Shropshire Star

Cute little 'un from the French

Buying a new Citroen C1 might come down to looks and how you get on with the nearest dealer.

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For this latest little 'un from the French car maker is but one of a trio of cloned cars all made in the same factory and emerging more or less the same, minus some styling details and equipment levels.

It's also available as the Toyota Aygo or the Peugeot 108 and all three sit on a heavily reworked chassis from the older model that emerged from the same plant in the Czech Republic and was a strong seller among younger buyers and empty nesters looking for a smaller car.

Citroen reckons you'll fall for its C1 because of its 'cheerful smile'.

Yes, it does look a happy machine from full-on, thanks to the big oval headlights that mark it out from its Toyota and Peugeot close relatives.

It looks smart from the back too, and a lot more grown up than the old C1, even though both cars are pretty much the same size inside and out (which means room for four average-sized adults and a modestly proportioned boot).

The Citroen (and Peugeot) distance themselves from the Toyota offering with the option of a 1.2-litre engine instead of the 1.0-litre unit that's the only one available with the Japanese badge on the bonnet.

Toyota doesn't think enough people would choose the larger engine, built by Citroen and Peugeot, over its own smaller one (made by Toyota and sold to Citroen and Peugeot), to make it worthwhile adding to the brochure.

Perhaps not; Citroen reckons eight out of ten buyers will go for the 1.0-litre engine in its own offering. But Toyota does offer an automatic gearbox option (so do the others) and that's likely to be rare as hen's teeth on dealer order sheets.

Anyway, back to the cheerful C1, arriving in a car market made much tougher than when the first one arrived in 2005, with the likes of a new Fiat Panda and the VW Up!/SEAT Mii/Skoda Citigo clones all offering compelling opposition these days.

Same

Prices start at £8,245, which is the same as the Peugeot 108 but £350 less than Toyota charges for its lead-in Aygo. Toyota would reckon the difference was worth it because you'll have a better warranty (five years or 100,000 miles plays three years/60,000 miles) and the likelihood your used Toyota would be worth a bit more at resale time, simply because of the badge.

But logic plays less of a role in the purchase of a car than an accountant might like. If you think the C1 looks smart and is affordable, you're a long way down the buying path already.

Throw in a friendly local dealer and your feet are almost over the threshold as you feel for a pen to sign on the bottom line.

But which version to go for? The C1 range tops out at £11,935, which puts the car up against a host of larger cars with sterling reputations, even if it comes as standard with £850 worth of electric folding fabric roof that turns this model into one of the C1 Airscape versions, and includes the auto gearbox too.

More modestly priced, with a £350 premium over the 1.0 litre car, the 1.2 litre engine gives the C1 a livelier feel out of town, needs less gear changing and will hardly penalise you at the pumps

. You'd have to drive either version with real bravado to sink below 50mpg in everyday use.

Direct steering and a pliant ride make this little car feel rather grown up, although the modest prices are reflected in a cabin where well fitted but hard plastic rules instead of the softer surfaces enjoyed higher up the automotive food chain.

Some versions of the new C1 use a seven-inch touchscreen to mirror the apps on a driver's smartphone, including satellite navigation – if your phone can receive the necessary signal as you hunt for a turning deep in the countryside.

Back in town, where most C1 buyers will live, the car will prove a cheerful way to get around on more familiar ground.

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