Citroen C4 Cactus: Review
Perhaps not a natural PH car but the C4 Cactus is a welcome return to weird for Citroen
Citroen does a Duster?
Witness Porschephile Jerry Seinfeld sweet, slightly battered old Beetle that helps him slip anonymously around Manhattan, or the well-used black '89 Bentley Turbo R Jay Leno jumps into when he fancies an In-N-Out Burger in the middle of the night. Even our very own funny, but surprisingly-serious-in-real-life Rowan Atkinson chooses to potter around in a mid-nineties Polo Harlequin (I might have made that up) when his Aston breaks or the F1 is in for a twenty grand service.
Soon they'll all be driving C4 Cacti, because Citroen might have cracked the perfect second, third, fourth or tenth car.
Farewell car park dings!
You don't deserve to be called a proper PHer if you haven't at least for a microsecond considered life with a Dacia Duster. Here was a car that was interesting, tough, dirt cheap and, dare we say it, disposable. I know a Duster owner, with a small collection of supercars, who actually aims at kerbs when he parks it, will never service it and will only wash it when the police accuse him of perverting the course of justice on account of his mud-caked number plates.
What's stopped most normal people actually buying the Duster was the so-so drive, horrible interior and the fact it looks like it's been designed during the Cold War.
The Cactus is for those people. It takes the concept of utilitarian motoring Citroen practically invented in the thirties with the 2CV and lathers the Duster concept with some French polish.
Drives like an old Citroen (mostly a good thing)
When a car maker tells you it's shaved 200kg off the kerbweight of a car I think polycarbonate windows, carbon fibre, Akrapovic exhaust and no seats - but that's how much engineers claim is the difference in weight between the C4 hatch and the Cactus.
Of course they're lying. I'd wager most of that weight saving comes from using a smaller modified DS3 undergarments instead of the larger C4 platform, but there has been genuine weight saving, some cynical, some inspired.
The bonnet, for example, is aluminium, the windscreen washer jets are also incorporated into the wipers and are so efficient the washer reservoir is half the size, saving 1.5kg.
The rear pop out windows (-11kg) and the one-piece rear seat (-6kg) are less convincing- yep, a family car that doesn't have split folding seats even as an option isn't useful.
Thankfully almost all of this can be forgiven by the attention to detail that has been lavished on the Citroen.
Surprise and delight aplenty here
Inside is where you'll find the Cactus' best feature.
Forget the Dacia's hard plastics, or others' soft plastics that try and fail to replicate the feeling of quality of a terminally dull small Volkswagen. No, here we have something that feels genuinely new from the cool faux leather door pulls, to the seventies soft furnishings. It even has a fifties suitcase glovebox that offers lots of storage (the passenger airbag lives in the roof - a world first Citroen claim.)
One slight gripe is ventilation is limited. Curiously, for the front passenger there's only one large air vent that wasn't close to being enough on our drive on only a warm day.
Biggest crime from a PH perspective is the lack of a rev counter on the cool LCD display ahead of the steering wheel.
No PH hero, but rather appealing nonetheless
Citroen says Cactus owners can will rely instead on the upshift indicator for economy driving, I of course relied on the sudden, but sure intervention of the rev limiter.
Initially there's the choice of 75, 82 and 110hp versions of the 1.2-litre petrol and a 92 and 100hp version of the 1.6-litre HDI diesel, with the more powerful Blue HDI able to average 91.1mpg.
The most powerful 1.2-litre still delivers low running costs (60.1mpg) but offers reasonable pace too. It is a vocal performer, sometimes sounding glorious when you're working it but more often a bit rough and ready.
For some inexplicable reason the Cactus launch was in Amsterdam and the roads were predictably dull, but the Cactus rode well and, get over the body roll and the Citroen offered some throttle adjustability. It all feels a world away from a Duster powered by a wheezy 1.6 petrol.
Cactus much more than just a bold design
The Cactus will never be the perfect PH car. There's no four-wheel drive option, it's significantly pricier than the Dacia and I doubt it will be setting any new Nurburgring records in the near future (Ed - that sounds like a challenge), but what is most surprising is the Cactus might just be the most likeable Citroen since the Xsara VTS - and that's something we should all celebrate.
Put it on your list when you get your million pound car collection and make sure you never, ever wash it.
CITROEN C4 CACTUS PURETECH FLAIR 110 S&S
Engine: 1,199cc 3-cyl turbo
Transmission: 5-speed manual, front-wheel drive
Power (hp): 110@5,500rpm
Torque (lb ft): 151@1,500rpm
0-62mph: 9.3sec
Top speed: 117mph
Weight: 1,020kg
MPG: 60.1mpg
CO2: 107g/km
Price: £17,195 (est)
 |
 |
 |
 |
The ACTUAL solution to car park dings is to drive a snotter - it's hilarious parking those next to Mr or Mrs DebtRidden in their "newer than the neighbours, bought to make us happier"-mobile
Which, when I come to think about it, is where 90% of these are going to wind-up, isn't it?
p.s. I should add that I'm all for modern Citroens which carry some of what a Citroen should be - but I'm not sure this is it. I saw a Xantia Estate yesterday tho and that made me smile ;0
Indicator of the times
Citroen says Cactus owners can will rely instead on the upshift indicator for economy driving, I of course relied on the sudden, but sure intervention of the rev limiter
It is great to see PSA not trying to compete with the seas of grey, black and three letter systems brigade to the East. Put character back into people's motoring.
Which, when I come to think about it, is where 90% of these are going to wind-up, isn't it?
p.s. I should add that I'm all for modern Citroens which carry some of what a Citroen should be - but I'm not sure this is it. I saw a Xantia Estate yesterday tho and that made me smile ;0
Move with the times old man...
Not quite my thing. But great that Cit are making these. Especially like the consideration taken regarding avoiding dings and scratches. Hope this sets a trend for utility type vehicles. Sadly, the world is full of clumsy sociopaths...
I just hope the new buyers choose it in the funky colours that work so well on it. I fear, however, it will be another case of that oh-so-British disease - speccing a new car for its resale value.
'We've decided on a Cactus, as we loved the pictures of it in brown or yellow or orange, and we want a car that's a bit different from the crowd. So we'll have it in black with black airbumps, please.'
Gassing Station | General Gassing | Top of Page | What's New | My Stuff