2001 Citroen C5 Reviews - Page 5 of 11

Fuel pump failure.

Engine cooling fan relay failure.

Engine control unit failure.

Ignition module fault.

Drivers door lock faulty.

Oxygen sensor faulty.

This car is very roomy and comfortable and great for long distance motorway cruising.

The boot is square with very little wheel arch intrusion.

The handling and ride are better than the new Vectra.

However the reliability has been poor and the dealer whilst very competent are also very busy causing delays in getting the car fixed.

Front left hand light bulb blew within a week of purchase.

Read offside passenger door-lock has to be unlocked from the inside by pulling the handle as it refuses to open when the central locking is unlocked, this problem also occurred within a week of purchase.

Very spacious; particularly when sitting at the front of the car.

Smooth turbo diesel engine with no turbo lag, as apposed to my old 405.

Relatively solid chassis with Citroen's trade-mark suspension system (hydraulic)

Simply a car designed for long distance journeys, overtaking slower moving traffic is effortless; its more than easy to reach 90mph with out even noticing as the 110bhp diesel engine just doesn't seem to want to stop pulling!

The backround light for the centre console does not work, the dealer wants to replace the complete display Euro 250 plus labour.

The rear drivers door lock has jammed twice, however it was fixed both times under warranty.

The driver seat has now broken, the seat frame is fixed to seat chassis at four points, these fixings have failed at 2 points., the dealer wants Euro 750 just for the spare part.

I chose the c5 mainly for its looks and its economy, it has not failed on any of these points.

However I feel that the build quality is does not match the progressive design. The problems which I have encountered could easily be remedied with stringent quality controls during manufacture.

It just seems a little bit disconcerting that the cost of replacing minor parts after the warranty period are a little excessive. Only last month in Ireland, Citoen have extended the warranty period to two years, perhaps the market needed some reassurance,

Rear left hand door became permanently locked.

Poor quality on gear shift - paint flakes.

Very good for motorway trips - comfortable and good mileage for a big car.

Very poor turning circle, even for a large car.

Not convinced about the build quality - gear shift flakes and the boot lid sometimes eeds encouragement to close.

Knocking from the front wheel area. Returned back to the dealer and the fault was fixed.

Drivers seat keeps falling down, constantly having to adjust it.

Steering is fantastic, especially at higher speeds.

Poor visibility when reversing and looking around the car from the sides. Mainly due to head-rests beeing erected.

General the mileage from the car varies greatly. I once had over 300 miles from one tank round town.

My only problem with the car has been that the headlights (bulbs) are of very poor quality. I bought the car new at May 15th, 2001 and until now (May 2003) I have replaced the bulbs 9 - nine - times!

Of course, the dealer has replaced them and I have not paid anything, but after all, this is not acceptable, in my view.

The dealer points out that "all new cars are like this" - probably because electric variations from the electronic system destroy the bulbs.

But after all, this is the only problem I have experienced, and this C5 is my 7th Citroen in line since 1982!

I am very pleased with the car, and the hydro-pneumatic system make it a nice car to drive over long distances.