Citroen C5 Aircross Review 2024

If you’re after an SUV that’s almost as practical as a people carrier, with extremely comfortable seats and no delusions of sportiness, the Citroen C5 Aircross is a very good choice. There are fewer examples on the used market than, say, a Nissan Qashqai, but the C5 Aircross has been around long enough that you shouldn't have to search too hard to find the right example. 

Despite feeling borderline premium SUV in many ways, the Citroen C5 Aircross isn't an expensive choice when new and it represents very good value for money on the used market. It won't cost a great deal to run, either, particularly if you buy the plug-in hybrid version and charge it regularly.

If you want a Citroen C5 Aircross that feels more expensive than it really is, look for a top-spec C-Series Edition (previously known as Flair Plus or Black Edition model). Be careful, though, as this comes with an opening panoramic sunroof which does a brilliant job of brightening up the cabin, but it also hinders headroom – something to bear in mind if you (or anyone in your family) is more than six-foot tall.

In terms of engines, it depends on your requirements. We’d usually recommend a petrol or hybrid if you don’t cover many miles: the Puretech 130 is very good, particularly when combined with the automatic gearbox. High-mileage users should look at the BlueHDi 130 diesel or, if you need a particularly grunty SUV, the BlueHDi 180 (now dropped from the range). The plug-in hybrid is the most frugal of the bunch, provided you charge it regularly, while Citroen quotes a pure-electric range of 38 miles.

There’s no shortage of strong competition for the Citroen C5 Aircross. The Skoda Karoq is one of the best, with a versatile interior and a comfortable ride, and it also represents good value for money. We also rate the Peugeot 3008, which shares a platform with the C5 Aircross. 

The Kia Sportage and Hyundai Tucson are also great options offering style, value and a range of petrols, diesels and hybrids to choose from, while the Nissan Qashqai is eternally popular. You could also consider the Mazda CX-5, with its premium interior, or the popular Ford Kuga.

Of course, if you're willing to spend a bit more for that premium look and feel, there's plenty of choice, too. The DS 7 Crossback is related to the Citroen C5 Aircross but is classier inside and out, while the ubiquitous German offerings such as the BMW X1, Audi Q3 and Mercedes GLB offer a sportier driving experience and better tech. There's also the stylish Volvo XC40 and Jaguar E-Pace to consider, too.

In some ways, the Citroen C5 Aircross feels like a premium choice but, when you start digging around, you’ll find brittle-feeling plastics aplenty (particularly on the door cards and the lower half of the dashboard). Many of these were improved with the 2022 facelift, which saw a noticeable uplift in perceived quality.

Still, if you’re looking for a premium SUV, you’d be better off with an Audi Q3 or a Volvo XC40. The C5 Aircross is more about practicality than pampering the driver (and passengers) with an extremely posh finish, but it has a robust cabin that feels like it’ll stand up to the crumbs, spills and tantrums of family life.

New for 2022 was a 10.0-inch infotainment display fitted as standard across the Citroen C5 Aircross range. It's positioned higher up on the dashboard than before, which makes it less distracting to use on the move, while the rest of the dash has been given a welcome declutter. You now get sat-nav as standard, too, although we prefer to use Google Maps via Apple CarPlay and Android Auto.

Its graphics are sharper than before and it's simple enough to use, although we think rivals that don't rely entirely on touchscreen operation (such as the Mazda CX-5) are more user-friendly. It can be a bit laggy to respond, too, which gets a bit annoying.

Pre-facelift Citroen C5 Aircross models get an 8.0-inch display positioned in the centre of the dashboard, while the early entry-level cars missed out on navigation. That's no great loss, though, as you could still connect your phone via Apple CarPlay and Android Auto.

The graphics on the older system really looked past their sell-by date, and it’s also a really cumbersome system to use. The menus are difficult to navigate, while touch-sensitive shortcut buttons below the screen require glancing at while you’re driving. 

One of our biggest gripes is having to use this system to adjust the car’s heater. It's particularly annoying on those occasions where you need to see navigation directions at the same time as your passenger decides they’re cold.

One plus point is the 12.3-inch digital instrument cluster that’s standard across the range. Although it’s not quite in the same league as Audi’s Virtual Cockpit, it's easily customised and looks much smarter than old-school analogue dials.

Unusually, middle-seat passengers in the back of the Citroen C5 Aircross won’t feel short-changed. The rear bench is split into three equal seats and there’s a flat floor, meaning those sitting in the middle won’t have to straddle a transmission tunnel.

Despite having three full-size seats, only the outer ones have Isofix points for fitting child seats. There are Isofix points on the front passenger seat, too, though.

The clever rear bench can split into three and slide backwards and forwards, depending on whether you need to prioritise rear legroom or space in the boot. It’s a shame, though, that Citroen doesn’t offer a seven-seat version of the C5 Aircross. If you need more seats, we’d recommend looking at the slightly bigger Skoda Kodiaq or Peugeot 5008.

Up front, there's loads of space in the Citroen, especially in terms of width. A large centre console means the driver won’t be bashing elbows with their passenger and vice versa. You sit high up but there’s still bags of headroom, provided you don’t spec the panoramic sunroof (which is standard on Flair Plus/Black Edition models).

With the rear bench slid forward, there’s room for an impressive 720 litres of luggage in the boot of the C5 Aircross. This drops to 580 litres with the seat in its rearmost position, but that's still considerably more than a Nissan Qashqai and on a par with newer models such as the latest Kia Sportage.

Not only is it big, but the boot’s also a very handy shape. It’s usefully square, and a false floor reduces the boot lip for lifting bulky items over. The high-spec Flair Plus/Black Edition models have an electric tailgate that can be opened hands-free by shaking your foot under the rear bumper, very useful when your hands are full with shopping bags, for example.

In terms of dimensions, the Citroen C5 Aircross is 4,500mm long, 1969mm wide and up to 1689mm tall if roof bars are fitted. That makes it comparable with rivals such as the Mazda CX-5 and Peugeot 3008, slightly shorter than a Ford Kuga and in between the BMW X1 and BMW X3 in terms of size. 

Most buyers will find the Puretech 130 petrol engine suits the Citroen C5 Aircross very well. This is a 1.2-litre three-cylinder engine, which might sound tiny for a car of this size, but it’s actually more than up to the job of shifting this relatively light SUV. Its 10.5-second 0-62mph time sounds a bit lazy on paper, but it’ll happily accelerate to the limit within the distance of a motorway slip road.

This engine is offered with either a six-speed manual or eight-speed automatic transmission. Unless you’re particularly keen on changing gears yourself, we’d recommend the auto ’box. It suits the relaxed nature of the car, while the manual gearbox isn't the nicest to use and has a rather springy clutch operation. 

Citroen did briefly offer a Puretech 180 model using a 1.6-litre petrol engine with an eight-speed automatic transmission. This is a very refined setup that we wouldn’t hesitate to recommend if you’d prefer a bit more performance, although it’s obviously not going to be quite so frugal. These versions are also trickier to find on the used market.

Diesel buyers get a choice of a 1.5-litre BlueHDi 130 (with a manual or automatic gearbox - again, we’d recommend the auto), and a 2.0-litre BlueHDi 180 (which comes with an automatic transmission as standard).

Most buyers will opt for the more efficient 130 model, although you should consider the 180 if you plan to do any serious towing. The more powerful diesel is rated to tow a braked trailer up to 1650kg, while its 400Nm of torque should make light work of lugging a caravan.

A plug-in hybrid version was added to the range in 2020, combining an 80kW electric motor with the Puretech 180 petrol engine and eight-speed automatic gearbox. This produces a combined 225PS, making it the fastest C5 Aircross on sale, and it can cover 34 electric-only miles on a full charge.  It also promises sky-high fuel economy figures, but you'll only get these if you're able to plug it in regularly to use electric power most of the time.

At the time this review was last updated (February 2024), Citroen has just introduced a new hybrid powertrain that pairs an uprated version of the 1.2 petrol engine with a 28PS electric motor and a six-speed twin-clutch gearbox, and we haven't yet had the opportunity to try it.

As you’d expect for an SUV that puts the emphasis on comfort, the Citroen C5 Aircross is a very refined choice. In fact, we’d go as far as saying it’s almost as refined as premium rivals like the Mercedes-Benz GLC.

The Puretech 130 can be quite vocal in other Citroens, but it’s been quietened down in the C5 Aircross. You’ll notice a distinctive thrum if you’re heavy with the accelerator pedal but, generally, it’s no noisier than similar engines offered in rivals.

For the ultimate in petrol refinement, look for a C5 Aircross with the PureTech 180 engine that was offered until early 2020. This is so quiet you could be forgiven for thinking the motor isn’t running at motorway speeds.

The diesels are equally impressive, especially the BlueHDi 180. Aside from the usual diesel grumble on startup, this is a very muted engine that really suits the refined C5 Aircross.

When it’s charged, the plug-in hybrid model can glide around town in near-silence for up to 34 miles, obviously making it a very refined choice. Once it’s out of electricity, the Puretech 180 petrol engine kicks in with only a slight drop in refinement. This is particularly noticeable if you floor the throttle in Sport mode, but this isn't the car to be doing that in anyway.

The Citroen C5 Aircross is available with no fewer than 19 safety and driver aid systems, ranging from trailer stability control (which applies the brakes if it detects a swaying trailer) to an active lane departure system (which will nudge the steering if you start straying from your lane).

If these appeal, it’s worth looking for models with the optional Safety Plus Pack fitted. This is standard on top-spec models and was offered as an affordable option on lesser trim levels. It added things like the active city brake, coffee break alert, lane keeping assist, active blind spot monitoring and adaptive cruise control, all of which are genuinely useful, acting almost like a second pair of eyes.

When the Citroen C5 Aircross was crash tested by Euro NCAP in 2019, it actually tested two C5 Aircross models: with the Safety Plus Pack and without it. With it, the car was awarded a maximum five-out-of-five safety rating. Without it, that dropped to four stars.

While Euro NCAP clearly favours cars with technology intended to prevent a crash, the C5 Aircross is still a very safe car in a crash with or without these features. The standard car achieved an 87 per cent rating for adult occupants, which is very good, and a similarly good 86 per cent rating for children.

ISOFIX points are fitted to the front passenger seat, as well as the outer rear seats, meaning you can easily fit up to three child seats in the C5 Aircross.

Citroens have historically not had a stellar reputation for reliability, and sure enough the brand finished in the bottom five manufacturers in the latest HonestJohn.co.uk Satisfaction Index, along with sister brand Peugeot. 

However, there's less to choose between brands on the reliability front than ever before, meaning the C5 Aircross should prove generally dependable. The engines are all well-proven and found across a multitude of other models from Citroen, Peugeot, Vauxhall and DS, too. There's more potential issues to be found with the technology and electrical systems (another traditional Citroen weak spot), but so far we've not heard of any major problems. 

However, you might not get a great deal of comfort from Citroen's three-year, 60,000-mile warranty, which is a bare-minimum arrangement.

Insurance groups range from 16 to 28 for the Citroen C5 Aircross. That’s comparable to rivals, with the cheapest model to insure being the Sense with the Puretech 130 engine. The priciest is the Hybrid.

The C5 Aircross’s focus on comfort rather than sportiness should help with insurance costs. No models should be expensive to insure but it’s always worth shopping around for quotes. Check out our top 10 tips to get cheaper car insurance.

You’ll pay a flat rate of £180 a year for most Citroen C5 Aircross models under the latest VED car tax rules. Only the first year is affected by CO2 emissions, and if you're buying used, the first owner will have picked up the tab for this. Plug-in hybrid models will cost £170 a year in tax. Cars that cost over £40,000 when brand new - including options - are subject to an 'additional luxury car' tax surcharge of £390 per year for five years, but it's currently not possible to spec up a C5 Aircross beyond that threshold, although with car prices creeping ever upwards, that probably won't always be the case.

The Citroen C5 Aircross line-up has been rejigged quite a few times over the years - so much so that now fewer than 14 seperate trim levels have existed over the years - but it now comprises of just three trim levels: Plus, Max and e-series.

Plus provides a really strong level of equipment, with niceties such as dual-zone air-conditioning, automatic lights and wipers, cruise control, all-round LED lighting, front-and rear parking sensors, a reversing camera, four electric windows and the full infotainment package. 

Max adds keyless entry, a different interior finish and the additional safety kit, while the e-series only really adds a panoramic roof and heated front seats.

Before that, there were Sense Plus, Shine and C-Series Edition trims, and before that, trims included Feel, Flair and Flair Plus. There have been small incremental changes in equipment levels over the years, but the traditional trims are broadly comparable with those of today.