Vive la plug-in
The Citroen C5 Aircross has always been about comfort first, but now it’s about EV technology too
It’s a familiar-looking face, but this is a hugely significant car for Citroen in New Zealand: the C5 Aircross PHEV is the brand’s first plug-in for Kiwi buyers.
Actually, the face is not entirely familiar. The PHEV comes as part of a C5 Aircross facelift, most notable for its sharper front end and revised interior, with a fancy new asymmetrical infotainment screen and centre console arrangement.
The C5 PHEV picks up the 1.6-litre turbo-petrol engine from the regular model and adds a 13.2kWh battery and single (front) electric motor. That lifts power from 133kW to 165kW (combined), although the PHEV is 0.5sec slower to 100km/h because kerb weight is up 340kg to nearly 1.8 tonnes.
The plug-in system gives a claimed 47km EV driving between charges, which is so-so in a world of 84km Mitsubishi Outlander PHEVs, but still enough for the daily grind.
Being a PHEV, it also gets you a $5750 Clean Car Discount, which is good because you’ll need it: this model is $79,990, or $21,000 more than its ICE-only equivalent. The latter also qualifies for a $1200 rebate by the way, making the realworld difference $16,450.
You’d have to do a lot of EV commuting to justify the price premium for the PHEV, but then whether money-saving is the one and only reason to go electric is a whole other argument.
Citroen’s USP is comfort, or “e-comfort” as the company says for this car; the assertion that softer is sweeter is quite refreshing. The C5 is unique among its sister Stellantis brands Peugeot/ Opel in having Progressive Hydraulic Cushion (PHC) suspension, which has extra (tiny) dampers at the top and bottom of the main units to smooth out the up-and-down movements.
Weirdly, the ride is much better controlled at open-road speeds than around town, but it’s still really smooth by mainstream SUV standards. Not a car you’d chuck around in tight corners, but still capable and stable.
It’s front-drive, by the way. Peugeot does this powertrain with an additional motor at the back for AWD in the 3008 Hybrid4 and with even more power, but that comes at a price: it’s $10k more expensive and because it’s over $80k, you don’t get a Clean Car Discount. The C5 is a great family SUV. It’s a bit of a hybrid SUV/people mover, so the C5 also gets clever stuff like a 40/20/40-split rear seat, with each section individually sliding and folding. You also get Citroen’s Advanced Comfort Seats, which have 15mm of surface foam, mattress-like filling and are really rather nice.
But how is it as a PHEV SUV? Also pretty good, with a few idiosyncracies. Getting it started or stopped can be distracting, because it has the standard-issue Peugeot-Citroen press-me-fora-really-long-time power button.
More EV range would be welcome, but it’s consistent: 46-48km for us all week. You do have to be a teeny bit delicate with the throttle in electric running — it can be abrupt as you come on and off the power. Same in hybrid mode, as it transitions from motor to engine at low speed.
The C5 PHEV has extra sound deadening, including thicker window lamination, so it’s also exceptionally quiet and refined. You can choose between Electric, Hybrid or Sport modes via a rocker switch, and there’s an “e-save” function in the infotainment menu that allows you to keep battery charge for later use.
We road-tripped the C5, fourup, with a weekend’s camping cargo. Which is the beauty of a PHEV: EV commuting but no range anxiety when travelling. There’s
120 litres less bootsspace than the C5 ICE thanks to the batteries underneath, but it’s still generous at 460-600 litres (depending on rear seat position).
For our 400km journey we started out with a full charge, but ran the car exclusively in hybrid mode. It achieved a very impressive 4.4l/100km, using all of the indicated battery reserve by about 180km. With the battery depleted (although hybrids always keep some charge in “secret” to come and go on) and only the driver aboard, the return trip was
6.0l/100km. Still good, but it’s clear the C5 leans heavily on the battery in hybrid driving if there’s extra charge available.
You could always just run the battery dry in EV mode first (it can stay electric up to 135km/h) and then drop into hybrid operation. It’s all part of the PHEV fun.
The C5 Aircross has always been a well-kept secret in NZ, but it’s a truly comfortable and practical family SUV. The PHEV is the best model yet, albeit an expensive one. Sobering to think it’s more expensive than a Tesla Model Y . . . although the PHEV proposition is very different to BEV.
Speaking of which: the next plug-in up for Citroen in NZ will be a BEV version of the similarly stylish and comfortable (but much smaller) C4 SUV-coupe.