronics that attempt to learn different driving styles whilst a flick of the lever allows the driver to make manual changes without the need for a clutch pedal. Three different programs (Normal, Sport and Snow) are selectable as well as a fully automatic mode. Yes, it saps performance a little, but the C3 1.4 was never about serious oomph.
Its too friendly to frighten. The SensoDrive performs a similar clutchless function but adds steering column-mounted paddles to do the shifting. With 75bhp on tap the C3 1.4s performance can best be described as unhurried, reaching 62mph in 12.
4 seconds and a top speed of 104mph. The average fuel economy figure of 45mpg is above average in class. The SensoDrive gearbox slows the 90bhp 16-valve engine to a 13s 0-62mph time but the 112mph top speed is more respectable and the economy improved to 47mpg. Many customers will feel tempted by the 67mpg 1.
4 HDi diesel version. All things considered it looks to be the more astute purchase. Still there are still many who dont like diesel and if you count yourself amongst them, you wont feel hard done by a petrol model. Like all C3 models the interior is adventurously styled which makes a change from all the other makers who seem to be slavishly aping VW Group products.
As a result, instead of a dull Teutonic cabin, weve got one that goes its own way, light and airy with low window lines and bold, sweeping curves. Rock-hard seating, coalhole colour schemes and a fetish for aluminium inserts have all been forsaken in the quest to provide a functional, non-threatening family car. The dashboard has shades of toned-down
Fiat Multipla, the lovely silver-trimmed circular vents appearing to warp the fascia as they bust gently through atop a voluptuous pod housing the stereo and air conditioning controls. The digital instrumentation is clear and easy to read and has a
Saab-style black panel that turns all but the most important functions off if you dont want to be distracted by them at night.
More importantly, there are enough bins, cubbies and boxes to make locating a carelessly stowed bunch of keys the work of several minutes. Citroens Moduboard system is a load bay dividing system that helps protect soft items from hard, clean from grubby and prevent bulky objects from racing across the load bay during spirited driving. Not that pedal to the metal antics are encouraged by the C3. The Saxo VTR and VTS models will continue to be developed for those more concerned with uprated dampers than Pull-Up Pampers.
Clever safety-conscious electronic features have been borrowed from the larger C5 things such as speed-sensitive intermittent wipers with rain sensing activation, hazard lights that deploy automatically under severe braking as well as side airbags, ABS with EBD, Emergency Brake Assist and comprehensive pedestrian safety features. Given that the bulk of Citroens profitability is accounted for by aggressively priced budget models the C3 1.4-litre petrol models look a sure-fire winner. The actualite is less clear-cut.
With the Honda Jazz reigning supreme over this end of the market, the 1.4-litre petrol models are more difficult to make a case for than the diesels or the upspec 1.6-litre versions. Having said that, I never tipped Citroen to be the big postmillennial success story they are.
You pays your money
FACTS AT A GLANCE
CAR: Citroen C3 1.4 petrol range
PRICES: £10,395-£11,995 - on the road
INSURANCE GROUP: 3
CO2 EMISSIONS: 148g/km
PERFORMANCE: 0-60 12.4s Top Speed 104mph
FUEL CONSUMPTION: (urban) 34.4mpg / (extra urban) 56.5mpg / (combined) 45.6mpg
STANDARD SAFETY FEATURES: Twin front airbags, ABS [exc LX]
WILL IT FIT IN YOUR GARAGE?: Length/Width/Height 3850/1667/1519mm
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