CITROEN C5 HATCHBACK 2001-2004 Review
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Good Points
- Driver can lower the suspension when loading the boot
- Ample space for both driver and passengers
- No wind or road noise in the cabin
- Suspension does a good job of smoothing out bumps
Bad Points
- Suspension is costly to fix
- Steep depreciation
Engines
There are five engine options to choose from in the Citroen C5 with three petrol and two diesels. The petrol engines start with the 1.8-litre 115bhp, followed by the 2.0-litre 140bhp and at the top of the range, the 3.0-litre V6 207bhp engine. The two petrol engines include the 1.6 and 2.0-litre engines producing 110 and 136bhp respectively. The C5 also comes with the option of either manual or automatic gearboxes but the automatic has proved problematic.
Performance & Economy
All of the engines perform well with even the diesel engines performing extremely smoothly. The diesels have the greatest pulling power so if you are going to be using the C5 for hauling the whole family or big loads around regularly then either of the two diesels would be a good choice. They also have the best fuel economy with the smaller 1.6-litre coming in at 52mpg and the 2.0-litre at 47mpg. The petrol's don't fair too badly either with the smaller engine once again coming in at the top of the group with the 1.8-litre achieving 35mpg, followed by the 2.0-litre at 32mpg and finally the 3.0-litre V6 managing 29mpg. The 1.8-litre petrol can be a bit noisy at high speeds so it would probably be better to pay out that little bit extra for the 2.0-litre.
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Introduction
Citroens C5 Estate & Hatchback is renowned for providing a very smooth ride due to their unique suspension set up that leave the passengers with a floating feeling. There is lots of space for both the driver and passengers and an extremely big boot in both models that exceed most of their rivals. The Estate also comes with the option of lowering the car to make loading the boot easier.
Exterior & Interior
The C5 looks good in both the hatchback and estate form and with a facelift in 2005 this was improved even further. The interiors are of better quality than most other Citroens and wear and tear issues seemed to have been improved upon. There are few complaints about the interior of the C5. The big windows give the feel of space within the cabin and give excellent all round visibility for the driver. There are several trim levels to choose from with the entry level LX trim coming with lots of kit. The Design, VTR and Exclusive trims all come with added extras, but not much more and may not be worth the additional cost.
Drive
The C5 is enjoyable to drive with great grip going into the corners and suspension that smoothes out all of the bumps no matter how big they are. The wind and road noise is also kept to a minimum with hardly any noise coming into the cabin. The driving position is extremely comfortable and with good views out of all the wide windows you are unlikely to miss anything. Overall the C5 is a very good car to drive and will cause very little complaint for the owner.
Faults & Repairs
The most common faults experienced in the C5 are electrical with 50% of repairs being related to them. The main electrical problems tend to be with the air con, dashboard and stereo. The height adjustable suspension also has proved problematic at times, but the face lift in 2005 improved on all of these problems so we would recommend looking for cars after this period. The repair costs aren't overly expensive and lie within the same range as their rivals.
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