Citroen

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Citroen Cactus – The Strangest Little Car That You’ve Not Driven Yet

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Driving the Cactus is quite a bizarre experience. You forget the Citroen looks so oddball from the outside and that it turns heads wherever you take it.

I have to say, most people I’ve asked think it looks ‘awkward’ at best but I am warming to the futuristic design. There are lots of clever touches, like washer jets incorporated in the wiper arms (presumably to further reduce drag) and those daytime running lights situated high up the bonnet.

If the Cactus was bigger – and I’m thinking proper SUV-size here! – it would rival the Porsche Cayenne for road presence. But when you see the Citroen  in the metal, it’s very small indeed (like Mini size).

One feature I don’t like is the acceleration from a standing start at a junction. As you pull out, there’s something of a dead-spot on the accelerator, which is seriously disconcerting. That’s probably not a problem with the petrol models but has given me a few anxious moments….

 

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Citroen Cactus – Are Airbumps The Future For Urban Driving?

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They’re called Airbumps and it’s what marks the Cactus out from all the rest. Tough, polyurethane panels filled with air that give the quirky Cactus its ‘unique selling point’.

They’re not meant to protect your paintwork in a proper shunt but rather see off the dents and dings that happen during everyday, mostly urban driving. And let’s face it, in Citoren’s homeland, the French are buggers for bashing your bodywork.

You can choose four different colours for the bumps – and if they get scruffy over the years, you can replace the door panels with nice new ones for £150.

I’m not sure we’ll see Airbumps appearing on other cars but you have to applaud Citroen for such a novel idea. In the spirit of the 2CV and DS, this is a car that dares to be different…

 

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Citroen C4 Cactus – Sharp Performer In The MPG Stakes But Lacks Power!

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Not often I want to recommend a petrol engine over derv but what the new Cactus really lacks is a bit of poke. A 100bhp HDi might sound perfect for this size of car – it isn’t.

The Cactus seems to have a range of super-frugal engines that sell on economy. However, even the 100bhp is tiresome to drive at low speed. It has very little pick-up from a standing start and twisty, low-speed roads mean plenty of gearbox changes.

Things improve slightly at high speed, where the five-speed Cactus we have on test moves along nicely. It’s when the revs drop that you have to start working the Citroen hard!

So, the PureTech 110bhp petrol might be worth a look. It still returns excellent mpg and has that extra bit of shove from under the bonnet. I’m getting 50mpg from the HDi – the official mpg figures are much higher but to achieve any kind of satisfactory performance, that is simply not possible…

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Citroen Cactus – The Padded Car You Just Want To Kick…

 

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It’s just natural – you see a padded car and you automatically want to check out how good those ‘air bumps’, as Citroen prefer to call them, really are. The idea is a good one. Protect the paintwork by effectively bubble wrapping the bodywork.

What has surprised me is how well the Cactus looks. I also didn’t realise how small the Cactus actually is! I’d say it’s just a bit more spacious than one of those Botox Minis. It’s quite tiny.

Also, why on Earth hasn’t somebody thought of an idea this simple before, to cope with the bump and bash of urban living? Maybe they have but I can’t recall such an ingenious idea.

So, if you buy a Cactus, be prepared for a a lot of people poking and prodding your car. I’m not sure it could cope with a full-on road rage attack but air bumps could be the way forward for angry drivers too!

 

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Citroen C4 Cactus – Sharper Than Your Average Skoda Yeti?

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Love it or hate it, the Citroen C4 Cactus has got people talking. Even those who care nothing about motoring are wondering what this ‘padded’ car is all about. Is it a concept, is it for real – or is it just ‘French’?

True, only Citroen could design and then sell cars like the 2CV, DS and CX. So why should we be taken aback by the whacky little Cactus?

I’ve only driven the car 12 miles to the station and back but already I’ve had more looks than I would with a topless supermodel on the front passenger seat. That includes one woman who almost managed a head-on in her Volvo XC90.

Most people will consider it an SUV – which puts it in the same category as the Renault Captur (see previous test), Nissan Juke and the Skoda Yeti.

However, none of those models will turn heads like the Cactus. It’s unusual, different and bordering on cool. Something you can’t say about a Yeti, of course…

 

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Citroen C5 Tourer – On The Level

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The Citroen range isn’t blessed with stylish cars. DS apart, the C6 and this C5 Tourer are the pick of the bunch.

And it’s a credit to the Citroen design team that our Tourer has remained pretty much the same since it was launched six years ago.

While it boasts 1500 litres of boot space, the low roof line means it isn’t the largest estate in this class. However, in the passenger cabin, there is plenty of room front and rear.

When the C5 is fully loaded, the hydropneumatic, self-levelling suspension, available on cars higher up the range, helps keeps everything on the straight and narrow.

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Citroen C5 Tourer – Undone By Buttons

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Today Volvo revealed that their new XC90 will feature a dashboard that is virtually devoid of buttons.The new model is launched later this year and has a tablet-like touch screen, a head-up display and only a couple of thumb buttons on the steering wheel.

The idea is brilliant and SUV owners everywhere will look on with envy. However, such ground-breaking technology is bound to send a shiver down the spine of the design team at Citroen because I’m not sure I have ever seen a car with as many buttons as the C5.

Just take a look at that steering wheel – it has more buttons to press than the entire dashboard of the new XC90! It’s actually rather intimidating when you sit int he Citroen for the first time.

These two cars are polar opposites in terms of driver controls. Personally, I’d choose something in-between because driving any car, you should always pick function over form.

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Citroen C5 Tourer – The Large Lap of Luxury

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Is there something about the French I don’t know? I lived in the Tarn for two years and I thought I had a pretty good idea of their driving habits – so why the heck doesn’t the C5 have a cupholder?

You only discover these things at the last moment, usually when you have just bought a takeaway coffee and suddenly realise there is nowhere to slot it in safely. Hmm, risk holding it between the knees, or will it stay upright in the centre console bin? Probably not…

Hang on, here it is! The cupholder for the C5 is situation inside the console bin, and even then you have to search to find it. A pop up arm is folded down inside and holds my cup beautifully. Just an odd place to put it, don’t you think?

Driving the big Citroen is like taking an armchair for a ride. It’s super comfortable, refined and rather chic. I just wish the French didn’t have to be quite so quirky with their product…

 

 

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Citroen C5 Tourer – Room To Roam

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If your car budget doesn’t stretch to a German estate then the C5 offers an interesting alternative to the everyday Ford Mondeo, VW Passat and Vauxhall Insignia.

While it may not be as much of an all-rounder as those three favourites, the Citroen is a load-lugger that at least looks different and gets kudos points for sleek styling.

Th problem with the top of the range Executive we have on test right now is that costing £30,000, it comes very close to costing as much as premium brand offerings from Mercedes, BMW and Audi.

However, the C5 Tourer is much more roomy inside than any of those rivals, with better leaf and headroom front and rear.

So, you pay your money and make your choice. Personally, I’m loving the C5 Tourer because it is just that little bit different. Would I rather have a Ford Mondeo on the driveway? What do you think!

 

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Citroen C5 Tourer – Driving With Frank Sinatra

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Citroen calls it Hydractive 3+ suspension. It’s not standard in every C5 Tourer but on our Exclusive estate it makes for the most comfortable ride of any car I’ve driven this year.

That’s on a smooth, fast duel carriageway. On winding A-roads, the suspension doesn’t quite live up to expectation. It feels fidgety and doesn’t cope with a rough surface in the same impeccable manner.

The Exclusive is exceptionally well equipped inside the cabin though, with part-leather trim and electric front seats. I still can’t get on with electronic park brakes and I’m not entirely sure interior mood lighting is required. Does it flash red for road rage?

And further extending the unnecessary names for features, the sat nav system is called eMyWay. Or Mancunian for a northern pub singer doing Frank Sinatra…