I got to spend a week with the Citroën’s flagship SUV, C5 AirCross. At first glance, the C5 Aircross looks robust and muscular. Its unique personality and strong style choices such as its Airbump® inspired lower door and wheel arch protectors and roof bars, make it 100% Citroën in its design and character.
The drive
Like I always say, the proof of how amazing a car is is in the driving. It doesn’t how amazing a car looks if the drive is bad the car is as good as nothing. So, I drove the C5 Aircross down to the beautiful City of Mbombela aka Nelspruit about 4 hours from Johannesburg. All I can is that it was pure joy driving the car. Although the roads were a bit wet, the C5 Aircross had its grip on the winding roads of Schoemans Kloof.
The drive is smooth and quiet thanks to the soundproofing with reduced road noise and wind noise thanks to double-glazed laminated front windows with an insulated layer. Citroën paid more to the soundproofing of the engine compartment as well.
The C5 Aircross 1.6 THP 121kW petrol engine coupled with the responsive EAT6 automatic gearbox made the drive long-distance drive all worth it.
The Interior
Although the C5 Aircross looks vigorous outside when you get inside the level comfort is unmatched and everything works at the touch of a button. The interior features a less cluttered dashboard with a horizontal layout. It is fitted with a 12.3-inch digital instrument panel behind the steering wheel and an 8-inch touchscreen on the dashboard covering the infotainment functions.
C5 Aircross SUV excels through its comfort and spacious interior thanks to the Citroën Advanced Comfort® programme. The programme features two major innovations: Citroën’s new suspension with Progressive Hydraulic Cushions® and Advanced Comfort. An innovation that filters and absorbs major and minor surface unevenness to give occupants the feeling of flying smoothly over the road while ensuring outstanding poise and vitality.
Storage
The C5 Aircross has ample storage. The central armrest has large storage capacity that can fit a 1-liter bottle. That’s how deep it is. In terms of boot space, it has the best-in-class boot volume of 520-litres to 720-litres (depending on second row seat position). The rear seats can slide, fold and reclined. There is also extra storage space on the door pockets which are large enough.
Safety and Driver Aid Systems
When it comes to the safety of the C5 Aircross rest assured. The C5 Aircross is equipped with parking sensors and fog lights with static corner function. Turning headlights are Citroën’s invention. I found the coffee break alert feature very useful especial during the trip to Mbombela. The coffee alert comes up when you’ve been driving for two hours at 70 KM/h and above.
Pricing
The starting price for the C5 Aircross is R474 900 and it comes with a 5 year/ 100 000 KM warranty and service plan.
The Citroën C5 Aircross is a fantastic car and it definitely gets a Pat from me. I enjoyed driving it and I recommend that you also book a test drive if you in the market for a dynamic SUV that is suitable for your lifestyle.
