Citroën C3 Aircross test (2021): the comfort bump

The Citroën C3 Aircross arrives in dealerships in June 2021. It retains its petrol and diesel engines, but does not offer any electrified version.

The Citroën C3 Aircross goes through the restyling box in 2021. This cosmetic overhaul is an opportunity to measure how the small French SUV is resisting in its automatic petrol version the onslaught of ever younger and more dashing competitors.

Test car: Citroën C3 Aircross PureTech 130 hp Shine EAT6

Gasoline engine | Power: 131 ch
Launch: June 2021
See the technical sheet

From€ 25,500

€ 260 penalty

[Mis à joue le 04/10/2021] A few months after the launch of the restyled version, Citroën is reviewing the range of the C3 Aircross. As a result, a general price increase of € 200 and the loss of certain serial equipment. The range starts in October from € 19,050.

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Launched in 2017, the C3 Aircross represented a small revolution at Citroën since it was his very first SUV. At the time, he was playing among the heavyweights of his genre with his 4.16 m in length and his advanced technological equipment. Since then, the segment has been invaded by new representatives who play the overbid, including the cousin Peugeot 2008, longer by 14 cm and based on the new CMP platform when the Citroën is based on the old base of the group. A technological difference which limits the possible evolutions for the C3 Aircross and which partly explains why it plays the minimum service for this first aesthetic redesign.

grille Citroën C3 Aircross 2021 — The front of the Citroën C3 Aircross evolves in depth, but the reading levels of the new design are a little numerous.

Its new front face marks the difference by playing on more angular lines which contrast with the curves of the first version. The most aesthetic may regret the choice to fit square in these plump curves, but the specifications were clear: reduce its toy aspect. For the rest, no new engines, new technologies or revised running gear: the modifications are limited to a larger multimedia screen, a new central console, Advanced Comfort seats and new interior and exterior decors. Citroën was he too shy? Does the C3 Aircross manage to survive among ever younger and numerous competitors? Answer in the following paragraphs.

Citroën C3 Aircross restyled price

With the most powerful 130 hp petrol engine, the C3 Aircross is only available in the EAT6 automatic transmission. This is specific to its cousins Opel Crossland and Peugeot 2008, also offered in manual gearbox version. However, at € 25,500 in Shine finish, our test model remains cheaper than a 2008 PureTech 130 BVM6 Allure (€ 26,100) and costs € 1,100 less than the Opel in the GS Line EAT6 version. The Citroën clearly plays the price card without offering poor equipment.
While the vehicle skips digital instrumentation, it offers auto air conditioning, navigation and automatic emergency braking as standard in our Shine finish, which is no longer the top of the range. It is indeed necessary to opt for the Shine Pack to have refinements such as the hands-free opening and especially the sliding bench, offered as an option at 300 € on our finish. Note that, in this livery, the C3 Aircross pays for its older design by suffering the ecological penalty, fortunately moderate; the price is between 150 and 260 € depending on the equipment.

Rear C3 Aircross 2021 — Apart from the new quarter panel trims, few changes are to be noted at the rear of the C3 Aircross 2021.

Driving

In recent years, Citroën has put comfort at the top of its selling points. This was already the case when the C3 Aircross was released in 2017, and the manufacturer did not see fit to change its tuning. However, things are still changing for the driver and occupants with the introduction of Advanced Comfort seats with special foam. Suddenly the feeling of softness is reinforced, and this SUV can still claim to be the most comfortable in its segment, even when compared to the Peugeot 2008 with a particularly flexible suspension. Without being a “flying carpet”, it absorbs the worst bumps and holes with hydropneumatic phlegm.

Urban SUV test with automatic transmission — In bends, the C3 Aircross is not very sharp. The mass of the automatic transmission of this 130 hp version does not help.

On the other hand, in terms of behavior, Citroën has not reached a compromise as brilliant as that of the city car C3. The SUV is indeed much less agile and even very lazy when entering a curve. A feeling reinforced by the lack of steering feel and by a fairly clear roll grip. Suddenly, we quickly prefer a flow of walking, even if the level of grip of its Bridgestone tires is not the cause. For the rest, we find the 1.2 PureTech as in itself: quite sound under load, it is not free of vibrations at 1,500 rpm, where the EAT6 automatic gearbox (platform 1 does not allow no switch to EAT8) likes to lower it to lower consumption. Always energetic, the PureTech 130 makes the C3 Aircross a powerful model, but also quite greedy. Consumption easily rises above 7 l / 100 km and, even on our particularly favorable test drive, we struggled to drop below 6.5 l. If we do not believe very much in the merits of micro-hybridization in terms of consumption, we cannot help but think that Citroën could have made more efforts in this area, while electrification is a reality among its customers. competitors.

In the cockpit

Citroën C3 Aircross interior — Inside the C3 Aircross, the two main developments are the appearance of a larger 9-inch screen and a modified center console. It accommodates a storage box and cup holders thanks to a small handbrake control.

Citroën C3 Aircross 2021 GPS — You always have to go through the central screen to adjust the air conditioning. The multimedia system, almost identical, becomes frankly outdated, as is the reversing camera with very poor definition.

Citroën C3 Aircross 2021 bench — The size / habitability ratio is a real strong point of the C3 Aircross. At the rear, the legroom and headroom appear very comfortable, even if the bench seat back is a little too rounded.

Citroën C3 Aircross 2021 folded bench seat — The C3 Aircross is one of the few representatives of its segment to benefit from a sliding bench in two parts. It allows you to vary the boot volume from 410 to 520 liters depending on its position.

Citroën C3 Aircross 2021 seat — Not only is the bench sliding, but the passenger seat can be folded up into a tablet, which is rare in the category. A real plus when it comes to loading long objects.

Competetion

To say that the urban SUV segment is crowded is obvious. And this is the problem of C3 Aircross, which faces a real army, including within his own group. Stellantis opposes him nothing less than the Peugeot 2008 and its close cousin the Opel Crossland already mentioned, but also the Opel Mokka despite its positioning a little more upscale. The Renault Captur is obviously one of its rivals in its TCe 140 EDC version. While less soft in suspension, it is both quieter and more efficient and has much more modern equipment for a much higher cost, however: € 28,350 in the Intens finish. The list of urban SUVs becomes endless, especially as some manufacturers offer two: this is the case of Hyundai with the Kona and the Bayon or of Volkswagen with the T-Cross and T-Roc. Not to mention the Nissan Juke, the Skoda Kamiq, the sporty Ford Puma or the more adventurous Jeep Renegade. Something to border on indigestion!

Discover the results of the test, the technical sheet and the options on the next page