Citroen C5 gains petrol four

CITROEN has reintroduced a petrol engine to its C5 sedan range, which gains a new entry-level price of $45,990 driveaway as a result.

That’s not quite as affordable as the previous-generation C5 2.0 16V, which was last sold in both sedan and wagon guise at $39,990 (plus on-road costs), and the superseded Euro 4 emissions-compliant engine will only be available until mid-year.

Citroen says the return of the familiar 103kW/143Nm inline petrol four to its popular mid-size sedan (but not Tourer) range, which became a diesel-only model when the current C5 was released here in September 2008, is due to the strength of the Australian dollar against the Euro.

“When we launched the new Citroen C5 we took the decision to go all-diesel because the weakness of the Australian dollar meant that the price advantage of a petrol engine was outweighed by significant advantages of the diesel engines,” said Citroen Australia general manager Miles Williams.

“But with the reversal of fortunes for the dollar and the Euro, there is now a significant price advantage for a 2.0-litre 103kW petrol version of the new C5 and this has enabled us to add it to the Australian range.

“But it is an offer that has a definite shelf life. This powertrain will cease to be available to us this year, so this value for money version of the C5 will only be available for the first half of 2010,” said Mr Williams.

Offered as standard with a four-speed automatic transmission, the petrol C5 four-door is positioned at least $5000 lower than the previous entry-level C5 sedan, the 2.0 HDi Comfort auto ($49,990 plus on-road costs), with which it shares its specification level.

The C5 2.0 16V sedan returns combined average fuel consumption of 8.9 litres per 100km, accelerates to 100km/h in 11.7 seconds and has a top speed of 205km/h.

It is fitted as standard with Citroen’s latest Hydroactive 3+ suspension system, the new C5’s fixed-hub steering wheel, cloth/leather seat trim, an eight-way power-adjustable driver’s seat with memory, cruise control with speed-limiter, dual-zone climate-control air-conditioning, adaptive headlights, seven airbags, electronic stability control, ABS brakes and 17x7.0-inch alloy wheels.

Options include front and rear parking sensors, an electric sunroof, rear side airbags, an alarm, CD changer, Bluetooth connectivity, auxiliary audio input and metallic or pearlescent paint.

2010 Citroen C5 petrol range pricing:
C5 2.0 16V	$45,990 Driveaway