Be sad and swallow your tears: the new Citroën ë-C4 X is not made for us, poor Alpicor. Taxis and the VTC will find their boots there…as long as they don’t leave town.
“The ë-C4 X? What is it again?”, you will be tempted to think. My Cartesian mind suggests that you cut off this end. “C4”, we know. The Citroën Accord is in its third generationWe face six a day, that’s okay. On the other hand, the ‘X’ suffix is new. Semantically, the letter “X” in the name of the car, it smells like an SUV … except that this generation of the C4 has already been upgraded. In what direction is Citroen committed? Then we think of the C5 X, the large road car in the range, which adopts ground clearance ++ and a slender station wagon silhouette. Will the C4 X therefore be the C4 station wagon? Poor baby, the brand hasn’t been interested in station wagons for a long time. No, “X” should rather be understood as “cross” (“X” is short for “cross” in English). Indeed, Citroën presents this model as combining, I quote, “The elegance of a fastback silhouette, the modern look of an SUV and the timeless character of a spacious four-door“. Amen.
So the globe bulga. How do designers fare? It’s purely subjective, but you have to recognize a certain talent in them because they had to hold the front doors And The rear of the original C4, causing restraints that I imagine are crazy enough to be able to hang the trunk on in a fairly cohesive fashion. The wheelbase might have benefited from being longer, and the very sleek rear might come in a bit jarring with the very drawn in front, but in my view it takes a good transplant at the end.
In terms of the cabin, on the other hand, there are far fewer surprises given that the ë-C4 X has the same dashboard as its ‘not-X’ sister. And this dashboard…well, it’s really not crazy. It’s neither too original nor too flashy… Yet Citroën has proven to us that it can do better! Come on, there are some good ideas, such as the physical air conditioning controls or the tray above the glove box – the storage spaces are numerous and practical too, it should be noted. The quality of the materials is standard, nothing more, while the interior ambience is also taken here from the “normal” C4; Which means that apart from the red leather upholstery (which commands a surcharge of €590 for even the most premium finish) it’s black, black or black. It’s not repulsive, especially with the remarkably soft Advanced Comfort seats, but what a colorful interior a few years ago (brown velvet and jagged dashboard with I miss C4 Cactus <3) ...
Ah yes ! Something is changing on this dashboard: the central screen, which is carried over to the new generation. It thus joins the latest previous PSA creations (DS 3/4/7, Peugeot 308/408, Citroën C5 X, Opel Astra) with the promise of a streamlined ergonomics, notably via customizable home pages via widgets, and update graphics. No wonder in this aspect, we actually find a much better interface, with higher resolution screens for the parking cameras (finally), while the GPS with traffic information is still quite adequate. It lacks a rather important feature of electricity, but I’ll tell you about it later.
But hey, what changes most about the ë-C4 X is still the space on board. As I was telling you, the brand decided not to modify the wheelbase in this “Berlin” of the C4, so the rear passengers wouldn’t have as much room to stretch their legs. However, even if we would appreciate a little more to show that Citroën pushed the idea of presenting a ‘real’ sedan, the C4 X clearly benefits from a very welcome 2 in terms of legroom – a level head, which should not exceed 1.85m. The 2nd row also benefits from the seat backrest reclined at 27 degrees, slightly more than the hatchback, to benefit a more pleasant passenger position. everything is OK.
In fact, the 24 cm of length gained compared to the C4 is transferred exclusively to the rear. And 24 cm is a lot. It allows the boot volume of 380 liters (a respectable score indeed) to be increased to 510 liters and thus accessible from the trunk. A stem doesn’t bother me any more, even if I realize the opening could be made wider at its base. So yes, it is less practical than a hatchback, but the Mediterranean, Middle Eastern and Asian markets prefer this solution. And since the C4 X is primarily intended for these markets…
Engine levels, the C4 X arrives in France with two PureTech petrol engines (100 hp BVM6 and 130 hp EAT8), a diesel engine (BlueHDi 130 EAT8) and an electric motor, which is what interests us today. While the Citroën tests were conducted simultaneously with the restyled DS 3 tests (We were there), the ë-C4 X does not use the new inboard engine of 115 kW and the new battery of 54 kWh from the small installment and therefore has to be content with the “old” GMP, with the Continental engine of 100 kW and the battery of 50 kWh . independence? 360 km, or three small kilometers more than the C4. Aerodynamics benefits!
What did I remember after eight days and 425 km behind the wheel of the ë-C4 X? Overall good. First of all, the sobriety of the car is very impressive, since I prepared it with an on-board computer that showed me an average consumption of 13.7 kWh / 100 km – enough to promise me with a theoretical autonomy of 340 km in temperatures between 10 and 15 degrees. Celsius, which is very correct given the capacity of the battery; This is all true since I was at 13.3kWh/100km before the photo session, which was inevitably greedy. Comfort is also at a good level. Well, there are few surprises, suspension systems with hydraulic progressive damping supported by Advanced Comfort seats have proven themselves for a few years now. Citroën provides very progressive cushioning on speed bumps, while the extremely comfortable seats do the job over long distances.
acceleration level? He is honest. The “eco” mode is frankly soft, the “normal” mode allows you to make inserts and caps without the slightest problem; On the other hand, the “Sport” mode gives the C4 X quite a bit of punch (in a straight line only, very soft suspensions tend to create a lot of body roll in turns taken at optimistic speed). When braking, the picture becomes a little dark, the fault of the very soft brake pedal and the really unpleasant feeling. To partially remedy this, there is a ‘B’ mode which will increase force recovery when you take your foot up and thus save you some braking, but in no way does it provide ‘one pedal’ driving. Honda or the Mercedes-Benz EQE.
Let’s end the regrets with two final points. Let’s start with a major weakness of GPS: it is impossible to plan a route according to the different charging points that can be reached if the destination is outside the autonomy of the vehicle. For once, it’s frankly disappointing. So yes, I can hear from here the Citroën comm service reminding me that the MyCitroën app offers it and that we can send the route directly to the GPS … but the lack of it in the original does not seem very correct to me in an electric car from 2023 is less serious, the The overhead view is frankly dispensable for my taste given the poverty of expected information; The screen behind the steering wheel seems small at first glance but somehow manages to display all the information I asked for. Everyone (👀 Volkswagen ID.5 👀) I can’t say the same!
Let’s finish with the prices. Where the C4 X starts at €27,650, the ë-C4 X starts at €39,950 (-€5,000 bonus). On the other side of the spectrum, the full Citroën ë-C4 X Shine Pack (metallic paint, sunroof, leather, heated seats, induction charging) costs €48,050, bonus of €1,000 undiscounted. It is … cheaper than the “normal” C4, which starts electric at 41,200 euros for the same finish. Surprising to say the least!
But what if this electric version wasn’t made for us? Because the press release, which arrived slyly over the Christmas holidays, reads the headline in all caps: “Citroën launches competitive turnkey offers for passenger transport professionals on the ë-C4 XWith that promise: the ë-C4 X Shine is available in a metallic finish or In finance lease for 820€ per month incl tax for 48 months and 200,000 km after 6,550€ contribution or 12-month subscription and 50,000 km for a monthly payment of 1,590 euros inclusive of taxes, including insurance, maintenance and ten tire changes. I had no idea the attractiveness of the offer, so I went to see the competitors: At Toyota, the favorite Target with CamryCorolla TS and C-HR Hybrids, I was told no show was put up. I just found Mobilize, a subsidiary of Renault, which also offers a Limo (an electric sedan of Chinese origin that is quite comparable to a Citroën) as a subscription with the same guarantees for … 1,999 euros incl. tax per month for 12 months and 50,000 km . Nice shot of Citroën, obviously.
And let’s drive that point home with this second press release, this time published by Free2move last September: “A major partnership for an environmental transition! Free2move joins forces with Uber France to accelerate the transition to electric vehicles for VTC drivers“- Free2move is the Stellantis brand that specializes in ‘mobility’, in particular offering short/medium/long term car rental solutions. Here, the terminology is a bit more ambiguous; just so we’ll know Uber drivers will have, I quote,”Access exclusive offers for [leur] It allows you to take advantage of the best prices on the models of the Stellantis range most suitable for VTC activity“, while “Financial contribution to the Uber Electric Mobility Plan [sera] Deducted directly from the price paid by the driver“.
So things seem clear to me: as much as people will see midday on their doorstep with the heat engines of the C4 X (don’t lie to us: 350 km of maximum autonomy for a family car, it’s still not crazy), much like Citroën seems to do it all To make the electric version available to taxis and VTCs driving in ZFE. Either way, we end up with a car that’s spacious and comfortable, maybe not insanely modern but does the job. Without being particularly glamorous, but which does the job. Let’s face it: Europe’s general-purpose sedan has never really shone, but I’m curious to see how the C4 X will fare in its favored markets, and especially if we come across chauffeur-driven electric versions in our city centers…
Image credits: The Intern ChasingJean-Baptiste Pasio
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