What’s going on here?
Citroën has adjusted the C3 territory no less than multiple times in the beyond year and a half.
First as it facelifted the little hatchback, Touch, Feel and Flair manages turning into the similarly saccharine Live, Sense and Shine; then, at that point, as it added the stripped down C-Series; and again as Shine became Saint James – so named for a design house, not on the grounds that it’s to be martyred.
Or then again is it? It appears to be even superminis are presently under existential danger from hybrids. Maybe that is essential for the justification for why Citroën really cut the C3’s cost at facelift time.
You can purchase a Citroen C3 for just £14,000; yet at the opposite finish of the range is the more powerful, top-spec Shine Plus at £21,000 (£1260 of which is because of the programmed gearbox) and tried here.
Stellantis’ frequently vaunted Puretech 1.2-liter three-chamber super petroleum motor makes 82bhp or 109bhp in the C3; and from testing the last form, we’d say you certainly need the extra except if you seldom leave town.
What’s it like?
It is to be sure a pleasant motor, offering great punch, adaptability and moderation and, surprisingly, a mean little snarl.
In any case, it’s let down fairly by the EAT6 ‘box, whose movements can make the C3 rock like a boat, because of its delicate springing. Sadly, the dubious manual isn’t actually a cure.
That suspension has a potential gain, in any case, managing the cost of the C3 a supple ride, which on the motorway makes the noisy inclination that you’re driving something greater. Positively it has no issue cruising in an extremely loosened up design, which can’t be said of sportier superminis, regardless of whether it’s not absolutely safe to pothole-instigated shivering.
It’s a disgrace that Citroën’s Advanced Comfort seats, while likewise a lot spongier than those you will find in rival vehicles, aren’t more strong at their sides, since you regularly wind up straining to keep upstanding as the C3 rolls its direction through turns.
There’s a lot of room up here, regardless of whether you’re tall. For sure, you might say that it has a breezy feel. The reasonableness of the back is less amazing, however, especially contrasted and the new Skoda Fabia and its kin.
The C3’s inside looks smart, because of its ‘squircle’ plan topic and especially its simple dials, yet a lot of hard plastic (you won’t have any desire to lay your arm on the windowsill). We praise the overall design additionally, save for the way that the cooling controls are covered inside the touchscreen, unnecessarily making you become diverted from the street ahead.
Would it be advisable for me to get one?
As a modest and comfortable runabout, the C3 could appear to be legit. Yet, in this priciest structure, it’s extremely difficult to legitimize, as a pleasantly specced Vauxhall Corsa or, better actually, Ford Fiesta costs comparable.
The elastic ride and brilliant motor essentially aren’t to the point of compensating for the fun-opposed frame and low-lease inside.