Citroën C3 1.2 l Turbo MAX
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But who said that new cars have to be more and more expensive? While the least versatile mid-range city car now costs more than €20,000, Citroën is launching the fourth generation of its C3 from €14,990 (plus €230 penalty), almost €2,000 cheaper than the latest prices of the previous generation.
At 4.01 m long, the new C3 remains a few centimeters shorter than its main rivals.
Low cost is not a bad word
Of course, this price drop is the result of several concessions and more generally of a new positioning for the city car. The one which represents around 30% of Citroën sales and which has already sold 5.6 million units, i.e. more than the 2 CV – in three generations certainly – no longer fights the Peugeot 208 and Renault on equal terms. Clio. Its positioning now brings it closer to the Dacia Sandero, the car best sold to individuals in Europe.
To satisfy its new low-cost ambitions, Citroën has ignored the CMP platform of its cousins Peugeot 208, Opel Corsa and other Lancia Ypsilon, in favor of a simplified version called Smart Car, initially intended for emerging markets. The new C3 therefore shares a lot with its namesake produced in India and Brazil for markets outside Europe.
The Citroën C3 intended for emerging markets, produced since 2022.
The fourth generation of C3 to be sold on the Old Continent is however produced in Slovakia, as is its new electric version ë-C3, and has received major modifications.
This fourth opus abandons the curves of previous generations of C3. The new model has the same proportions as its version intended for emerging markets, but Citroën has taken care to completely redesign its exterior style.
At 1.57 m high, the C3 is as tall as some city SUVs.
If its footprint is almost identical to the previous generation, with around 1 cm more in length and one less in width, the new C3 gains almost 10 cm in height. It displays lines comparable to those of a city SUV, but a new generation of C3 Aircross is nevertheless on the program. Also based on a model intended for emerging markets, it will grow significantly to mark its difference with the new C3 and will offer up to seven seats.
The interior of the C3 has been completely revised compared to its version intended for emerging markets. However, you should not expect finishing qualities at the level of the Peugeot 208 and other Renault Clios. Here, all the plastics are hard, like on board a Dacia Sandero, but the design of the dashboard is modern and the fabric that covers it in Max finish enhances the perceived quality. Nothing alarming regarding the price, therefore.
Despite its hard plastics, the C3’s interior is not austere.
The equipment is also rather complete on this high-end finish. It would lack hands-free access and starting, but the C3 Max already has four electric windows, automatic air conditioning or even a touch screen with navigation and wireless smartphone replication (Android Auto and Apple CarPlay). Fortunately, because the Max finish requires an additional €4,210 compared to the entry-level You, bringing the price of this petrol version to €19,200 (plus €240 penalty). While a mid-level Plus trim level is being considered, its production is still not confirmed. This is regrettable, because if the prices of the entry-level You finish of the C3 can only be compared to those of the Dacia Sandero (a Sandero Stepway TCe 90 costs for example €15,200 plus €230 penalty ), the high-end Max finish brings the small Citroën closer to more opulent rivals, such as the new MG3 Hybrid+, sold from €19,990 with a 195 hp hybrid engine.
Its price is not its only argument
If certain points demonstrate an obvious desire to reduce costs, the new C3 does not make its price its only argument. It takes care of its ergonomics, with physical buttons to adjust the ventilation, or to deactivate the overspeed alert and lane keeping assistance. These are activated automatically each time you start, in accordance with the new GSR 2 regulations, but they were not yet functional on the pre-production vehicles that we were able to test, as were the cruise control, centralization, automatic air conditioning, or even Stop and Start. More generally, all the software fitted to the car was not yet final on these models. Let’s hope that the Citroën teams get busy finalizing the development of the new C3, the first deliveries of which are planned for the summer.
The driving aid deactivation buttons benefit ergonomics.
The C3 Max’s 10.25″ touchscreen is easy to use and quite responsive. It does what it’s asked to do, no more, no less, and shouldn’t take a long time to get used to.
The central screen is easy to use.
The instrumentation, placed very high and viewed over the steering wheel, is minimalist. Unlike Peugeot’s i-Cockpit, we had no difficulty finding a good driving position without the steering wheel rim hiding this display.
The instrumentation does not have a rev counter.
The fairly cubic format of the C3 benefits its habitability and in particular the generous headroom.
The rear seats of the C3 are quite spacious, at least for two adults.
The trunk displays 310 l of VDA volume, which does not break any record, and we regret the absence of a modular floor. The fairly high trunk sill creates a significant step, which can also be found when folding the rear seat 60-40 (one-piece bench seat in You finish).
The trunk of the Citroën C3 is not the most practical.
On the road, Citroën wanted to improve the comfort of its city car, in particular by equipping it with its famous Advanced Comfort suspensions with double progressive hydraulic stops. The result is rather convincing, with unexpected comfort for such an accessible car. On the other hand, cash movements are significant and dynamism was probably not included in the specifications.
The Max finish also brings Advanced Comfort seats, whose foams are significantly softer than in our hard contemporary cars. Unfortunately, this is only true on the lower part of the backrest, with the upper parts much firmer, which reduces comfort.
Only the quilted parts are really soft.
This petrol version is equipped with a 1.2 liter Turbo three-cylinder with 100 hp and 205 Nm of torque and a six-speed manual gearbox. The latter is particularly long, but the engine is rather willing and allows you to go from 0 to 100 km/h in a humble time of 10.6 s. The consumption recorded during our test was around 6 l/100 km, according to the on-board computer, the calculations of which must be taken with a grain of salt, especially in the case of pre-production models.
Who will dare to give 1.2 PureTech another chance?
If we automotive journalists cannot usually discuss the reliability of the models we test, due to lack of perspective on the new products, the case of the C3 is a little different. Indeed, its soberly named 1.2 l Turbo engine actually hides a new derivative of the 1.2 PureTech. It is therefore impossible not to mention the many reliability concerns of this engine, particularly known for its segmentation problems and overconsumption of oil. Worse, its oil-bath timing belt can disintegrate, not appreciating the presence of gasoline in the oil, which can lead to many additional complications such as blockage of the strainer. In the worst cases, these problems can lead to engine failure.
Equipped with a timing belt, this new version of the 1.2 PureTech will have the difficult task of regaining customer trust.
The reference for this belt has been replaced several times, but these problems seem to persist. For the C3, this new version of the 1.2 PureTech adopts a distribution chain, as was already the case on the new 48 V mild hybrid versions of the engine, and Stellantis assures that the segmentation problems have been corrected. If this electrified version with automatic transmission, which will arrive in the fall in the C3 catalog for a price of less than €20,000, has been in production for only a few months, the first reliability feedback is nevertheless still very poor. The distribution chain in particular seems to be able to shift at very low mileage and segmentation concerns are always raised. It is therefore difficult to trust Stellantis. Especially since confidence will be needed, since if the problems of the 1.2 PureTech have finally been recognized by the group, which now guarantees it up to 10 years and 175,000 km under conditions, the “new” engine of the C3, which is officially made reliable, is not affected. If reliability problems persist and occur beyond the warranty period, Stellantis should therefore not provide any support.