New Citroen C3 revealed
Fresh styling and technology highlight French brand’s new small hatchback.
Citroen has shown off its new C3 hatch, with the hopes of bringing the small car back to the Australian market.
The previous-generation C3 was culled from the French brand's local line-up after poor sales results.
However, Citroen is looking to revitalise its small car's fortunes with a new design that brings it in line with the current model range and updated technology to make it more competitive in the cutthroat small car segment.
Its funky looks will help it stand out from the crowd, highlighted by its two is better than one theme, including a double chrome bar that runs into the Citroen badge, double grille and two-tier headlights coupled with the colour surrounded fog lamps and a floating roof line.
Citroen has also brought its 'airbump' door panels across from its new Cactus city SUV, where air filled bumps protect the paint from scratches and dings from everyday city living.
The new C3 is offered with a two tone paint scheme, with nine body colour options and three roof varieties that are interchangeable to make a possible 36 colour combinations.
The roof colour is also matched in the fog lamp surrounds, airbump surrounds and the side mirrors.
Inside the new C3 features a more spacious cabin than before with an emphasis put on simplifying its layout.
A 7-inch touchscreen takes pride of place on the dash, removing most of the buttons necessary in the centre console. The interior also features 'trunk-strap' door pulls - as seen in the Cactus - and chrome surround air vents.
As befits a modern Citroen the interior can also be customised in a choice of four 'moods', where the dashboard trim, upholstery trim and stitching are matched.
The new C3 also comes with keyless entry and ignition, Apple CarPlay and Android Auto, reversing camera with park assist, lane departure warning, blind spot monitoring and driver alerts.
A two megapixel wide-angle HD camera is situated behind the rear vision mirror that can record what the driver sees. The driver is able to take photos or short 20 second films - when stationary - that are stored via a cloud based system. The camera will automatically activate in the event of a vehicle impact and will save footage from 30 seconds before and 60 seconds after the impact.
Offered with the choice of three three-cylinder petrol and two diesel engine variants in a variety of tunes, all have the option of either a standard manual or optional automatic transmission.
Citroen Australia is currently in the process of working out if it will offer the new C3 locally.
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