WORLD BEATER: The Citroen C4 won the world rally championships last year.

Citroen? mais oui
Ken Llewelyn tests the Citroen C4 VTS coupe and enjoys the style of the Gallic get about.

Once again the innovative French manufacturer Citroen has produced another attractive and innovative package with its C4.

The styling on the five-door hatch is very catchy and the three-door coupe is a real head turner. And as matter of

Fast facts

Citroen C4

Base model with 1.6 litre four/ manual – cloth seats: $25,990 VTS Coupe 2.0 litre manual – cloth seats: $36,990 Premium leather pack/heated driver’s seat: $3,000 Sun roof option: $1,500 1.6 litre petrol 0-100kmh 10.6 sec 2.0 litre VTS 0-100kmh 8.3 sec

interest Citroen demands that its cars are instantly recognised from a distance of 200 metres.

Citroen has easily succeeded with the C4.

Inside, innovation is very much the order of the day with a fixed hub steering wheel, a dash mounted translucent instrument cluster with a very large, easily read, digital speedo.

The speedo is positioned on the dash for minimal head movement and with typical French flair a perfume dispenser is fitted to the ventilation system and can spread a choice of nine perfumes to the occupants.

Easy riding

On a 400km plus test I found the ride to be very comfortable for a midrange sedan. The suspension is tuned to give excellent road holding and I also found the steering to be both accurate and well weighted. Standard equipment includes aircon and cruise control.

For an extra $1,500 a fulllength glass roof is available with appropriate blinds to keep out the heat.

Distance to servo

The 1.6 litre diesel will delight owners with an expected fuel burn of 4.7litres/100kms while the performance VTS coupe should still see economy under 9litres /100kms.

Under the bonnet

In the C4 you have the choice of four engines, an 80 kW 1.6litre four, a two litre four for the five-door hatch which delivers 103kW or the 2.0litre four which powers the upmarket VTS two-door which pumps out 130kW.

Later this year a 1.6litre turbo-diesel will be added to the range. There is a choice of a five-speed manual or a four-speed auto.

I found the manual rather notchy with a fairly long throw between changes.

The auto was smooth and precise and very much my preference.

Safety first

The C4 has a maximum NCAP five star rating, with six airbags providing the protection for passengers. The car has also been especially designed to minimise injury to pedestrians in an accident.

Plastic front guards, an aluminium bonnet with deformable sections and windscreen wipers that withdraw below the bonnet line are just some of the innovations.

The C4 is equipped with the centre hub of the steering wheel located in a fixed position.

This has a number of advantages, the primary being its airbag can be designed to maximise protection for the driver and the steering controls are in the same location at all times.

The four wheel disc brakes are equipped with ABS and provided first class braking at all times.

And thankfully a full size spare is fitted.

Before you buy

The C4 is being sold in a very crowded market of excellent mid-range four cylinder cars.

However, for those buyers looking for something different and innovative the C4 is well worth a look.

I personally favoured the fivedoor hatch with auto.