Citroen seems to be returning to its roots. At one end of its range, the tiny electric Ami revives the back-to-basics spirit of the 2CV. At the other, the new C5 X harks back to innovative and luxurious Citroens such as the CX and XM. Vive la différence.
Not every upwardly-mobile Citroen has been clever or interesting, of course. The C5 was quietly euthanised in 2017, leaving the company without a flagship ever since.
The C5 X, thankfully, owes nothing to its blander-than-beige predecessor. Indeed, it’s one of the most mould-breaking new cars on sale.
Grande designs
You wouldn’t call it beautiful, but the C5 X certainly stands out. Its fastback silhouette combines elements of saloon, estate car and SUV, with big 19-inch alloy wheels and an elevated ride height.
The double chevron badge extends into bold LED running lights, while the rakish roofline is accentuated by chrome garnish and two jutting rear spoilers.
The C5 X is a genuine ‘big Citroen’, too – half-way between a BMW 3 Series and 5 Series in terms of its footprint. This translates into huge interior space, particularly for rear-seat passengers, who can stretch out in limo-like comfort.
A boxy 545-litre boot is also practical enough for large Louis Vuitton suitcases or small fashionable dogs.
Looks and luxe
The view from the driver’s seat isn’t as joyfully quirky as Citroens of old – no single-spoke wheel or Visa-style ‘satellite’ controls here – but quality feels good and there’s an astute mix of physical controls and touchscreen tech.
A head-up display projects the important info onto the windscreen, while the intuitive media system works together with the My Citroen app. Choose the plug-in hybrid and you can check the battery status via your phone, and pre-heat or cool the car before a journey.
Our route plunges us straight into the heart of Barcelona, so the hybrid seems an appropriate place to start. Its 1.6-litre petrol engine and electric motor serve up a combined 225hp, plus up to 38 miles of zero-emissions range. A full charge using a typical 7.4kW home wallbox takes an hour and 40 minutes, and official CO2 emissions of 30g/km mean a low Benefit-in-Kind tax rate of 12 percent.
Town and country
Frankly, few cars could shrug off the melee of Barcelona traffic more nonchalantly than this one. The Citroen’s cosseting seats are the best this side of a Bentley and its soft suspension with ‘Progressive Hydraulic Cushions’ (hydraulic bump-stops) seems almost to resurface the road.
Progress is near-silent in EV mode, the laminated acoustic glass muffling the swarms of angry scooters outside.
Heading north into the mountains near Montserrat, on steep switchbacks used by Rally de Catalunya, the C5 X feels further from its comfort zone. The light steering offers virtually no feedback and there’s a fair degree of pitch and body-roll in corners, despite the active dampers fitted as standard on the hybrid.
Stop pretending to be Sébastien Loeb, though, and you’ll enjoy pleasant progress, the hybrid drivetrain shifting seamlessly between petrol and electric power.
Simple makes sense
I swap into the entry-level 130hp 1.2-litre three-cylinder petrol for the run back to the airport. Its enthusiastically thrummy engine seems well suited to Citroen’s superminis, but less at home here. Then again, with prices from £26,490, it’s nearly £9,000 cheaper than the hybrid, and its 300kg weight advantage makes for a calmer, more linear feel.
For those buying privately, or who don’t have off-street parking to charge at home, it undoubtedly makes more sense.
It takes a lot to prise Britain’s middle-managers out of their Audis and BMWs, so the C5 X faces an uphill struggle. Nonetheless, its blend of comfort, space and unconventional style see Citroen playing to its strengths. If you value serenity over sportiness, it’s an appealing proposition.
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Rivals: Alfa Romeo Giulia, BMW 3 Series, Honda HR-V Advance