2018 Citroen Dispatch Reviews

A hectic 2007 proved to be lucrative for the car industry with a plethora of new cars launched and more than a million sales throughout the year. And there's no indication that it will be slowing down in 2008.AUDI The new A4, to rival the 3 Series and C-Class is expected here about April, while July will see the hot sports wagon, the RS6 Avant and the A3 Cabrio. Extra A5 variants will follow. BMWBMW has a busy year ahead, starting with the 320d and 335i touring this month. The 1 Series Coupe will go on sale around April, followed by the convertible in May-June. But its big one for the year will be the new X6 Sports Activity Coupe, arriving between July and September. It comes with three engine variants, all twin-turbo, an in-line six, a 3.0-litre diesel and a 300kW 4.4-litre V8. Pricing is expected to start at just under $100,000. And the X5 scores a new engine in February, with the first variable twin turbo diesel offered in the range. CHRYSLER/JEEPJanuary will be a busy month for Chrysler, with the Sebring Cabrio and Grand Voyager people mover both arriving in Australia. The Jeep Cherokee will also get a total makeover. CITROENBased on the C4 Picasso, but bigger and better equipped, Citroen will introduce the Berlingo van between July and September, with a mainly diesel range. This will make room in the line-up for the new Nemo small van mid-year. The C5 will also get a new V6 diesel engine.FERRARIDeliveries of the exquisite F430 Scuderia, priced at about $550,000, will start mid year. Only about 40 will come to Australia and New Zealand. FIAT The reincarnation of the 1960s Bambino will arrive in March, but Fiat has already sold the first four months' supply. The new Fiat 500 will have three engine choices, a 1.2-litre petrol, a 75kW 1.4-litre petrol engine or a 56kW 1.3-litre turbo diesel. Pricing is expected to start from $22,000. The new Ritmo will join the Fiat 500 in March with pricing from $30,000. FORD One of the biggest launches for the year will be the new Falcon. Ford will release details of the new model in February and it's expected to be followed by an unveiling at the Melbourne motor show in the same month, with the official launch around May.FPV FPV will start the year with a new model, the hot turbo Territory, known as the F6 X model. It's the first non-Falcon model from FPV, with 270kW and 550Nm. The FPV Falcon range will also arrive this year. HOLDEN/CADILLACWith Ford's big year planned, you can't expect Holden to keep quiet. But so far, Holden has only announced it is expecting the VE Sportwagon, due in the first half of the year. GM-Holden is also introducing Cadillac with the first model due late in 2008. HONDA Honda will start the year with the new Accord model, due to be launched in February. The small Jazz is also getting an update after the middle of the year. Details on the new generation will be released closer to the launch. The Accord Euro is also expected to arrive later this year. HYUNDAI No big launches just yet, although an upgraded Sonata is expected mid year. JAGUARJaguar's major release for the year will be the new XF in June, with pricing expected to start from $105,000. It will be available in a V6 diesel, as well as a V6 and V8 petrol. KIAPreviewed at the Sydney motor show last year, Kia will launch its new seven-seater Rondo crossover in February. It is expected to start from as low as the mid-$20,000 mark. LEXUSNew for Lexus will be the LX570 around April or May, followed by the IS-F towards the end of the year. Details still to come. MAZDAThe second-generation Mazda6 will go on sale at the end of February with pricing from less than $30,000. It will be powered by a 2.5-litre, four cylinder engine, with 125kW and 226Nm.MERCEDES-BENZThe first arrival for Mercedes-Benz is expected to be the C 63 AMG in mid March. It will be followed by the S 320CDI, priced at $189,874 and the C-Class wagon, which will carry a $3000 premium over the sedan, coming in just under $60,000. MINIAnother new version of a 1960s cult car is also headed our way, with the Mini Clubman launched in February. The modern successor of the Morris Mini Traveller, the Austin Mini Countryman and the Mini Clubman Estate won't get into showrooms until March or April. Pricing will start in the mid-$30,000 area. MITSUBISHIMitsubishi will release two turbocharged Lancers this year. The top-level Lancer Evo X GSR will be here in April and sell for about $58,000. The 2.0-litre four cylinder turbo engine pumps out 200kW and 422Nm. Joining it will be the detuned version in the Ralliart all-wheel drive, at about $40,000. NISSANNissan's first addition for the year will be the all-wheel-drive wagon, the Dualis. Starting at $28,990 and stretching to $35,990, it's powered by a 102kW, 2.0-litre engine. PEUGEOTThe big launch for Peugeot will be the 308 replacing the 307 range, which will start with the 308 hatch in February in both petrol and diesel guises. The touring will follow in June or July, with the 308cc model a prospect for late 2008 or early 2009. PROTONProton has announced the Persona, based on the Gen2 hatch platform, will make its debut at the Melbourne motor show in late February, going on sale in March. It will be priced around the mid-teens. The Gen2 will also get engine updates and minor styling changes. RENAULTThe all-new Laguna will go on sale mid-year with a 2.0-litre diesel engine. SAABJune sees the arrival of the Turbo X AWD. SSANGYONGThe South Korean company will go completely diesel in 2008, with no more petrol engines on offer in Australia. SMARTThe new Fortwo arrives in Australia in February. The one-model brand will get both the 52kW and 62kW models, in hatch and cabrio, being bigger than the current models. SUBARUThe star WRX STi comes in February with a 2.5-litre turbocharged engine, although pricing is still to come. The third generation Forester arrives in March. SUZUKIFebruary's proving to be a busy month, with Suzuki also launching its Grand Vitara diesel. TOYOTAAfter a big year in 2007, Toyota is expecting a quiet year, with only the TRD Hilux due to be launched in April-June. VOLKSWAGENVolkswagen will kick off the year with the SUV, the Touareg R50, to be released in April. It's powered by a 258kW V10 TDI engine. The Tiguan also arrives about October.  VOLVOThe recently launched XC70 arrives in showrooms this month, joined by the C30 diesel also in January. It's priced at $43,950. A base model C30 will also enter the line-up, at $34,450. A 3.0-litre six-cylinder engined V70 will arrive in March. 

And the French really hit the nail on the head with the Citroen 2CV, and not just because of its unique looks. Drive it and you'll notice its individual behaviour as it leans into the corner as much as an Olympic speed skater.But for Rudi Annus, (above) his 1985 Citroen 2CV Charleston is the best way to travel.“I have always been attracted to Citroens,” he says. “I'm a car nut and I like anything that's different, I don't like ordinary standard BMWs or Mercs. It's just a funny little thing. It's almost that ugly, it's beautiful.”Annus used to envy Australian fashion designer Peter Weiss driving around his area in this black and burgundy 2CV and knew he had to have it. And after a year or so of pestering Weiss, he finally got to call it his own.“I have had it for about five years and paid $12,000 for it,” he says.The first Citroen 2CV was released in Europe in 1948 at the Paris motor show and quickly earned the nickname Deux Chevaux, French for two horses. Another nickname was Escargot (snail) as in, as slow as one.“The motor was only a 375cc and it only had two horsepower,” Annus says.And while most cars change over years, the Citroen didn't get big makeovers, apart from a few cosmetic changes in the 1960s and a slightly bigger engine capacity.“The engine got progressively bigger, to a 602cc engine, two cylinders,” he says.“That's what mine has. It's the biggest engine they ever built and it has a top speed of 115.2km/h. It drives quite good for a 602cc, it's amazing — that's a small motorbike.”The 2CV was originally conceived in the late 1930s as a cheap and economical car.“Above all it had to be able to cross a freshly ploughed field carrying two farmers, a sack of potatoes and a basket of a dozen eggs on the back seat, and not break any eggs,” Annus says.“It's incredible, such a basic and fundamental car. It has unique suspension, coil springs that are horizontal instead of up and down like normal cars.”And Annus's love affair with the 2CV isn't a new obsession. In 1994, Annus's son, who lives in the UK, was considering buying a 2CV for some fun. Annus said at the time: “If you don't buy it, I'll have it.”So, before he knew it he was pound stg. 400 ($908) poorer and the proud owner of his first 2CV, which he used regularly on European escapades. He then imported the model to Australia, where it now sits in “a million pieces” in his garage, waiting for a restoration. Something that may happen sooner than planned after Annus decided to sell this burgundy and black model.“If I didn't have the grey one, I wouldn't have sold this, I have to have a 2CV Citroen in my life,” he says. “These people approached me, they were at me for about a year-and-a-half, but I hadn't considered selling it at all.”Annus says he had always planned to restore the grey one and the new owners got him at a “weak moment”.“It's going to a good home,” he says. “I wouldn't sell it to just anybody who doesn't love Citroens and I'll use the money to restore the other one.” Annus sold the car for the same price he bought it for. He hasn't delivered it yet.So, in the meantime he's enjoying every minute and he's not the only one. Annus says the 2CV gets a big reaction from all onlookers.“I drove past a $400,000 Bentley, the guy smiled and gave me the thumbs up,” he says.And while Annus is also the proud owner of a 1990 Lotus Esprit he drove around Europe for a year before importing it Down Under, the 60-year-old says the Citroen is where he would rather spend his time.“I spend about 70 per cent of my time driving my little 2CV, people can't understand that.”Citroen stopped producing the 2CV in July 1990, after 42 years on the market and more than seven million cars.They were never officially sold in Australia, but they weren't strictly a French or European car, with some models built and sold elsewhere, including South America.SNAPSHOT1985 CITROEN 2CV CHARLESTONVALUE NOW: $10,000 to $18,000VERDICT: This quirky French-mobile knows how to put a smile on people's faces, with soft suspension, umbrella-like gear-stick and a two-cylinder engine. 

Citroen has a newly-designed C5 medium-size car on the way, happy for now to show what it looks like but keeping closer to its chest technical details.

The National Motor Vehicle Theft Reduction Council (NMVTRC) yesterday revealed motor theft would become harder with the use of personal scanning, impact-resistant windows and automatic deadlocking doors.The council previewed a 3D virtual car featuring security innovations to be introduced in five to 10 years. Features of the future included an improved identification system, a satellite global-tracking system and a centrally monitored two-way communications system, including an interior camera and panic alert.Motor theft across Australia is down to a record low of 62,000 vehicles a year. NSW theft rates have dropped from 47,338 five years ago to 26,891 this year.NMVTRC executive director Ray Carroll yesterday called on motorists to be more aware of security features when buying a new car and urged car manufacturers to lift their game.The NMVTRC also unveiled the nine most secure cars in Australia.Among these were the Volkswagen Polo, Citroen C2, the Subaru Liberty 2.0R and the Mitsubishi 380.Do you think all new cars should have smart access system as a standard feature?

Citroen names the latest concept car C-Cactus; seeing it as a possible car of the future. The C-Cactus name is chosen because of the perception that the desert-dwelling plant needs little water to survive.The inference is this car needs little in the way of fluids (fuel) to keep going it.Citroen has built this C-Cactus car as a hybrid using a small diesel engine as well as an electric motor. And it has concentrated on light weight; meaning less energy is used to accelerate and keep the car at cruising speeds.The turbodiesel engine delivers about 52kW of power and the electric motor another 22kW when called on for assistance.Like existing hybrid cars, for urban driving there will be moments when the C-Cactus runs only on its electric motor. It's what Citroen calls ZEV mode (zero emission vehicle). The diesel engine has a particulate filter system. Fuel economy officially is rated about 3.4 litres per 100km and emissions therefore are a low 78g/km. Top speed has been capped at 150km/h.A key feature of the Citroen C-Cactus is the weight saving brought about by using fewer components, much of that achieved by combining tasks into one component.The cabin takes 200 parts to create, or about half the number of a conventional car of similar size. Even the dashboard is gone. Its functions, gearbox controls, navigation system and a few speakers of the sound system are all incorporated into a stylish centre console.Door panels are made of two parts instead of the expected 12. The car has an automatic airconditioning system, so Citroen argues that there's little need to open the windows. Thus, the window winding or power opening systems are not there: simple sliding panes do the job instead.C-Cactus has appeared wearing 21-inch wheels with special tyres that have been developed in conjunction with Michelin.  

Companies as varied as Volvo, Citroen, Nissan and several truck manufacturers have come up with systems that alert the driver by shaking their seat, steering wheel or sounding audible alerts if the car or truck swerves from its lane.However, Saab is now developing a system that prevents the driver swerving in the first place.Their Driver Attention Warning System (DAWS) is designed to counter two of the most common causes of road accidents; driver drowsiness and inattention at the wheel.DAWS alerts the driver by using a combination of text and voice messages, or vibrations in the seat cushion, as soon as the risk of drowsiness or inattention is detected by infra-red cameras.Research has shown that not only are more than a quarter of accidents in Australia caused by fatigue, but death tolls from sleep-related incidents are three times higher than other accidents, presumably because the drivers do not swerve or apply their brakes.A driver who gets behind the wheel after 17 hours without sleep is impaired to the same extent as if driving with a blood alcohol content of 0.05.Unlike the Citroen and Volvo systems, DAWS does not rely on measuring an erratic change in the direction of the vehicle. It is designed to detect the cause, rather than the consequences.It uses two miniature infra-red cameras, one installed at the base of the driver's A-pillar and the other in the centre of the dashboard, focused on the driver's eyes.Software measures the driver's rate of eye blinking. When the cameras detect a pattern of long eye-lid closures, indicating drowsiness, a series of three warnings is initiated.The first warning is a chime and a text message “Tired?” displayed on the instrument panel.If the driver's eye-lid movement does not immediately revert to a normal wide-awake pattern, a speech message “You are tired” is delivered through the car's audio system.If there is still no response, a stronger warning tone and the message, “You are dangerously tired, stop as soon as it is safe to do so!” will come over the audio.This can only be cancelled when the driver presses a reset button. The system is then immediately reactivated.The cameras are also able to monitor the driver's eye-ball and head movement.If the driver's gaze moves away from the windscreen, a timer starts counting.If the driver's eyes and head do not return to the straight ahead position within about two seconds, the driver's seat cushion will vibrate. This will stop once the driver's eyes and head are consistent with the vehicle's direction of travel.However, the system software can detect when the driver is looking in the rear-view mirror, the door mirror or turning a corner, but retaining peripheral vision of the road ahead. On these occasions, it allows a slightly longer time before vibrating the seat.However, the system will differentiate if the driver is distracted by other passengers, using a mobile phone, or changing a CD or radio station.The system has been installed in a Saab 9-3 SportCombi for an eight-month test; supervised by the Road and Transport Research Institute in Sweden.It is part of a development and validation process that could see the system become available in future Saab cars. 

Citroen has lifted the official lid on its new C5, showing the first pictures of the wagon, after details of the sedan were released a few weeks ago. The C5 will go on sale here late next year in time for October's Sydney motor show.As they did with the current model, more than 80per cent of buyers are expected to choose the turbodiesel versions. Visually the sedan and wagon follow the Airscape concept car, with an assertive front end dominated by the distinctive Citroen chevron grille.Citroen Australia general manager Miles Williams says the existing C5 has been an enormously important vehicle for Citroen in Australia.“It has been central to providing 10 years of sustained growth for Citroen in Australia and provided Citroen with a strong presence in the large sedan sector,” he says.The replacement carries over a development of Citroen's hydractive suspension, Hydractive 3 Plus, which is shared with the C6 and offers three levels of damping: soft, firm and sport.In Europe the car is available with a range of petrol and turbodiesel engines. Australian specifications are yet to be determined but expect the sedan and wagon to have engine and transmission options similar to those in the current model. That means a choice of 2.0-litre and 3.0-litre V6 petrol power and possibly 2.0-litre and 2.2-litre four-cylinder HDi turbodiesels.The driving position resembles an aircraft cockpit and has second-generation fixed-hub controls on the steering wheel, as in the C4.Controls such as the cruise control, radio, telephone, and central screen controls are all within easy reach. 

First photos of the model were released in Paris this month, ahead of the car going on sale in Europe early next year. Australian sales are planned for August 2008.Many of the sleek styling cues previewed as the C-Airscape Concept at the Frankfurt Motor Show last month, which has survived the production versions of the sedan and the estate.“The existing Citroen C5 has been an enormously important vehicle for Citroen in Australia and around the world,” Citroen Australia general manager Miles Williams says. “It has been central to providing 10 years of sustained growth for Citroen in Australia and provided Citroen with a strong presence in the large sedan sector.”Williams says Citroen's leading role in the introduction of diesel technology to Australian drivers will continue with the latest C5.“It (the current C5) has introduced a generation of Australian drivers to the advantages; economical and environmental; of Citroen's advanced diesel engines. With the C5 technology, safety and environmental compatibility are further enhanced.”The C5 engine range will include a 150kW V6 diesel, headlining a likely all-diesel model line-up for Australia. Some 85 per cent of C5 sales in Australia are diesel with almost all of the remainder the V6 petrol model.“With the new V6 diesel offering the power it does and the amount of extra torque, it mounts a very strong argument,” Citroen Australia's Edward Rowe says.Rowe says specification and pricing for the C5 range has to be finalised but insists it will not be below the standard of the current range.“There will be at least seven airbags and the safety, comfort and convenience levels of the current model will be further enhanced.”The C5 will come standard with cruise control, speed limiter, automatic electric parking brake and hill-start assist.To be confirmed is a parking space gap sensor that informs drivers whether an available space is big enough for the vehicle; spaces measuring less than 3m and more than 8m are ignored.A lane departure warning system is offered in Europe along with a passive headlight system linked to the steering input, which illuminates a lamp on the kerb side of the car to assist parking.If the vehicle is equipped with Xenon dual-function directional headlamps, it can also be equipped with dynamic AFS, a lighting system that improves visibility and safety on corners and at junctions. The C5s will bring Citroen's third generation of Hydractive suspension into the realms of the family car.Launched on the C6, Hydractive 3 Plus suspension comprises a double wishbone and linked hub carrier at the front and a multilink set-up at the rear with a drop-link longitudinal arm. The adjustable suspension offers two modes with adjustments to the springing and damping to take account of driver input and road conditions.A soft mode provides optimum comfort, while a firmer mode delivers enhanced driving sensations and greater body control.Controlled by sensors on each axle, the Hydractive 3 Plus suspension maintains the C5 at a constant height, regardless of the load.The C5 will be the second model in Australia to get the Citroen fixed-hub steering wheel introduced on the C4.While the fixed centre allows ease of use of the car's entertainment system and cruise control, it also allows for a full-sized driver's airbag, which will always be correctly positioned. 

And when they call it the Picasso, there's even less chance it will be conventional. After all, in his paintings, eyes and noses and everything else were rarely where they're usually found.So you step into the Picasso, seven seats, just slightly longer than a Toyota Corolla sedan, loaf-shaped but stylish, prepared for something unusual.And yes, Citroen delivers. The Picasso is definitely quirky, but in a refreshing way; it's easy to adapt to, pleasant to live with, a clever design which works efficiently.For example, the steering wheel rotates around a fixed hub, so the driver's airbag is always positioned perfectly. Now that's a bright idea, taken straight from Citroen's smaller C4 hatchback, which is also the source for the Picasso's mechanical underpinnings.No normal T-bar gear lever here. Instead, the auto selector is a thin chrome wand high on the right-hand side of the steering column. Two curved levers behind the wheel allow you to flick up or down through the gears.Air conditioning controls are on the right-hand side of the dashboard, so your co-driver can't fiddle with them, but the front passenger does get his or her own digital temperature read-out situated on the far left; along with up and down buttons to make that side of the car hotter or colder.The handbrake is . . .  well, actually the Picasso doesn't have one. Instead, the 'parking brake' sets itself when you park, and disengages automatically when you drive away. As back-up, there is a little chrome lever mounted on top of the dashboard, right in the centre.In front of that is a perfume diffuser, so the Picasso always smells sweet. This is a French car, remember.There are picnic tables for the middle row of seats, a drinks cooler up front, a rechargeable torch down the back.The windscreen is so large, and sweeps back so far, there are pull-down sunshades at the top of the glass.So it's certainly different, but not in a negative way. Instead of seeming gimmicky and confusing, its unusual features are handy, and fit its can-do nature perfectly.It's the same story on the road. At first the Picasso can feel bulky and somewhat daunting, the driver has no idea where that sloping snout ends, and the tail seems a long way away but after a while you become used to it.Anyway, there are parking sensors which beep a warning before you get too close to obstacles.The Picasso comes with either petrol or diesel engine, and surely the smarter of the pair is the diesel, sharing its engine with Citroen's larger (and dearer) C5 sedan plus various Peugeots. What a sweet machine; strong on pulling power, big on refinement, excellent when it comes to fuel economy.With six forward gears on hand, it can quickly select the right ratio and summon up a healthy dose of torque for spirited acceleration.The petrol version gets just a four-speed automatic.What the Picasso doesn't like is to be driven fast on a twisty, rough road. The suspension just isn't happy with that sort of silliness. Snapshot Citroen Picasso HDiDetails: Seven-seat people-mover with 2.0 litre, four-cylinder, turbo-diesel engine. Power 100kW. Torque 270Nm. Six-speed automatic.Features: Stability control system, anti-lock brakes, seven airbags, alloy wheels, airconditioning, cruise control.Cost: $44,990. (Petrol version $39,990)Rivals: Renault Grand Scenic, Honda Odyssey, Toyota Tarago, Kia Carnival, Chrysler Voyager.For: Refreshing, efficient design. Excellent diesel engine.Against: Perhaps too unusual for some.Summing up: French flair on wheels.Overall: 4 stars 

Just a week after US President George W. Bush told a Sydney media conference about how battery cars that didn't look like golf carts were being developed, the real things were displayed at the world's largest motoring show.General Motors showed off its Flextreme from its European subsidiary Opel. It's a small commuter car with an electric-diesel hybrid that can travel 55km on a single charge before switching to fuel. It is a concept car, meaning it may or may not go into production.Volvo will also unveil its plug-in hybrid concept at the show. Called the Recharge and based on its C30 hatchback, it uses four separate electric motors to power each wheel, augmenting a 1.6-litre four-cylinder Flexifuel engine.Meanwhile, Volvo said a fully charged model can travel about 100km before it needs to be recharged. And it is not a slug. It can reach 0-100km/h in nine seconds on the way to a top speed of 160km/h.VW is claiming fuel consumption of as little as three litres per 100km for its spiritual successor to the original people's car, the Beetle.The Up concept is a miniature four-seat city car powered by a rear-mounted two or three cylinder engine,  the first rear-engined car VW has made since the original Beetle. VW said the car would be low-priced and a fuel miser. It has claimed 3.5litres/100km with a target of reducing that to less than 3litres/100 km.That's better than Australia's current best the Toyota Prius hybrid at 4.4litres/100km, the Citroen C4 diesel at 4.5litres/100km and the Honda Civic Hybrid at 4.6litres/100km.It is also better than the new-age Fiat 500, which will have a diesel model with a claimed consumption of 4.2litres/100km and the next generation Smart car.VW boss Dr Martin Winterkorn said: “This is VW reinventing the Volkswagen. It is what the brand stands for — mobility for everyone.”Dr Winterkorn said show visitors' reaction to the car would decide whether the Up goes into full production.Volkswagen Group Australia managing director Jutta Dierks said: “If the philosophy stays the same as it was for the original Beetle, to be a car affordable to everyone, then it will certainly be a good fit into our market.” Volkswagen Up2 or 3-cylinder engine Fuel economy of 3.5l per 100km.Available in 2011.GM FiextremeElectric-diesel hybrid.Can travel 55km on battery power before switching over to diesel fuel. Volvo RechargeFour electric motors plus a 1.6-litre four-cylinder engine.Can travel 100km on battery power before re-charge needed.Top speed of 160km/h.