It comes with re-configured styling of which the manufacture hopes will make it compete in the SA market alongside rivals Ford Fiesta or VW Polo, amongst others.
At the launch held in Joburg on Wednesday, we took it for a long, arduous drive snaking through the hills and valleys of both North West and Gauteng provinces.
The facelifted C3 hatchback boast six exterior colours, the most distinct being a cherry red and a bright turquoise, and you can also choose contrasting black or white roof colours.
Although not too spacious, especially for the tall or bigger characters, it comes with a 2,540mm wheelbase and 300l of boot space. The interior invokes the larger C3 Aircross and C5 Aircross models with décor and organisation, while upgrades include a flat-bottom steering wheel for easier access, improved noise-cancellation, a driver attention warning system that monitors erratic steering inputs, and coffee break alert that gives two-hour alerts.
It features rain-sensor wipers, rear parking sensors, a 17.7cm touchscreen display enabled for Android Auto and Apple CarPlay.
The C3 hatch has two grades: Feel and Shine and includes cruise control, ABS, stability control, and a speed limit recognition system that displays recommended public road speeds in the instrument binnacle, and according to Brian Smith, Peugeot Citroën’s local head of sales and marketing, this helps to navigate when driving out of your lane or being distracted.
Albeit some journos believe safety is key in all aspect, they decried the airbumps on the C3, noting “its way too much”.
Stellantis the newly formed international merger between the PSA group (including Peugeot, Citroen and Opel) and FCA (including Fiat, Alfa, Chrysler and Jeep), must be congratulated for billions of investments since taking over.
Leslie Ramsoor, the managing director PSA, noted during media presentation, that they will be unveiling more brands in months to come. “This augurs well for our company since the formation of Stellantis globally, that has since seen major boost in terms of units sold and after-service,” says Ramsoor.
Ramsoor says they will increase their dealerships from 87 in 2021 to 157 in 2025 as part of investment, ideally.
Both models (manual and auto) come with a five-year/100,000 km warranty.
Pricing:
• C3 1.2 Pure Tech Feel manual — R269,900
• C3 1.2 Pure Tech Shine automatic — R324,900
Image SLM (The new Citroën C3 was unveiled in SA).
