Modern Citroen's - Are they reliable?
Discussion
I've been looking DS4's between 2 and 3 years up to 3 years old. For the 2.0 litre diesel model they are cheaper than the equivalent Focus and Vauxhall, and way cheaper than BMW 1 series, Merc A class, VW Golfs, Audi A3's, etc and have style and a good equipment level.
As much as I like the look of the interior and exterior my head says they must be cheap for a reason. Are modern Citroen's properly engineered and built? What are they like to live with in your experience? What are the dealers like.
Thanks in advance.
As much as I like the look of the interior and exterior my head says they must be cheap for a reason. Are modern Citroen's properly engineered and built? What are they like to live with in your experience? What are the dealers like.
Thanks in advance.
I've had three Citroens in the past 7 years.
The first one was a C5 bought at auction at three years old with 70000 miles on it for £5k. I kept it just under a year, had it serviced once, and did 25000 miles almost trouble free miles in it. The boot microswitch would only work intermittently, but it was only £8 for a new one. Just after spending the best part of a grand on a full service, two tyres and new disks and pads all round, the handbrake failed, as the Citroen main dealer forgot to tighten the clamps holding the cable in. They also failed to spot a knackered wheel bearing which the car failed its MOT on a week later. This was £175.
After I crashed that one at 70mph, I was so impressed with how strong it was that I bought another one, four years old with 45000 miles on it for £5k. It was a Citroen approved used car from a main dealer (not the same one who messed the brakes up on the last one) and it went back to the dealer 6 times in the first 6 weeks. In that time it needed new front suspension spheres, some trim reattached, a new heater rheostat, and a few other things that I've forgotten. The dealer was very hard work, and I think they have now lost their franchise. Once everything had been sorted, the only issue I had in 40000 miles was that a locking wheelnut broke.
That was part exchanged for a three year old Citroen C6 with 45000 miles on it. The salesman was the nicest car dealer we have encountered, and the car is great, when it works. At the 60k service they found around £2k of additional work (brakes and suspension) that needed doing, and I felt it should have been done under warranty. I think £1k was done under the warranty and I paid the rest. It developed a fault with the gearbox towards the end of the warranty and I got fobbed off with software updates until the warranty expired and then they told me it needed a new gearbox and Citroen would not make a goodwill contribution due to the age of the car. It has also had a new alternator and it currently has a small hydraulic leak.
Compared to cars owned among my friends and family, I don't think Citroen is that bad. I've got a friend with a Toyota where the engine blew up just after the warranty expired. The difference is that Toyota fitted a new engine for free. I don't think Citroen would do that. Family members who have had problems with Mercedes and Volkswagen have been treated just as badly by their main dealers as I feel I have by Citroen.
Sorry for taking such a long and rambling trip down memory lane. In summary, my opinion is that Citroens are no less reliable than other mainstream brands, but when you do have problems, they can be difficult to fix and the dealers can be rubbish.
The first one was a C5 bought at auction at three years old with 70000 miles on it for £5k. I kept it just under a year, had it serviced once, and did 25000 miles almost trouble free miles in it. The boot microswitch would only work intermittently, but it was only £8 for a new one. Just after spending the best part of a grand on a full service, two tyres and new disks and pads all round, the handbrake failed, as the Citroen main dealer forgot to tighten the clamps holding the cable in. They also failed to spot a knackered wheel bearing which the car failed its MOT on a week later. This was £175.
After I crashed that one at 70mph, I was so impressed with how strong it was that I bought another one, four years old with 45000 miles on it for £5k. It was a Citroen approved used car from a main dealer (not the same one who messed the brakes up on the last one) and it went back to the dealer 6 times in the first 6 weeks. In that time it needed new front suspension spheres, some trim reattached, a new heater rheostat, and a few other things that I've forgotten. The dealer was very hard work, and I think they have now lost their franchise. Once everything had been sorted, the only issue I had in 40000 miles was that a locking wheelnut broke.
That was part exchanged for a three year old Citroen C6 with 45000 miles on it. The salesman was the nicest car dealer we have encountered, and the car is great, when it works. At the 60k service they found around £2k of additional work (brakes and suspension) that needed doing, and I felt it should have been done under warranty. I think £1k was done under the warranty and I paid the rest. It developed a fault with the gearbox towards the end of the warranty and I got fobbed off with software updates until the warranty expired and then they told me it needed a new gearbox and Citroen would not make a goodwill contribution due to the age of the car. It has also had a new alternator and it currently has a small hydraulic leak.
Compared to cars owned among my friends and family, I don't think Citroen is that bad. I've got a friend with a Toyota where the engine blew up just after the warranty expired. The difference is that Toyota fitted a new engine for free. I don't think Citroen would do that. Family members who have had problems with Mercedes and Volkswagen have been treated just as badly by their main dealers as I feel I have by Citroen.
Sorry for taking such a long and rambling trip down memory lane. In summary, my opinion is that Citroens are no less reliable than other mainstream brands, but when you do have problems, they can be difficult to fix and the dealers can be rubbish.
jamesh764 said:
I've had three Citroens in the past 7 years.
The first one was a C5 bought at auction at three years old with 70000 miles on it for £5k. I kept it just under a year, had it serviced once, and did 25000 miles almost trouble free miles in it. The boot microswitch would only work intermittently, but it was only £8 for a new one. Just after spending the best part of a grand on a full service, two tyres and new disks and pads all round, the handbrake failed, as the Citroen main dealer forgot to tighten the clamps holding the cable in. They also failed to spot a knackered wheel bearing which the car failed its MOT on a week later. This was £175.
After I crashed that one at 70mph, I was so impressed with how strong it was that I bought another one, four years old with 45000 miles on it for £5k. It was a Citroen approved used car from a main dealer (not the same one who messed the brakes up on the last one) and it went back to the dealer 6 times in the first 6 weeks. In that time it needed new front suspension spheres, some trim reattached, a new heater rheostat, and a few other things that I've forgotten. The dealer was very hard work, and I think they have now lost their franchise. Once everything had been sorted, the only issue I had in 40000 miles was that a locking wheelnut broke.
That was part exchanged for a three year old Citroen C6 with 45000 miles on it. The salesman was the nicest car dealer we have encountered, and the car is great, when it works. At the 60k service they found around £2k of additional work (brakes and suspension) that needed doing, and I felt it should have been done under warranty. I think £1k was done under the warranty and I paid the rest. It developed a fault with the gearbox towards the end of the warranty and I got fobbed off with software updates until the warranty expired and then they told me it needed a new gearbox and Citroen would not make a goodwill contribution due to the age of the car. It has also had a new alternator and it currently has a small hydraulic leak.
Compared to cars owned among my friends and family, I don't think Citroen is that bad. I've got a friend with a Toyota where the engine blew up just after the warranty expired. The difference is that Toyota fitted a new engine for free. I don't think Citroen would do that. Family members who have had problems with Mercedes and Volkswagen have been treated just as badly by their main dealers as I feel I have by Citroen.
Sorry for taking such a long and rambling trip down memory lane. In summary, my opinion is that Citroens are no less reliable than other mainstream brands, but when you do have problems, they can be difficult to fix and the dealers can be rubbish.
The first one was a C5 bought at auction at three years old with 70000 miles on it for £5k. I kept it just under a year, had it serviced once, and did 25000 miles almost trouble free miles in it. The boot microswitch would only work intermittently, but it was only £8 for a new one. Just after spending the best part of a grand on a full service, two tyres and new disks and pads all round, the handbrake failed, as the Citroen main dealer forgot to tighten the clamps holding the cable in. They also failed to spot a knackered wheel bearing which the car failed its MOT on a week later. This was £175.
After I crashed that one at 70mph, I was so impressed with how strong it was that I bought another one, four years old with 45000 miles on it for £5k. It was a Citroen approved used car from a main dealer (not the same one who messed the brakes up on the last one) and it went back to the dealer 6 times in the first 6 weeks. In that time it needed new front suspension spheres, some trim reattached, a new heater rheostat, and a few other things that I've forgotten. The dealer was very hard work, and I think they have now lost their franchise. Once everything had been sorted, the only issue I had in 40000 miles was that a locking wheelnut broke.
That was part exchanged for a three year old Citroen C6 with 45000 miles on it. The salesman was the nicest car dealer we have encountered, and the car is great, when it works. At the 60k service they found around £2k of additional work (brakes and suspension) that needed doing, and I felt it should have been done under warranty. I think £1k was done under the warranty and I paid the rest. It developed a fault with the gearbox towards the end of the warranty and I got fobbed off with software updates until the warranty expired and then they told me it needed a new gearbox and Citroen would not make a goodwill contribution due to the age of the car. It has also had a new alternator and it currently has a small hydraulic leak.
Compared to cars owned among my friends and family, I don't think Citroen is that bad. I've got a friend with a Toyota where the engine blew up just after the warranty expired. The difference is that Toyota fitted a new engine for free. I don't think Citroen would do that. Family members who have had problems with Mercedes and Volkswagen have been treated just as badly by their main dealers as I feel I have by Citroen.
Sorry for taking such a long and rambling trip down memory lane. In summary, my opinion is that Citroens are no less reliable than other mainstream brands, but when you do have problems, they can be difficult to fix and the dealers can be rubbish.
snotrag said:
For balance - 45k miles in our 2009 C3, other than a couple of bulbs it's been faultless. We absolutely love it and consciously chose it over Fiesta/Polo etc.
Would 100% buy another.
My wife had a 2011 c3, she and I couldn't wait to VT it, it was bloody awful, cheap plastic tat IMO.Would 100% buy another.
Having said that the new DS 5 looks stunning, but as the owner of a proper DS I don't think I could do it.
I don't know about late Citroens because I only run older cars but I have been running Citroen diesels for over 25 years and about half a million miles and I have generally found them reliable, I do repair them myself so it doesn't cost a fortune if they do go wrong. Peugeot/Citroen in my opinion make the best diesels of any manufacturer, its just that later engines suffer as a result of all the extra anti pollution equipment,they are certainly in a different league to Renaults who seem to make dreadful engines.
My most recent cars are a C5 with the 8 valve Hdi engine which are pretty well bombproof, mine has done over 200k now and I have had a few problems all of which I was able to fix myself, I only paid £550.00 for the car three years ago. I also have a Peugeot 406 with the same engine which had done 232k, 45k of which I have done and nothing of any consequence has gone wrong with it since I had it.
Unfortunately they only used that engine until 2004 and it was replaced with the 16 valve version which give a lot more problems but is still better than most others.
Peter
My most recent cars are a C5 with the 8 valve Hdi engine which are pretty well bombproof, mine has done over 200k now and I have had a few problems all of which I was able to fix myself, I only paid £550.00 for the car three years ago. I also have a Peugeot 406 with the same engine which had done 232k, 45k of which I have done and nothing of any consequence has gone wrong with it since I had it.
Unfortunately they only used that engine until 2004 and it was replaced with the 16 valve version which give a lot more problems but is still better than most others.
Peter
Lots of cars have Citroen/Peugeot engines, Fiesta, Focus, Mondeo, Transit, MINI, Aygo for example.
IME they are no better or worse than any other make, do your home work, there are certain models within the range that are best avoided (1.6 HDI) whilst others are long lasting and reliable.
IME they are no better or worse than any other make, do your home work, there are certain models within the range that are best avoided (1.6 HDI) whilst others are long lasting and reliable.
So far so good with my recently acquired DS5. After 3 months nothings broke and everything still works. The engine gets thrashed mercilessly (the 2.0 HDi 160 is a bit lacking) and uses no oil and still gets 44mpg. Interior is not the best quality (but probably the most stylish) and so far no bad squeaks or groans so all in all, a glowing short term report.
Mind you, if it was my own money I'd still be a bit concerned....
snotrag said:
For balance - 45k miles in our 2009 C3, other than a couple of bulbs it's been faultless. We absolutely love it and consciously chose it over Fiesta/Polo etc.
Would 100% buy another.
For more balance, this makes it slightly skewered on the basis of your vehicle history. What you think is good may be shocking to someone else.Would 100% buy another.
I've only ever had old Citroens, but they've all been hardly old buses. Xantias were excellent, and the BXs just keep going. Only one that ever gives any grief has been the Saxo, which keeps going, just keeps eating everything connected to it (droplinks, balljoints, bushes, bodywork (rust)....you name it. Newest one I've had was a Xsara Picasso 2.0 HDI which I've just waved goodbye to. Not a nice car to drive, or look at, or sit in. But it was reliable. In three years (bought at 114k miles miles) it's need a droplink, a wheel cylinder, MAF, lift pump in fuel tank and a backbox up until 140k miles. Oh, and a clutch, but that's wear and tear really. Mind you, I suppose so is the back box, and droplink, and wheel cylinder! Anyway, cost around £250 a year to run in repairs etc, which for the age and mileage was remarkable.
Newer Citroen can't be any worse than a newer(ish) Ford. S-Max has given loads of grief in the three weeks we've had it. Better than the Picasso to look at, drive, sit in - well, everything really. Except own......
Newer Citroen can't be any worse than a newer(ish) Ford. S-Max has given loads of grief in the three weeks we've had it. Better than the Picasso to look at, drive, sit in - well, everything really. Except own......
Kitchski said:
Newer Citroen can't be any worse than a newer(ish) Ford. S-Max has given loads of grief in the three weeks we've had it. Better than the Picasso to look at, drive, sit in - well, everything really. Except own......
Do elaborate, I no longer see your facebook updates of pain.Sump said:
snotrag said:
For balance - 45k miles in our 2009 C3, other than a couple of bulbs it's been faultless. We absolutely love it and consciously chose it over Fiesta/Polo etc.
Would 100% buy another.
For more balance, this makes it slightly skewered on the basis of your vehicle history. What you think is good may be shocking to someone else.Would 100% buy another.
I my ownership of the Picasso it has:
New clutch: 300
Lost its steering fluid after a hose perished: Fixed free of charge by AA.
New battery: 100
In my ownership of the Audi:
Clutch and DMFW: 1400
Fuel pump: 500
Battery: 100 (plus recovery by AA)
Random steering rack issue: 350
Window regulator failed: 320
Disintegrated DMFW 1400 (within 2.5 years of having a new one fitted)
That's just the stuff I remember. Added to that, the electric seat has several functions that don't work (drivers side) and the rear parking sensors beep constantly once the car is in reverse.
I know which I think is more reliable.
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