2023 Citroen C5: diesel engine and automatic transmission - (1 of 3 in a review series of short rentals in Italy)

[trinacriabob]

This road test of the Citroen C5 was the result of a serious upgrade in a rental at a Sicilian airport.   I’ve been assigned a smaller Citroen C3 at this very airport before – when the AirBump feature was novel and unusual - and remarked on its excellent ride and easy handling.

The C5 is quite a few steps up.  Mostly, it’s all good.  This is a heavier vehicle and, along with that, the ride is like that of a bank fault.  It’s smooth, quiet, and isolated.  In some ways, it is perhaps too isolated.  By this, I mean that road feel is a little compromised owing to its very soft ride, and there is too much assist in the steering.  I noticed this upon taking out of the rental agency’s lot and through its narrow alleyways. It reminded me of an American boulevardier more so than the European SUV that it is.  It firms up some on the open road.  It’s at slow speeds that it feels way more "electric" – the way electric felt when there was the palpable adjustment we all had to make from hydraulic steering.

This C5 had a diesel engine, but it was almost hard to tell that.  It is a turbo charged 4-cylinder engine.  The mileage was excellent.  It returned about 43 mpg in a combination of driving – mostly highway driving but with some small town and arduous mountain two lane road driving.  The transmission is a geared automatic unit and has 8 gears.  The shifts are extremely soft, which I feel is mostly a good thing, and suited to the C5.  The only time it’s clear that it’s geared is when pushing down the pedal – just because - or to pass.

The C5 is powerful enough and certainly has the torque to sustain grades and demanding conditions.  However, passing seems to be a variable situation.  It almost seems to depend on the speed and the grade.  In most situations, it does so fairly easily.  High speed passes require some strategizing, and, in a few rare cases, it seemed better to avoid them.  In maintaining high speeds on the autostrada, it does so effortlessly and stably.  You might not have an idea how fast you’re going (114 km = 70 mph, and, on a few occasions, there were some 120 kms and 130 kms where the “bank vault” feeling didn’t let on that this was the actual speed).

The workmanship is quite good.  The seats had centralized cloth surfaces with bolsters and side construction of either leather or leatherette.  There is stitching that is attractive and taut.  The C5 is ideal and comfortable for long hauls.  Front seat comfort and leg room is more than adequate, and rear seat leg room is acceptable.  Rear storage space is capacious, and this is without folding forward the rear seats.  The small lift-up area for the tire well provides for some additional storage and symmetrical small cubbies on the sides of the rear storage area can come in handy.

Except for the diagonal edge on the infotainment center screen (a pet peeve), I really liked the volumes of the dashboard. Everything was nicely crafted.  Linear gauges for fuel and temperature seem to be the thing these days and, although nice, it would be easier if they indicated critical zones in orange and/or red.  The audio quality appeared to be good.  Also, setting up Bluetooth and keeping Android Auto going seemed easy.

The console, which opens lengthwise in the middle, is both unusual and large.  The air conditioning works quickly.  In concert with liking the volumes of the dashboard, the number and placement of vents worked well to distribute the cool air.  Ahead of the console are two ergonomically placed cupholders and all the switches for key operating functions ahead of them reflect quality workmanship and are easy to operate. These would include the pushbutton engine start button, the transmission lever, the drive mode selector, and the parking brake.  That said, I found operating some of these features on a rented (and reviewed) BMW Series II Gran Coupe less intuitive.  In general, I liked everything about day in-day out living in this C5 more than in the fussier BMW Gran Coupe.  However, with its lower framework and Germanic underpinnings, the BMW really shone for its roadability and the sense of control it offered.

The C5’s silhouette is not that captivating.  However, they work around the “chunkiness” and this can be seen from the interior.  I was surprised at how good rear visibility is.  The seating position is high and commanding relative to the road.  In tight spaces, the tabletop look of the hood ahead of the windshield doesn’t have clearly defined ridges and is harder to work with.  It appears wide for the genre.  Thankfully, the parking assist feature and other traffic sensors were fairly sensitive.

I asked a friend who likes cars and rents them often in Europe what he thought of the major French brands.  He ranked them as follows: Citroen, Peugeot, and then Renault.  This vehicle speaks well to the Citroen brand and also aligned with what I’ve experienced among these brands.

For a person with a little extra money and who needs the space, a supple ride, and its “thickness” all the way around, the Citroen C5 is a good choice.  On a few occasions, its vagueness annoyed me, but that wasn’t too often.  It was challenging to operate on a few narrower Sicilian streets and alleys, but that would apply to narrow streets and parking lots anywhere.  For some, this C5 could check most, if not all, of the boxes.

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PHOTOS FORTHCOMING

[trinacriabob]

EXTERIOR PHOTOS

Side view - at a large underground garage for a major shopping center

Front view - on a hill overlooking the Mediterranean on the south coast of Sicily

Rear view - on a hill looking back inland toward a historical monastery

Edited June 24, 2024 by trinacriabob

[trinacriabob]

INTERIOR PHOTOS

This is the view upon getting into the car - very comfortable seating, slightly high console deck, clamshell console box, and tasteful dash finishes

As seen from the passenger side, the console's different command functions (gear selector, parking brake, drive mode, and push button start) are really nicely put together and easy to use - possibly the best I've seen so far in a European vehicle

Full view of instrument panel - toggles on steering wheel not too fussy, nice assembly of A/C vents, touch screen appearance not to my liking although operation was fairly easy, and it looks like that USB port, if I recall, is the one that best "talks" to Android Auto

They did the last "opera window," or window in the last pillar, just right for visibility

Rear seat room is appropriate, not to mention that it features pleasing assembly

Rear seat ducts and USB port

Rear storage are (covered) and I rarely see 3 split seats like there is here

Luggage now stowed in rear storage area, with some room left for more items

[trinacriabob]

MECHANICAL PHOTOS

View of turbocharged inline 4-cylinder diesel engine for which a prop rod was needed to keep the hood up

Longitudinal view of engine which provides some insight as to the location and appearance of the turbocharger

[trinacriabob]

BONUS PHOTOS

Look for a Greek temple ... that's not in Greece.  This is as close as I could get to Valle dei Templi without paying, as I've already seen it up close once before

In most roadside fuel stops on the autostrada, there is always an Autogrill (sort of like Denny's, but not really since the table service part is minimal) where you can pick up sandwiches, pizza slices, drinks, use the restrooms, and, of course, see people standing up at a counter and drinking small cups of coffee that taste like kerosene.

The usual ... nothing changes ... Andrea True singing implied smut to me on the autostrada across the middle of Sicily

30 degrees C in Sicily's interior and, since it's not ventilated by the sea, it can get really toasty in July and August, albeit dry, but it's still uncomfortably hot

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END OF PHOTOS

Edited June 24, 2024 by trinacriabob

[Robert Hall]

I remember the fast food at an Autogrill on the Autostrada from Salerno to Rome having decent food...that was 20 years ago.

[G. David Felt]

30C is too damn hot for me. Have fun on your road trip.

[trinacriabob]

1 hour ago, Robert Hall said:

I remember the fast food at an Autogrill on the Autostrada from Salerno to Rome having decent food...that was 20 years ago.

That you even drove in Salerno and on the Amalfi Coast, presumably with a manual, is sort of amazing to me.  I have some major issues with the region of Campania in general ... blame it on Naples.  Autogrill is okay for tide over food.  More people seem to go in for stand-up coffee (not me) or clean enough restrooms (me).  There are at least 2 in the north where the Autogrill sits in one big building that is placed over the autostrada and can be reached from the pullouts on both sides of it.

1 hour ago, G. David Felt said:

30C is too damn hot for me. Have fun on your road trip.

Right.  The PacNW thickens one's blood.  I remember.  But perfect coffee weather.  I'd go down to California at about March to visit and they'd comment on how pale I had become.  So, it's also a great place for good skin and you know this when you walk outside on a cool morning.

That 30C can brush 40C in July and August in Sicily's interior.  I'm in the north right now and the felt heat index today has hit the equivalent of 99F.

[Robert Hall]

Yes, we had rented a Mercedes A-class with a manual at Avis at the Rome airport.  Day tripped down to Pompeii, Sorrento, around the Amalfi Coast.  Lake lunch in Positano.  It was one of the most scenic drives of my life…

[trinacriabob]

7 hours ago, Robert Hall said:

Yes, we had rented a Mercedes A-class with a manual at Avis at the Rome airport.  Day tripped down to Pompeii, Sorrento, around the Amalfi Coast.  Lake lunch in Positano.  It was one of the most scenic drives of my life…

Surprisingly, one of the most scenic drives for me was not coastal, but mountainous:  the Great Dolomites Road (Grande Strada dei Dolomiti).  It takes almost 3 hours to travel 60 miles.

I've done this twice ... about 10 years apart ... not my photos above, but I took at least 100 each time.

Highly recommended!

[Robert Hall]

On 6/28/2024 at 7:12 PM, trinacriabob said:

Surprisingly, one of the most scenic drives for me was not coastal, but mountainous:  the Great Dolomites Road (Grande Strada dei Dolomiti).  It takes almost 3 hours to travel 60 miles.

I've done this twice ... about 10 years apart ... not my photos above, but I took at least 100 each time.

Highly recommended!

Spectacular.  I would definitely enjoy that.