September 4, 2006. Copyright 2006, Graphic News. All rights reserved

Big Citroen C6 offers technology, comfort, individuality; but the Òsafest car in the worldÓ must win sales against German leaders

By Neil Winton

LONDON, September 4, Graphic News:  Citroen would like us to think that its C6 is a magnificent conglomeration of technology, luxury, comfort and cutting edge styling. But critics say it is another example of a manufacturer of mass market cars wasting billions on egocentric attempts to sell cars above its station against the likes of Mercedes, BMW and Audi, where it is bound to fail.

On the plus side, FranceÕs Citroen has a heritage to die for. There was the fabulous Citroen Traction Avant in the 1930s which pioneered a monocoque body without a chassis, and front-wheel drive. The DS in 1955 was aerodynamically and stylistically way ahead of its time and gave us hydropneumatic suspension, disc brakes and swivelling headlights.

But since its takeover by Peugeot in 1975, Citroen has lost its reputation for the avant-garde.

The C6 has a huge mountain to climb to match its rich history, not to mention the current competition. Its looks are impressive. It is big. It is sleek, at least most of it is. The back end lets the design down as it seems to lose itself in a mess of uncertainty. Inside it is huge and comfortable.

The quality of the interior is good without being up to the standards of the Germans. The C6 is packed with technology to make driving easier and safer, most notably the Head Up Display, which projects all the main information into a hologram at eye level, just like in a jet fighter.

The car has Xenon swivelling headlights, a speed-sensitive rear spoiler, electric parking brake, automatic windscreen wipers and lights, and cruise control with speed limiter. The ride is impressive thanks to the trade-mark self-levelling suspension.

Safety is a big bragging area for Citroen as it labels the C6 Òarguably, the safest car in the worldÓ because of its 5-star Euro NCAP rating for passenger protection and 4-star score for pedestrian safety.

There are three trim levels -- the C6, C6 Lignage and C6 Exclusive -- and two engines, a 3.0i litre V6 petrol and a 2.7 HDi V6 diesel. Prices start at £29,545 (Û43,400) and top out at £37,845 (Û55,500) for the Exclusive.

Citroen says that it is not competing with the Germans because of the small numbers it will be selling. It expects to sell 20,000 C6s globally in a year. BMW now sells more than one million premium cars around the world annually. According to Citroen, these few buyers will be won over by the C6Õs Òlooks, its class-leading levels of comfort and refinement and the companyÕs enviable reputation for creating iconic large cars,Ó combined with buyersÕ boredom with the Teutonic product.

The C6 is an admirable vehicle in many ways, but compared with the impact made in the past by the likes of the Traction Avant and the DS, the C6Õs looks are really mundane. BMW and the rest of the Germans are unlikely to be having any sleepless nights.
/ENDS