Citroen aims to deliver a more thoughtful, comfort-orientated take on the mid-sized SUV market with this stylish C5 Aircross model. Jonathan Crouch drives it.

Ten Second Review

Citroen's C5 Aircross is, according to its maker, 'the most comfortable SUV on the market'. Quite a claim, given that this isn't a large, luxury crossover but is targeted at family buyers currently considering volume mid-sized models in this class like Nissan's Qashqai and SEAT's Ateca. This revised version gets a more assertive look, higher equipment levels and a choice of conventional, mild hybrid or Plug-in Hybrid engines. Plus its smarter cabin is still one of the most spacious and flexible in the segment.

Background

The legendary Citroen 2CV had a reputation for being able to comfortably traverse a ploughed field. That apart though, this French brand can't call on much customer recognition when it comes to vehicles cable of functioning off the beaten track. That has to change, given the current European obsession with SUVs and the company is depending on its Aircross range of models to convince customers of its crossover credibility. The first signs in this regard have been promising for the Gallic maker. The little C3 Aircross, launched in Summer 2017, has sold well in the small supermini-derived SUV sector. This family hatch-based C5 Aircross, which arrived here in 2018, has proved to be equally important. Citroen claims that it brings 'a fresh level of overall comfort' to the segment and there's an efficient range of engines that includes a petrol plug-in Hybrid version. Here, we look at the usefully updated version of this car announced in 2022, then embellished with a 48V mild hybrid 136 model in mid-2023.

Driving Experience

This car's key differentiating point is the way it glides over bumps. That ability comes courtesy of its Progressive Hydraulic Cushion suspension system. This two-stage set-up features a couple of hydraulic stops on each side of the car, one for compression, the other for rebound. For major uneven ground impacts, the hydraulic stops work with the springs and shock absorbers to avoid jerky movements and unpleasant bouncing. Thicker softer seat padding also embellishes the impression of comfort. And double-laminated front windows and engine bay soundproofing play their part in reducing cabin noise Engine-wise, C5 Aircross are offered a choice of four quite different engines. The two conventional ones - a 1.2-litre PureTech petrol unit and a 1.5-litre BlueHDi diesel - both develop 130hp and both can be had with the option of the brand's smooth-shifting EAT8 8-speed autogearbox. The alternative units are electrified - of course. The most recently added powerplant is a mild hybrid version of the PureTech petrol powerplant we just mentioned, which gets a 48V battery that sends power to a 12bhp electric motor offering 55Nm of torque. The mild hybrid system works with a new six-speed dual clutch auto gearbox designed especially for it and offers 'Charge', 'Eco' and 'Power' modes. And has a 136hp combined output (6bhp more than the non-hybrid petrol variant) with 230Nm of pulling power. At the top of the C4 Aircross range, as before, is a petrol/electric Plug-in Hybrid version, which combines the PureTech 180 engine and EAT8 auto gearbox with an 80kW electric motor, delivering 225hp of accumulated power. It's powered by a 14.2kWh battery and offers instantly available torque of 320Nm, plus an electrified EAER-rated driving range of up to 41 miles. Across the C5 Aircross line-up, there's no 4WD system offered, but buyers do get 'Grip Control with Hill Descent Assist', for extra front-driven traction in slippery conditions. There's also Hill Start Assist, to help you starting off up steep slopes. And Trailer Stability Control, to reduce trailer sway if you're towing. That's about as much as most likely buyers will ever need.

Design and Build

This C5 Aircross was revised in early 2022, borrowing some of the styling cues of the brand's executive C5 X as part of a refreshed exterior design, with a more vertical and modern front end that brought sleeker aerodynamics. The front grille was restyled and gained a revised version of the iconic Citroen logo, seemingly detached from the daytime running lights, with chevrons that appear in black lacquer in a chrome setting, this standing out overtly against the central grille. Around the car, extra glossy or anodised detailing has been added - in colours such as Glossy Black and Dark Chrome, all of it intended to demonstrate the model's more up-market positioning. The C5 Aircross shares the same EMP2 platform as the Stellantis Group's other mid-sized SUVs, the Peugeot 3008 and the DS 7. It's 4.5m long and 1.84m wide with a 2.73m wheelbase, so is a touch bigger than cheaper cars in this class like Nissan's Qashqai and SEAT's Ateca. The brand's signature 'Air Bumps' make an appearance just above the lower side sills, but they're toned down here, just as they are in the latest C4. Inside, front seat occupants get the brand's unique 'Advanced Comfort' seat design, which features a core of high-density foam and an additional 15mm top layer of textured foam to ensure maximum comfort and support for the driver and passengers. There's a 12.3-inch digital driver's display and a revised 10-inch high-definition touchscreen that's been positioned higher up on the dashboard to reduce stress by ensuring the driver keeps their eyes on the road. Nice touches include an active air quality system that uses an air-purifying carbon filter. This Gallic SUV's lengthy wheelbase translates into a cabin that feels significantly larger than that of most models in this class. In the rear, the car features three individual, same-width seats that slide, recline and fold flat. Not only does this mean that everyone on-board enjoys an exceptional level of comfort no matter where they sit, but it also creates the numerous possibilities for configuring the interior space. It means the boot can be increased in size from 580-litres, to 720-litres with the rear seats in place (petrol and Diesel variants), while Hybrid models offer from 460-litres, up to 600-litres. With the rear seats folded down, petrol and Diesel versions offer up to 1,630-litres of boot space, with up to 1,510-litres in PHEV versions.

Market and Model

Expect pricing usefully below this car's cousin, the Peugeot 3008. Which means a £24,000-£38,500 bracket, spread across 'Plus', 'Max' and 'e-Series' trim levels. Even with base 'Plus' trim, owners benefit from features including 18-inch 'Pulsar' diamond-cut alloy wheels, a reversing camera, front and rear parking sensors, Keyless Entry & Start and electric folding exterior mirrors. With 'Max' trim, buyers enjoy the Drive Assist Pack with Adaptive Cruise Control, Advanced Comfort Seats with Alcantara upholstery and Active Safety Brake with video and radar assistance, while the 'Urban Black' interior ambience brings an upmarket feel to the cabin. The 'e-Series Edition' sits at the top of the range. It has been tailored specifically for the UK market and gains a 'Perla Nera Black' bi-tone roof with an exclusive Anodised Bronze Colour Pack. There is also an opening panoramic glass sunroof, wireless charging and a motorised tailgate with hands-free access. Safety-wise, there are a total of 19 driver-assistance systems available across the range, including Highway Driver Assist, Adaptive Cruise Control and Active Lane Departure Warning. Buyers can heavily personalise their C5 Aircross, creating a model that suits them perfectly, primarily through Colour Packs which add flourishes to the front air intakes and the side Airbump panels. Four Colour Packs are available: Glossy Black, Dark Chrome, Anodised Bronze and Energetic Blue. There's also a wide choice of body paint colours intended to complement the more assertive look: Polar White, Pearl White, Perla Nera Black, Platinum Grey, Cumulus Grey and a fresh shade, Eclipse Blue.

Cost of Ownership

Citroen's BlueHDi diesel and PureTech petrol engines have already proved themselves to be efficient and frugal in the brand's other models and that's carried forward here. The BlueHDi 130 diesel manages up to 145g/km of CO2 and up to 54.1mpg on the combined cycle. The non-electrified version of the PureTech 130 petrol unit puts out up to 148g/km of CO2 and up to 46.4mpg on the combined cycle. Choose the PureTech petrol engine in 48V mild hybrid form and efficiency improvements of up to 15% are promised. Expect up to 53.3mpg on the combined cycle from this variant - and a CO2 return rated at 129g/km. Impressive engine technology also plays its part in this strong efficiency showing. The PureTech petrol Hybrid 136 model has a powerplant featuring over 40% new parts and can drive in town for short periods (or when doing parking manoeuvres) on battery power only. A digital display shows information on battery charge level, energy flow and a tachometer to show when the car is running 100% on electric power. To do better, you'll need the plug-in petrol/electric Hybrid version. This is WLTP-rated at 168mpg, with a WLTP emissions figure of up to 29g/km; and there's up to 41 miles of EAER-rated electrified driving range if you keep it fully charged. Whatever C5 Aircross you choose, garage costs can be kept in check by an affordable three year servicing plan that's available at point of purchase. Finally, there's the usual Citroen three year / 60,000 mile warranty.

Summary

In an SUV market as crowded as this one, any mainstream product simply has to bring something different to the table. Fortunately, this C5 Aircross has, its progressive hydraulic cushion suspension delivering a noticeable ride quality advantage over obvious rivals. Some of these handle better, but we think the way that this Citroen cruises over bumps and tarmac tears will be of more interest to likely family buyers. The updates we've covered here are welcome, but it's likely that this Gallic SUV will still remain quite a rare sight on our roads. Citroen hopes the availability of plug-in technology may get this car on to the radar of likely customers in the mid-sized family crossover segment. Anyway, it's refreshing to see this Gallic brand getting back to what it does best. This car stands out as a result. As it very much needs to.

Body Glass

Sequential electric front and rear side windows with anti pinch function

Magic wash automatic windscreen wipers with flat blades, variable speed depending on vehicle speed, and windscreen washers integrated into the wipers

Rear window wiper with intermittent facility, linked to reverse gear

Tinted row 1 windows and dark tinted row 2, C-Pillar and tailgate windows

Acoustic laminated windscreen with rain and brightness sensors

Brakes

Anti-lock Brake System and Electronic Brakeforce Distribution

ESP including traction control and stability programme

Electronic parking brake

Hill start assist

DSC (Dynamic Stability Control) and ASR (Electronic Anti-skid System)

Front ventilated disc brakes and rear disc brakes

Chassis/Suspension

Advanced comfort suspension

Driver Aids

Cruise control

Electric power steering

Driver Convenience

Tailgate

Driver Information

Citroen connect play featuring android auto and apple carPlay

Multi function trip computer

Citroen connect box emergency assist system

10" Touchscreen user interface with citroen connect nav, voice commands, Bluetooth handsfree and audio streaming

12.3" digital instrument cluster with customisable zones and colour schemes

Driving Mirrors

Electrochrome auto dimming interior rear view mirror

Glossy black door mirrors

Electrically adjustable, heated and folding door mirrors

Entertainment

USB A socket (charge only) on rear part of central console

Auxiliary input socket

FM and DAB digital radio, 6 speakers

Polyphonic sounds

Exterior Body Features

Rear side wing doors

Rear bumper upper body colour and lower matt black

Radio aerial integrated into rear window

Stainless steel window finishers

Gloss black door handles

Body colour front bumper with air curtain, gloss black painted skid plate, and matt black lower section

Chevron badge at the rear without Citroen naming

Exterior Lights

Automatic headlights with welcome and goodbye lighting

LED headlights with LED daytime running lights and visual signature

LED rear lights with visual signature

Automatic hazard light activation upon heavy brake application

LED 3rd brake light

Heating/Cooling/Ventilation

Automatic bi-zone air conditioning with active carbon filter and air quality system, plus controllable row 2 air diffuser

Interior Features

Multi function leather steering wheel with two command blocks

4 way adjustable steering column

Dashboard storage area to right of driver,open storage at front of central console,glovebox with smooth opening and lighting

Front door storage can hold 1.5 litre bottle and A4 size documents, B-pillar coat hooks,rear door storage,central storage under armrest

Central storage box with opening central armrest and interior lighting

12V power outlet and 2x USB-A sockets (1x charge+data, 1x charge only) on front part of central console

Two open cupholders in central console

2 Position boot floor

Metropolitan cloth/leather upholstery with black ambience

e-Toggle automatic gearbox selector

Interior Lights

Boot light

Packs

Interior lighting package - C5 Aircross

Safety pack with lane keeping assist - C5 Aircross

Gloss black colour pack - C5 Aircross

City camera pack with front and rear parking sensors - C5 Aircross

Safety

Head curtain airbags covering rows 1 and 2 (left and right)

Two tone horn

Driver and front passenger side airbags

Front seat belts with double pretensioning, force limiters and height adjustment (driver and passenger)

3 rear 3-point seatbelts (outer seats featuring force limiters)

Tyre under inflation indicator

Seatbelt unfastened audible alert

Manual child lock in second row

Seats

Map pockets in rear of front seats

Advanced comfort front and rear seats

Manual driver seat adjustment (height, slide, backrest angle)

Single front passenger seat

Manual front passenger seat adjustment (height, slide, backrest angle)

3 point ISOFIX mountings on front passenger and rear outer seats

Three individual sliding seats with adjustable backrest and flat floor function

Manual driver lumbar adjustment

Adjustable headrests (2 in front, 3 in rear)

Security

Anti theft alarm with perimetric and volumetric protection, plus tilt sensor

Anti theft locking wheel nuts

Electronic code immobiliser

Keyless entry and start

Automatic door and tailgate locking with automatic unlocking in case of collision

Remote central locking + deadlocks

Wheels - Alloy

18" Pulsar diamond cut bi tone alloy wheels with Class A+ tyres

Wheels - Spare

Wheel chock and towing tool

Emissions - ICE

Standard Euro Emissions: EURO 6

HC+NOx: N

WLTP - CO2 (g/km) - Comb - TEL: 120

Particles: N

WLTP - CO2 (g/km) - Comb - TEH: 139

WLTP - CO2 (g/km) - Comb: 127

Engine and Drive Train

Cylinders: 3

Cylinder Layout: IN-LINE

Number of Valves: 12

Camshaft: DOHC

Fuel Delivery: TURBO DIRECT INJECTION

Catalytic Convertor: No

Engine Layout: FRONT TRANSVERSE

Transmission: SEMI-AUTO

Gears: 6 SPEED

CC: 1199

Cylinders - Stroke (mm): 90.5

Cylinders - Bore (mm): 75

Fuel Consumption - ICE

WLTP - MPG - Low - TEL: 61.4

WLTP - MPG - Comb - TEH: 45.6

WLTP - MPG - Low - TEH: 52.6

WLTP - MPG - Medium - TEL: 55.7

WLTP - MPG - Medium - TEH: 47.7

WLTP - MPG - High - TEL: 59.7

WLTP - MPG - High - TEH: 51.4

WLTP - MPG - Extra High - TEL: 45.6

WLTP - MPG - Extra High - TEH: 39

WLTP - MPG - Comb - TEL: 53.3

WLTP - FC (l/100km) - Comb - TEL: 5.3

WLTP - FC (l/100km) - Low - TEL: 4.6

WLTP - FC (l/100km) - Comb - TEH: 6.2

WLTP - FC (l/100km) - Extra High - TEH: 7.2

WLTP - FC (l/100km) - Extra High - TEL: 6.2

WLTP - FC (l/100km) - High - TEH: 5.5

WLTP - FC (l/100km) - High - TEL: 4.7

WLTP - FC (l/100km) - Medium - TEH: 5.9

WLTP - FC (l/100km) - Low - TEH: 5.4

EC Directive 1999/100/EC Applies: 0

WLTP - FC (l/100km) - Medium - TEL: 5.1

General

Did at least one aspect of this vehicle's safety give cause for concern?: 0

Coin Series: Plus

Coin Description: Hybrid 136

Special Edition: 0

Special Order: 0

Based On ID: N

Insurance Group 1 - 50 Effective January 07: 20E

NCAP Adult Occupant Protection %: N

NCAP Child Occupant Protection %: N

NCAP Pedestrian Protection %: N

NCAP Safety Assist %: N

NCAP Overall Rating - Effective February 09: N

Badge Power: 136

Vehicle Homologation Class: M1

Badge Engine CC: 1.2

Alternative Fuel Qualifying: No

Standard manufacturers warranty - Years: 3

Standard manufacturers warranty - Mileage: 60000

Manufacturers Paintwork Guarantee - Years: 3

Manufacturers Corrosion Perforation Guarantee - Years: 12

Generation Mark: 1

Performance

Engine Power - KW: 100

0 to 60 mph (secs): 0

Engine Torque - LBS.FT: 170

Engine Torque - NM: 230

Engine Power - BHP: 136

Engine Power - PS: No

0 to 62 mph (secs): 10.2

Top Speed: 124

Engine Torque - MKG: 23.5

Test Cycles

RDE Certification Level: RDE 2

Emissions Test Cycle: WLTP

Tyres

Alloys?: No

Space Saver?: 0

Tyre Size Front: 225/55 R18

Wheel Style: PULSAR

Wheel Type: 18" ALLOY

Tyre Size Spare: N

Tyre Size Rear: 225/55 R18

Vehicle Dimensions

Length: 4500

Height: 1689

Width (including mirrors): 2099

Wheelbase: 2730

Width: 1969

Weight and Capacities

Turning Circle - Kerb to Kerb: 10.7

Luggage Capacity (Seats Down): 1630

Max. Roof Load: 75

No. of Seats: 5

Luggage Capacity (Seats Up): 720

Max. Loading Weight: 519

Max. Towing Weight - Unbraked: 750

Max. Towing Weight - Braked: 1250

Fuel Tank Capacity (Litres): 53

Gross Vehicle Weight: 2050

Minimum Kerbweight: 1531

Exterior Body Features

Additional metallic paint

Paint - Metallic

Metallic - Eclipse blue

Metallic - Platinum grey

Metallic - Perla nera black

Metallic - Okenite white

Trim - Part Leather

Metropolitan cloth/leather - Black with black ambience

Wheels - Spare

Compressor with puncture repair kit

Pre-disposition for spare wheel