Citroën C3 Aircross vs Ford Puma vs Hyundai Bayon
Hyundai’s smallest SUV yet has the necessary tools to succeed, but rst it has to prove itself against tough rivals from Citroën and Ford
Small SUVS go into battle; we nd out whether Hyundai’s newcomer can beat the bargain-priced C3 Aircross and our 2021 Small SUV of the Year
NEW
Citroën C3 Aircross Puretech 110 Shine Plus
List price £21,500 Target Price £18,839 Even in range-topping form, Citroën’s recently refreshed small SUV costs less to buy than its rivals here. Can it compete in other areas too?
NEW
Hyundai Bayon 1.0 T-GDI Mild Hybrid 120 Premium
List price £23,245
Target Price £22,179 Based on the i20 small hatchback, the Bayon is an all-new contender in this class and comes with mild hybrid power. We’re testing the most powerful model in mid-range trim
Ford Puma 1.0 Ecoboost Hybrid 155 St-line
List price £23,745 Target Price £22,277 Our current favourite small SUV is going to be dif cult to beat; it’s fun to drive and packs the biggest punch of this trio
IT’S FUNNY HOW minor things have a big impact on desirability. Let’s face it: small SUVS are really just small hatchbacks with jacked-up suspension and a few trinkets loosely inspired by what you’d find on a proper 4x4. And yet somehow they’re in a completely different fashion league than their more conventional-looking compatriots.
The Ford Puma – our 2020 Car of the Year – is a case in point. It has sold like hot cakes since its launch, even throughout a certain worldwide pandemic; Ford can’t build enough of them. But could the Puma’s reign at the top of the class be in jeopardy?
Like the Puma, the new Hyundai Bayon has mild hybrid engine technology to help it sip petrol. Based on the i20 hatchback, it’s slightly longer and taller than its sibling, so it should have plenty to offer in the practicality stakes.
Our third contender isn’t new, but it has just been given a mid-life refresh. The Citroën C3 Aircross can be had in range-topping trim for considerably less outlay than the others, and while it lacks the clever mild hybrid electrical assistance of its rivals, it does have plenty of other nifty tricks to take the stresses out of life.
DRIVING Performance, ride, handling, refinement
If you’re at all interested in accelerating quickly and having fun on a twisty road, there’s no contest; the Puma is the only one with a remotely sporty slant.
You might rightly point out that, in the range-topping 153bhp guise tested, it has a lot more power than its rivals and that the 123bhp version would have been a better fit on performance. But that’s one of the great things about the Puma: the fact that you can have a relatively punchy engine. You don’t even have to compromise on efficiency (as we’ll explain later).
The Bayon is lined up here in its most powerful form, yet it’s still left for dust by the Puma. The Puma’s 1.0-litre turbo engine can whisk it from 0-60mph in a nippy 8.4sec, and it also pulls really well from low revs in more sedate driving. The Bayon’s 1.0-litre engine is hardly weak, though, getting it to 60mph in 9.9sec, and it’s quieter than the Puma’s when you work it hard.
The 1.2-litre C3 Aircross is the slowcoach here, taking a relatively tardy 11.3sec to hit 60mph. You can get a more powerful version than the Puretech 110 tested, but
that’s available exclusively with an automatic gearbox. Still, it’s worth noting that the C3 Aircross pulls just as strongly as the Bayon from low revs and doesn’t feel sluggish in real-world driving. It also has the quietest engine of the bunch.
Unfortunately, that doesn’t count for much at high speeds, because your ears are accosted by lots of road and wind noise. The C3 is easily the noisiest of our trio on the motorway, with the Bayon proving quietest at a steady 70mph. It’s hardly a luxury limo, though, with tyre slap and wind noise still quite noticeable inside.
While the Puma and Bayon have technically similar 48-volt stopstart systems, the former’s is more user-friendly. You barely notice when the engine switches itself off and back on again, because it happens so smoothly and quietly. The Bayon can be reluctant to restart if you’re too quick with the clutch when engaging first gear, forcing you to repeat the process with greater deliberation. It’s a small quirk but can prove quite frustrating in traffic.
Mind you, so can the C3’s woolly gearbox and vague clutch action. It also suffers from overly grabby brakes, so slowing down smoothly can be tricky. When you’re on the move, you’ll have few complaints about the Bayon’s gearbox, clutch or brakes, although all of these things are more positive and satisfying to use in the Puma.
As we’ve alluded to already, the Puma is easily the most agile and fun to drive, darting into corners with plenty of grip. And you’ll enjoy the process, thanks to steering that’s accurate and streams plenty of feedback to your fingertips.
The lower-riding Bayon actually leans slightly less than the Puma when you’re cornering quickly, but it isn’t as playful or fun, and its steering, while light and easy to twirl at low speeds, fails to provide a real sense of connection with the road when you’re going quickly. But it’s still heaps better than the C3 Aircross, which sways around the most and has overly light steering that doesn’t inspire much confidence at all on twisting roads.
One of the reasons the Puma is so agile is because St-line models come with sports suspension. This makes for a firm ride, so we’d recommend a test drive if comfort is a top priority. However, we actually prefer the Puma’s firm but controlled ride to the C3’s agitated gait; you’re jostled around annoyingly at all speeds.
By a relatively small margin, the Bayon is the most relaxed and easygoing of our protagonists along bumpy roads – but even
it can’t match the smooth, sophisticated ride of other rivals from the wider small SUV class. If comfort is top of your shortlist, check out the Skoda Kamiq or Volkswagen T-roc.
BEHIND THE WHEEL Driving position, visibility, build quality
Set the driver’s seat as low as it will go in all three cars and the C3 Aircross levitates you farthest from the road, something most potential buyers will consider a good thing. After all, if you like a low-slung driving position with your bum close to the Tarmac, you’re unlikely to be considering an SUV at all. You don’t sit quite as high in the Puma, but you’re still aware you’re in something loftier than a conventional hatchback.
The same can’t really be said of the Bayon, in which you don’t feel noticeably higher than you would in an i20. But if you aren’t put off by this, the Bayon’s driving position isn’t bad at all. As in all three cars, there’s a good amount of seat and steering wheel adjustment and the pedals line up neatly with the steering wheel. Our only gripes are that taller drivers might find that the edge of the Bayon’s seat squab digs into their hamstrings and that there’s no adjustable lumbar support.
You get adjustable lumbar support as standard on the Puma, something that helps your posture and can ward off back pain on longer journeys. The Puma’s seat holds you in place the most securely when going around corners, but the C3’s sit-up-andbeg driving position is most similar to that of a proper 4x4. Its soft seat bases initially feel comfortable, but you’ll wish for more support on longer jaunts and, as with the Bayon, lumbar support adjustment isn’t available.
Being a taller, squarer car with relatively upright windscreen pillars, the C3 Aircross is the easiest to see out of when you’re looking straight ahead or to the sides. Over-the-shoulder vision isn’t ideal (not helped by the decals on the rear three-quarter glass area on Shine Plus models), but you get parking sensors all round and a rear-view camera to help with reversing.
The Bayon also gets a rear camera and sensors at the back (but not the front) of the car to make up for its even more compromised over-the-shoulder visibility, while the Puma makes do with rear sensors alone. If you want a rear-view camera and front sensors, you’ll need to stump up £450 for the optional Parking
Pack. The Puma’s aggressively angled windscreen pillars make it the hardest to see out of when approaching junctions, too – and it’s the only one without modern Led-powered headlights.
There isn’t a great deal in it for interior quality, with none of our contenders offering a particularly plush or upmarket ambience. The grey fabric on the C3’s dashboard and its quirky air vents help lift things a little, plus it’s the only one available with leather seats (£990). There’s precious little in the way of soft-touch materials, though – something the Puma has more of, courtesy of squidgy sections on its dashboard and padded, fauxleather stitched panels on the insides of the doors.
That leaves the Bayon as the most disappointing inside, being little more alluring than the equivalent i20.
SPACE AND PRACTICALITY Front space, rear space, seating flexibility, boot
A word of warning: avoid the optional panoramic sunroof on the C3 Aircross and Puma if you plan to put tall people in the back. It lowers the ceiling to the point where most six-footers will need to cower. Without this feature, taller adults will fit well enough, although in the C3 Aircross they’ll have their knees close to (or even pressed against) the seat in front.
The Bayon edges the Puma for rear knee room, and not just against the tape measure; anyone tall will notice the difference. Our only grumble is that there isn’t much foot space under the seat in front when it’s all the way down. However, the Bayon’s and Puma’s rear seats are fixed in place, whereas the C3’s rear seats can
USED ALTERNATIVE
2020 Skoda Karoq
For the same money as any of the cars here, you could have a one-year-old example of one of our favourite family SUVS: the Skoda Karoq. If the extra space of this larger car doesn’t entice you, the rest of the package will. It’s a fine all-rounder, being good to drive, comfortable and practical, with rear seats that can slide, recline or even be removed entirely in some trims.