A stylish little number that's very economical! (Citroën C3)

Member Name: Luce100

Product:	Citroën C3
Date:	28/02/06 (2155 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: Economical, safe,comfortable and stylish

Disadvantages: Poor sevrice at the Citroen dealership

I purchased my citroen C3 approximately eight months ago in a metallic red and it was my first ever brand new car.

Previous to this I owned a second hand mini and so the difference between the two was staggering.

My first point must be about safety as this was my main reason for purchasing the car. My mini had absolutely no safety features and was even named by friends and family as death-trap mini. The citroen C3 however has a 4 star safety rating, which is fairly decent and the look of fear that my passengers used to have is now disappearing.

It has 5 doors allowing for easy access and is more spacious than it first appears. The front two seats allow for a very comfortable drive, with plenty of leg room and a high roof. Being 6ft tall space is very important and I feel very claustrophobic in some cars. This is not the case in the C3, there is plenty of room for movement and I can easily get my legs under the wheel as it is possible to adjust it. This was only the case for about 20% of the cars I tested, and so I strongly recommend anyone who is having the same problem to at least try sitting in the car.

The back two seats are somewhat smaller,ideal for children but somewhat of a squash when my friends get in. That said, those combined with the boot and underseat storage provide a lot of room for luggage etc. I managed to transport all my things to university in it quite easily...and I didn't travel lightly!

I must say at this point I am not suggesting that men should not drive this car but it is quite girly and stylish. The great,slightly different design makes it stand out a little from other cars and the range of colours it comes inis pretty impressive. I would recommend that you look at the range ofmetallic paints available, because this reallygives the car an edge and the price to upgrade to metallic paint is usually only in the region of £100.

There are as far as I am aware a large range of engines, however I opted for the 1.4 petrol model. This is perfectly adequate for me although it sometimes feels as if lack alittle oomph. That said, it is a very smooth comfortable drive and my male friend was even impressed with it when he got in. He is a big car fan, and his view tends to be asfar as engines are concerned, the bigger the better. He actually said it was a lot better to drive than he first thought it would be, and after doing a lot of racing he has driven many different cars and so I do honestly value his opinion.

Fuel consumption is fairly steady and tank lasts for quite some time avergaging at somewhere between 60mpg and 70mpg depending on the sort of driving I doing/

All C3's are equipped withpower steering, 4 airbags, electronic windows, remote central locking, and an adjustable steering wheel. However higher models that mine come qith many other features depending on what you are looking for out of your vehicle. My model ( Desire) has air-con and a CD player (only 1 disc)

It cost me £7500 as it was on offer at the time and I am notsure exactly what the cost would be today, but I would expect someone thinking of purchasing it to be looking at paying about £8000.

The only problem:-

Reading another review on here, I realise someone else has had the same problem I encountered regarding the dealer. Preston's Citroen dealership was extremely useful initially but the delivery was delayedthree times. The sales rep dealing with me avoided my calls after it was delayed for a second time and actually had to ask to be dealt with by the manager.
I received a temporary car with petrol included and the manager gave me another free tank of petrol, shine guard for the paint work and car mats for free to compensate me. I am not sure if this happens reguarly but it certainly something worth considering if you were thinking about purchasing it.

My first free service which I received was very time efficient, taking about 20 minutes, so I didn't have to hang around.

Taking all this into account I would still recommend the car simply on it's safety and how economical it is, I would just suggest you are wary about the dealership you choose to go to, it may be worth travelling a little further if your citroen dealership is known to be anything like mine was.

I hope this has helped in some way, and if you have any further questions about the car, comment and I will answer them for you

Summary: I would recommend the car, but watch out for the citroen dealerships!

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