Mat Watson tests the new Citroen C5 Aircross: France nailed it with this car

This is the new Citroen C5 Aircross, and it’s a bit like a chaise longue because it’s French, it’s big and it’s comfy. It’s an alternative to other family SUVs such as the Nissan Qashqai, Kia Sportage and the mechanically-similar Peugeot 3008, but is it any good? Well to find out I spent a week with the car.

You can get the new C5 Aircross with petrol, hybrid or electric power, and it’s the latter which I have here. For the full, in-depth review of this car you can check out the video below, but here are five things I liked about the C5 Aircross, plus five things which annoyed me.

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Five things I love about the Citroen C5 Aircross

I reckon this is one of the best family SUVs you can buy right now, and here are five reasons why.

1. It’s really practical

If you’re after a spacious family car, the C5 Aircross is an excellent choice. You get loads of headroom in the back and acres of kneeroom, and it’s not too bad with three in the rear either. A Skoda Kodiaq may offer slightly more shoulder room, but there’s not much in it.

Then there’s the boot. It’s a really good size at 565 litres, although a Kia Sportage does have slightly more space. Even so, I managed to fit eight carry-on-sized suitcases into the Citroen’s boot. It’s massive.

2. It’s great to drive

Citroen has nailed the driving experience in the C5 Aircross. It glides over bumps really nicely, with only really broken sections of road upsetting things, but it also has plenty of grip and the steering is precise.

It’s by no means a sports car, but you still have plenty of confidence to get a wriggle on down a country road when you need to. Most of the time though, it’s just a smooth, relaxing cruiser.

3. I like the way it looks

I reckon this is a really smart-looking SUV. From the front it has a chunky and purposeful appearance, and I like the slim LED lights. This car is riding on the optional 20-inch alloy wheels, although I reckon the 19-inch rims look fine.

There’s plenty of tough-looking black cladding around the car, and I also really like the cool rear light design. The fins add some character to the otherwise very square rear end. The C5 Aircross is a cool-looking thing.

4. The interior is nice

The C5 Aircross has quite a cool-looking cabin. I like the upright dashboard and the textured fabrics which run across it, and the big portrait touchscreen is also bright and responsive – plus the way it flows into the centre console is a nice touch.

Then there are the seats, which not only look great with the square patterning but they’re also really soft and squidgy. I could go for miles in these chairs.

5. There are some clever storage solutions

You won’t run out of places to store your bits and bobs in the Citroen C5 Aircross. You get a massive cubby under the central armrest, and this can also be chilled by the air conditioning if you want to keep some frosty beverages in there.

The door bins are also a good size, and I like the location of the wireless charging pad just below the screen as well.

Five annoying things about the new Citroen C5 Aircross

However, this does bring me onto five annoying things about this car – because not everything is quite so well-thought out.

1. Some annoying storage solutions

The chilled centre cubby is great, but the cupholders in this car are a bit baffling. You have a small one behind the wireless charging pad, but for larger cups of coffee you’ll have to use the two cupholders underneath the screen which are a real faff to get to.

2. Shiny black plastic

There is quite a lot of shiny black plastic in this car. The centre console isn’t too bad because it’s patterned, so it hides the worst of the finger marks, but having plain piano black trim on the door handles is insane to me. You touch this all the time, so it just always looks filthy,

3. Narrow rear window

A lot of cars have a wide but shallow rear window for better aesthetics, but this does create a practical problem. You can only fit a small rear wiper on this window, so it only clears a tiny section in the middle. Not great for rear visibility on rainy days.

4. Getting out of the rear

The way the seatbelts are integrated into the front seats creates a little step in the rear footwell, and when getting out of the car cameraman Louis managed to get his feet caught on it and sort of spilled out onto the floor. I thought it was hilarious to watch, but probably something to watch out for.

5. Keeping your car clean

This is a small moan, but if, like me, you like to keep your car shiny and polished, there are little injection moulds in the rear lights which catch hold of polishing products and you end up having to meticulously pick it out.

Citroen C5 Aircross: my final verdict

So then, what’s my final verdict on this car? Well if you’re after a big, comfy family car with a quirky design, a nice interior and the option of petrol, hybrid or electric power, then I reckon you should just go right ahead and buy the new Citroen C5 Aircross.

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