First look: Citroen debuts C6 sedan

AMONG the world debuts for Geneva coming in thick and fast is Citroen’s all-new C6 prestige sedan.

Representing the latest stage in what the French manufacturer likes to call its "creative renewal", the large sedan features a long front overhang and sweeping headlights, wide grille, ribbed bonnet, frameless doors, concave rear windscreen, a short rear overhang and, should Northern Territorians wish to hit the firewall with the accelerator, an air deflector that comes into action at speed.

Interior treats include electric rear seats, ‘soft diffusion’ air-conditioning and laminated side windows, while technical treats – never far from the surface in Citroen releases – include speed readings, navigation information and the like shown on the windscreen (an Australian Design Rule issue if ever we saw one), variable damping suspension and, in a first for the brand, an electric park brake.

Lane-departure warning signals and directional Xenon headlights should also be available, while the sedan also heralds the first application of Citroen’s 150kW 2.7-litre V6 turbo-diesel engine.

This engine is still to be confirmed for Australia, with the most obvious choice for the local distributor being a 155kW 3.0-litre V6 petrol. Both engines combine with a six-speed automatic transmission.

The C6 comes to Australia in 2006.