Citroen C3 1.2 Turbo Feel Road Test

Having opened their Indian innings with a premium SUV, the C5 Aircross, Citroen then turned their focus towards the affordable end of the market. In comes the C3 which is a ‘hatchback with an SUV twist’. Positioned in a segment where it needs to rival well-established names like Maruti Suzuki Swift and Tata Punch, the C3 has a tough task at hand. Has it got what it takes?

Quirky has been Citroen’s styling and that is evident in the C3 as well. In metal, the C3 stands out thanks to its proportions and styling. It has a tall-boyish stance with a tall bonnet line, and minimum overhangs both fore and aft, thus making it look cute yet butch at the same time.

You can also opt for a dual-tone paint scheme for the C3 for a little extra dough, and that’s when the C3 looks the best– be it in any of the 10 combinations. No alloy wheel option for the C3 though, even in the range-topping trim. But you can opt for one from the accessory list and you should, because the alloy wheels surely enhance its style quotient, given the quirky styling overall.

This quirkiness of Citroen continues on the inside as you’d see the most minimalistic instrument cluster. It is a small, monochromatic, digital dial and has few details to give out. Secondly, we like how the steering wheel is very similar to what is offered in the C5. There are two themes for the cabin – either a funky orange and black combo which is unique and stylish, or there’s a dark grey-black scheme which is quite understated and sophisticated to look at.

The materials used all around the cabin are of acceptable quality too. There are no soft-touch materials and the grainy finishes on some parts and hard plastic used in places might not be likeable to some but are fine by the segment standards. Apart from that, the space is good, and I didn’t find my elbow rubbing with my fellow passengers.

Although the seats are large and supportive, it lacks an adjustable headrest and makes up for it by providing soft cushioning and side bolsters. Seating ergonomics is good too with ample visibility around and all the buttons, switches, and knobs are easily reachable. The good visibility combined with a compact footprint makes the C3 a good city car. In fact, it is easy to park in tight spaces and also small enough to find the tiniest of gaps in traffic.

Move to the back and you get surprisingly good under-thigh support. Even the backrest provides ample support but there’s no adjustable headrest. However, the fixed ones are good enough to support the neck. In terms of space, the legroom is plenty and the tall and scooped-out roof also adds space for taller passengers. That said, seating three here would be comfortable only if the passengers are not horizontally blessed.

Lastly, the boot space at 315litres is less than Wagon R’s 341litres and the Punch’s 366litres. The available boot space is usable with less intrusion but there are no flat-folding or split seats either and the boot opening could have been slightly wider.

The Citroen C3 gets LED DRLs, fog lamps, roof rails and black cladding, and flat-type door handles. On the inside, there’s a digital MID, driver’s height adjustment, buttons on the steering for media control, 12V and USB port, and a smart ‘cable-tuck’ along with a slot/tray to place your phone in the centre console. The floating 10.2-inch touchscreen gets wireless Android Auto and Apple CarPlay connectivity which isn’t seen in cars even a segment or two higher. It also has good touch response, contrast and vibrant colours, and a rather simple interface.

For safety, there are two airbags along with ABS and EBD, a reverse parking sensor, a child lock for doors, a seatbelt reminder and a speed-dependent door lock (not in Live). However, there’s no ISOFIX or reversing camera. The India-spec C3 hasn’t been NCAP tested yet.

Now, the features mentioned above are in the most feature-loaded version, so the lower Live versions are stripped off and lack some essential features as well. What the C3 Feel version misses out on is keyless entry, electric adjustment for ORVMs, a tachometer, reverse parking camera, and a rear windscreen wiper and defogger, nor does the inside rearview mirror get a day-night function. Apart from the missing features, the C3 cabin overall offers good space, practicality, and decent quality of materials that match the segment, if not more.

With the C3, Citroen is offering two choices. The 1.2-litre naturally-aspirated three-cylinder with 81bhp/115Nm can be had with a five-speed manual. Meanwhile, the 1.2-litre three-cylinder with a turbo attached to it has an output of 109bhp and 190Nm. It is paired with a six-speed manual. There’s no automatic option, but that might (and should) be added later.

With the PureTech badge, this version of the C3 is the one you should buy if you can push your budget. The 109bhp here is more than any other car in this size and that this segment currently offers (except the i20 Turbo, but it's more expensive). In fact, the 190Nm is also more than what you get in any of the new-age turbo-petrol engines. And this reflects when you are behind the wheel.

This three-cylinder feels refined with little vibrations felt inside. There’s a good bottom- and mid-range grunt once you get going and you can shift early without the engine stuttering, which surely helps when driving in the city. It feels peppy at city speeds and even on highways, the engine doesn’t feel stressed as the turbo is churned up and ready.

With six-speed to row through, we like the slick-shifting nature of the gear lever combined with the short and smooth clutch travel. This also means spending long hours in traffic won’t be very tiresome. And if you are up for some spirited driving, the gearbox doesn’t disappoint either. In our VBox test, the 0-100kmph came up in 11.08 seconds. To give you a perspective, the same run in the 84bhp Punch NA petrol manual was 15.23 seconds. Then, the strong mid-range was evident in the in-gear acceleration as the 20-80kmph run in the third gear took 11.79 seconds while the 40-100kmph run in the fourth gear took 13.01 seconds.

Lastly, the important factor for any car that’s entering India is fuel economy. In our tested real-world fuel test, the C3 returned a mileage of 13.33kmpl in the city and a healthy 21.53kmpl on the highway. This gives us an overall fuel efficiency of 14.73kmpl. With a fuel tank capacity of 30 litres, we can expect a real-world range of close to 450 kilometres on a tankful.

When it comes to ride quality, the Citroen C3 offers a much more comfortable ride. Set on the softer side, the suspension setup is well-judged and absorbs irregularities and the bad patch of the road like a more expensive car. On broken surfaces, although you can sometimes hear the suspension working, it offered a good composure over anything and everything we threw its way. It also keeps most of the sharp irregularities from filtering inside the cabin. And even over the worst of road surfaces, the 180mm of ground clearance gives enough confidence that you don’t have to slow down when the roads start to disappear.

With 195/65 section tyres on 15-inch wheels, the grip offered isn’t the best and when thrown around, the soft suspension contributes to body roll that would surely make your passengers unsettled. That said, the stability at highway speeds is good. Even the road noise at highway jaunts is much subdued. Add to it the well-weighted steering and the C3 could serve as a good intercity runabout. Talking about the steering, it’s fairly quick and has little lag off the centre. It also has a smooth motion which is pretty much unseen in small affordable cars.

This adds to the overall driving feel and confidence of the C3’s driving personality. Now, the only letdown here is the excessive body roll; when mid-cornering, the C3 tends to lean more onto the loaded wheel and this sometimes makes it understeer. So you’d better off than throwing it into corners, especially not with passengers onboard. Even the brakes impressed with their good initial bite and add confidence when you want to belt out all of those 110 horses.

Now, although the pricing of the Citroen C3 is very competitive, it's only for the non-turbo version. This PureTech 110 version costs Rs 9.54 lakh on the road in Mumbai. This makes the C3 1.2 Turbo Feel enter the territory of B+ segment hatchbacks, over the Maruti Suzuki Swift or the Ignis it should compete with. Meanwhile, its direct rival, Punch, might not be as well-engineered as the C3 but it has an option of AMT and can be opted across multiple variants.

As for the driving dynamics, the C3 proved to be above par, which was helped by the peppy turbo-petrol engine, well-judged suspension, and decent ride and handling. So, the lack of essential features in a segment where the value-for-money factor triumphs over everything else is the only complaint on C3’s part. Otherwise, it comes across as a well-made, spacious and practical, and good-to-drive family car. It offers everything you’d want from your first family car or a second car in the family for youngsters and young at heart.

Pictures by Kaustubh Gandhi