Citroen C5 2.0 Confort Review

That's because the old C5 was bad. They couldn't have gotten it more wrong with clumsy-ish looks that leave nothing to the imagination. But big-time players like Ford and Renault have brought out their Mondeo and Laguna weaponry to play, and Citroen wasn't going to be left behind this time.

In fact, it has done one better. The sedan is now a proper four-door device with a large boot instead of a half-baked hatchback wannabe. It has a boomerang-like rear end and sparkly, shiny tail-lamp structures and a deep-set, concave rear glass inspired from the beautiful C6 and those great, large Citroens of past and yore.

That trademark double chevron has been fused into the front end, and it's where you'll have to fit your fingers between it in order to pop the bonnet. Surprisingly though, was the lack of gas struts to prop the hood up.

Tall doors, a high waistline and elegant interconnecting lines bring everything together perfectly; you'd have to wash your eyes in brine to believe so. So like the C6, Citroen has managed to capture an almost-forgotten impression of beauty in cars, more persuasively than before.

Running gear

If you examine what's under the skin, you'll also find that its rear-end and fuel tank blueprints are similar to the C6, and for that matter, the Peugeot 407. These three basically share the same front and rear suspension layout. But of course, the Citroen remains to be the unique exception as it incorporates its trademark, self-levelling oleopneumatic suspension that's called Hydractive 3 Plus, something we'll elaborate on here.

Found in our test car, Citroen claims that the new suspension design makes it possible to separate the two traditionally conflicting functions - damping and guidance.

Although only a traditional double-wishbone setup in front, Citroen also claims that it has been able to transfer only lateral force from the wheels of the C5 through the body, eliminating any other forces from other directions.

Since the vertical and longitudinal stiffness of the mounts between cradle and body have been "disconnected" in such a way, the mounting points are flexible enough to give specific control and stiffness in the proper required directions of movement.
The rear suspension comprises a light alloy cross-member for more traditional, static geometrical positioning. Citroen makes use of elasto-kinematics, or in other words, it varies the wheel position depending on the amount of longitudinal or lateral force applied.

There are two suspension modes - a "normal" and "sport" mode, self-explanatory of course, what with one being stiffer and tauter than the other. But the real area of interest would be its body-height control. Adjustable via a selector, one is able to raise or lower the car by four settings, with the second lowest setting being the default.

At highway speeds, the C5 automatically lowers the ride height in aid of aerodynamics, while one is able to raise the car by almost 1 cm in order to clear parking obstacles, at the very least.

Driving Impressions

In Singapore, two engine options are available - a 2.0-litre inline-4 cylinder generating 143 bhp (DIN) at 6000 rpm and 200 Nm of torque at 4000 rpm. Thanks to our "fantastic" road tax penalties on diesel engined vehicles, no matter how clean and efficient they are, we'll be missing out on the Citroen group's magnificent and torquey, high-output HDi series of oil-burners (the 2.7-litre V6 generates 208 bhp and a massive 440 Nm of torque!)

We'll start with the scary-plentiful amount of buttons that you'll find in front of you when you first get into the car, predominantly, on the now familiar, non-rotating steering wheel centre.

There are two thumb rotators on the top left and right with "return" buttons that allow you to exit certain menus, control the radio, brightness of the LCD, cruise control and speed limiter as well as two inconspicuous buttons for the car horn.

To be honest, it's really confusing at first, and it does take a little familiarisation before you can operate the entire car with ease. The few buttons that you'll need to get acquainted to immediately of course, would be the parking brake and consequently, the Hydractive III+'s controls, as they're also located in proximity of the area.

The air-conditioning buttons are too, as complex to look at, if not simple to operate. Even when weaned off the automatic climate control mode, it does take a little time to adjust to what you want, especially on a hot day. Apparently, engineers at Citroen have unanimously decided that it would be better to direct billowing air away from one's face on a hot, humid day (presumably to cool other parts of the car) when one would rather have it straight in his or her face.
But all is forgotten when you're on the move. The 2.0-litre powerplant and four-speed automatic works to form very much the part of a really smooth entity, and it feeds enough power and torque to keep up with zippy rush-hour traffic in Singapore.

It matches its claimed time when stopwatched to the century mark (12.7 seconds, an average of 4 runs) but it does run out of breath once over 100 km/h, and that's where you'll have to give it more throttle at the expense of fuel economy.

Don't worry, it's capable of delivering on demand as long as you don't expect it to run like a turbocharged horse digesting his beans. It's also rather efficient around town. We recorded an average of 9.1 litres 100 km over a distance of 104 km, a day's worth of driving from 9-5.

Attention must be drawn to the C5's new level of silence, refinement and comfort at speeds of over 120 km/h. Wind noise is entirely absent, and so are any other sort of vibrations. We dare say that it matches, if not rivals a Mercedes S-Class in this respect - a commendable effort for Citroen's quirky innovations, especially where its suspension is concerned.

The Citroen put up well in corners despite criticisms concerning the "Mr Softy" hydraulic suspension. Leave it in sport mode and it will carve a corner just as well as a light-ish, stock Mitsubishi Lancer or a Toyota Vios. And you'll be bowled over at how refined the cabin remains even when you push it.

Why should you go French?

The previous generation, 2001-2008 C5's scored badly in a number of reliability surveys in Europe, while the precious few owners of C5's here seem to have complained of poorer than normal residual values.

Thankfully, none of them seem to have been hit by many problems and glitches like what many might have read over the internet, and Citroen has long addressed the faults and failures of the automatic gearboxes, self-levelling suspension, brakes, locking systems, particulate and electrical issues.

It should also add confidence to know that the latest generation of components are shared amongst the PSA Peugeot-Citroen group of vehicles, thus further decreasing the likelihood of service failure.

As you can see, this C5, at $104,988, does command a slight premium over Japanese rivals such as the Toyota Camry, Honda Accord and even the Peugeot 407. But we dare say that the premium is that of a worthy one, and for the first time in the history of upmarket Citroens, you're getting more than what you're paying for when you go French.

Entirely justifiable.