Citroen C1 Platinum
Following a five day test drive of Citroen’s super city car the C1 Platinum, here are my initial snapshot impressions on my days of living the car.
Day 1
I was quite impressed initially looking over the Citroen C1. This version is the Platinum edition that has the Carlinite Grey roof, mirrors, side strips, spoiler, and a set of 14″ alloy wheels which helps improve the sporty styling by miles. The updated front bumper and LED running lights on the C1 really makes the C1 a lot more appealing than I ever imagined.
Day 2
I took the C1 on a country blast to get to know the compact car and also to do a spot of filming of the car, I was instantly amazed. The C1 has 3 cylinders and 68bhp, I had no idea that it was possible to make this level of power this interesting to drive. The C1 even on the open country road was nippy and maneuverable. It was so easy and enjoyable to drive, being to small and being able to turn the car on the spot make the world feel like a playground for the C1.
Day 3
Taking the C1 into the busy town of Birmingham the C1 was at home the car was perfectly suited to the town environment. The steering and the pedals were all very light and so manageable that it was a pleasure to drive around the busy town centre for a change. Being short and nimble I felt as if I had an advantage over everyone else on the road and I wasn’t afraid to show it off by fitting through all the gaps in the traffic when I could. Parking was made a dream as it only takes up around half a parking space.
Day 4
I took the car into the office. Doing my normal 8 mile rush hour journey through town was made a delight by the Citroen C1. Traffic seemed like less of chore driving the cheerful C1. The personal space around the drive is as good as you would expect from a full size hatch, I’m 6’4 and I wasn’t squashed in at all and there was still around 4″ of head room. Its like a tardis.
Day 5
Lets put some miles on the clock. I took the Citroen down to Milton Keynes, meaning I had around 150 miles of motorway driving for the day. I thought that this might be were the Citroen C1 falls down. I was wrong…as an occasional motorway car you can’t fault it. The performance on the slip road was great up to 70mph, if you plan on over taking over 70mph you will have to do a little forward thinking, but its nothing to put you off. The road noise of the C1 at motorway speeds was also great. You could happily use the integrated Bluetooth hands-free kit to make phone calls while cruising on the motorway. After my day of driving I still felt refreshed and could of easily of done another 150 miles that day.
Summary
I wasn’t completely sure I was going to be impressed by the Citroen C1 simply because it was a little car. I was very wrong. It is in every way a little car, but it has so much to offer. I had loads of fun driving this car around and I’m still surprised myself that I am saying this as I type this article, but the engine performance is great even with two or three people in the car; dont let those tiny numbers put you off.
The car especially, in the 5 door version, is very usable. You dont get much space in the boot, but you can simply open the back door and use the back seats.
The interior is great aswell the platinum version comes with leather touch on the seats and black gloss touches on the dash, but as default the interior has a very simple approach that is easy use, it has everything you need and nothing that you don’t need, perfect.
I was sad to the see the Citroen go, it’s a very enjoyable car. There will be a full review and gallery to follow.
Supplied by: Citroen
