Citroen C5 X Hybrid
THE C5 X MAY BE CHANNELLING ELEMENTS OF THE CX, XM AND THE late almost entirely unlamented C but it’s also trying something different It’s not an estate a crossover or an SUV but has shoved all three in a giant car sized blender However this sort of cross pollination can be problematic none of the BMW Series GT Vauxhall Signum or Audi A Allroad set the charts aflame and the Volvo V Cross Country remains a minority player
The C X goes further Its difference extends to a rejection of any overt sportiness design comfort and onboard wellbeing are its key characteristics This probably isn’t as nuts as it sounds for while these might not be particularly disruptive they’re also resonant in I no longer drive everywhere on the doorhandles and most of us spend most of the time ensnared in traffic or wondering if we need to take out a mortgage to pay for a tank of fuel I go to the gym and theoretically have a lifestyle but my back also hurts A large softly sprung Citroen that isn’t an SUV sounds very tempting
A hybrid one too The C X is available powered by the group’s familiar bhp litre Puretech three cylinder or the bhp litre four TG’s is the e EAT PHEV which adds a bhp electric motor to that engine for a total power output of bhp There’s a kWh battery pack in the boot which charges in about minutes on a domestic kW wallbox Citroen claims an electric range of miles fully charged more than enough to handle the average driver’s daily mileage but adds kg to the base car’s weight Fuel economy emissions and BiK are all obviously optimised in this configuration but we’ll see how it goes in reality As ever
Ours is the top spec Shine Plus In contrast to recent German lifers there are only a few options I could live without the black bi tone roof and panoramic roof but reckon the memory foam massage seats are worth the outlay Set the controls for maximum waft