By Andy Enright

Ten Second Review

Citroen's C1 shares its design but not always its tight pricing with Toyota Aygo and Peugeot 107 stablemates that roll down the same production lines. It's a clever design that maximises space and offers the advantage of a five-door option. Styling enhancements and small improvements to fuel consumption and emissions make the latest version particularly attractive.

Background

Citroen has always been rather good at small, efficient little cars. The 2CV goes back to the Forties while more recent tiny runabouts like the Saxo and the first generation C3 still have loyal owners. People who are going to rather like today's modern interpretation of Citroen citycar chic - this C1. Small where it matters and big where it counts, this you see, is a runabout perfectly adapted to economical life on the urban street. Tight spaces? No problem. Tricky manoeuvres? Easy. And life with your bank balance. Low rate finance? Of course. Around 70mpg to the gallon? Just watch the fuel savings rack up. The enviro-conscious 103g/km CO2 return means not only that Friends of the Earth will thank you but that you'll get free road tax for the first year of ownership and pay just £20 per year thereafter. Add in Citroen's affordable offers and there's not much not to like.

Driving Experience

As a C1 buyer, there's only one engine choice these days, a frugal 68bhp 1.0i petrol unit. Five speed manual gearboxes are fitted as standard though there is the option of a clever EGS clutch-less gearbox for urban dwellers. There's also a refreshing lack of gimmicks and nonsense that can plague some small cars as manufacturers look to differentiate their wares. With this Citroen, you just get a citycar that's small, manoeuvrable, easy to see out of and very simple to operate. It's almost comical how little car there is behind the rear seats and when reversing into a multi-storey bay, it's worth remembering that you can afford to leave yourself some breathing room at the back. Quite what a tailgating articulated truck would look like to a rear seat passenger is the flip side of that characteristic! Both the engines have something to be said for them but the petrol unit that most choose does feel more willing and revvy and perhaps a little more suited to the C1's up and at 'em personality. The steering feels somewhat artificial and takes some getting used to but it doesn't require much effort to twirl the car into a parking space.

Design and Build

The C1's exterior has been given a smart upgrade in recent times, with changes to the car's front end. There are revised wheels and trims, whilst inside there is better quality upholstery and smarter materials. Unlike a number of its rival tiny runabouts, the C1 offers a choice of either three or five-door body styles. The glass tailgate looks good but unlike that on the C3 supermini, doesn't extend down to bumper level, which might be a pain if you're constantly wanting to load in heavy shopping. The wheelarches are surprisingly beefy and the rear set are sculpted a little further forward in the three-door body style. The five-door car sees its rear doors meet the rear light clusters in a very neat piece of packaging. Citroen have been regaining their reputation for bold and exciting interiors of late and the C1 continues that trend. Headroom inside the car isn't at all bad, even for someone well over six feet tall and the big glass area up front gives an airy feel to the cabin. The rear of the three-door car is notably more claustrophobic and is really only suitable for kids and short journeys. Rear kneeroom in the five door car is little better but at least the car's beltline is a little lower, making it feel a little less hemmed in. Bootspace is the same, whether you choose the three or the five-door - 139 litres with all the seats in place or 751 litres with the rear seat folded.

Market and Model

As we all know, list prices (in this case the typical £8,500 to £10,500 bracket common to this class) are only the starting point for negotiation but bear in mind that on a car this inexpensive, the dealer will have less to play with in terms of discounts. Allow £500 more if you want five doors rather than three. Some buyers may have reservations about the safety of such a minute car. Nudge up against a behemoth 4x4 in a car of the C1's size and it's easy to feel rather threatened, but the C1 is likely to have better safety systems than some sizeable SUVs. As well as a specially developed body structure that incorporates crumple zones and impact absorbers at the front and rear, the C1 also boasts ISOFIX child seat anchor points, reinforced doors and up to four airbags. What's more, it's also well equipped to avoid a fender bender in the first instance with anti lock brakes with electronic brakeforce distribution and corner stability control. The C1 has also been designed to limit the consequences of a pedestrian impact - wise indeed for a car that will doubtless spend much of its life in the urban environment. The front end features no sharp edges and impact absorbers up front also help to limit leg injuries. There's plenty of clearance between the impact absorbing bonnet and the top of the engine which means that shock is dissipated without coming into contact with anything hard.

Cost of Ownership

Where the C1 scores an almost unbeatable mark is in the field of cost of ownership. The nippy 1.0i 68hp petrol engine emits less CO2 than any other petrol powerplant currently on sale in the UK, boasting lowered CO2 emissions of between 103 and 106g/km and a combined-cycle fuel consumption figure of 62.8mpg. At 22.0 pence per mile over a typical three year ownership period, an entry-level C1 1.0 is one of the least expensive cars it's possible to run. Insurance is group 2 or 3.

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