In a world dominated by SUVs, dare to embrace the spirit of a petite French car. This one perhaps. With a price tag of R229,900, it’s a delight.
The Citroën C3 is a familiar hatchback on our roads, and this iteration the best yet. It is designed to offer a stylish, comfortable, and affordable alternative to the many hatch-cum-SUVs on the market, but with typical Gallic charm. It is powered by a thrummy 1.2-litre three-cylinder engine that produces 61kW and 115Nm of torque. It is paired with a five-speed manual transmission and can achieve fuel economy of up to 5.6 l/100 km. There’s plenty of shunt here for urban driving, even at the reef (altitude) where our test drive was conducted.
We’ve already covered its stylish exterior – but I’ll reiterate that it is properly eye-catching with flared arches, front skid plates, halogen lamps, roof rails, and a bold cabin with an anodized (look) dash. The C3’s interior is comfortable and spacious. The seats are supportive and well-cushioned, and there’s plenty of legroom and headroom for both front and rear passengers. The cabin is also fairly quiet, even at highway speeds. It comes standard with a long list of features, including air conditioning, power windows, adjustable mirrors, plenty of hidey holes and cubbies for storage, a 10-inch touchscreen infotainment system with Android Auto and CarPlay. Also present, USB ports front and back, ABS, EBD, PDC, keyless entry, alarm, and immobilizer.
The C3 is available in four solid colours or in six dual-tone options. Also on offer are two additional packages ala Elegance (R2200) and Energy (R2700) with varying hop-ups such as daytime running lights, fog lamps etc. Alloy wheels are R8300.
Getting on with it then, I particularly enjoyed getting on in it – the tiny three pot buzzing along like a charming French thing, with a soft suspension ironing out the pockmarked roads of Gauteng. It is rare in the way it puts a smile on your face despite having a tiny thimble of grunt to draw upon, while serving up a pleasant driving experience and a characterful living space. I was endeared to it all at once, and hope to see a slieu of them on our roads. At this price, the C3 is too good to fail.
Price: R229,900 includes: 2 Years / 30 000 km Service Plan and 5 Years / 100 000 km Warranty Plan