The C4 Grand Picasso has been available in the UK since early 2007 and has been one of Citroen’s greatest successes in recent years. Citroen tend to fare better selling small cars and people carriers, but anything in between remains a problem for them in the UK. The C4 Grand Picasso we test drove was in a brilliant non-metallic white, which did look good and showed the C4 off at its best.
As you may already be aware, there’s a C4 Picasso which has five seats, and the Grand, which has seven seats. The 7 seat Grand version is by far the most versatile and useable, and while you’d imagine it to be quite long and difficult to park, it isn’t at all; it’s about the same size as a regular D sector hatchback.
We covered quite a few miles in this car, with a trip to the Citroen/Peugeot HQ in Velizy, Paris. It’s a very comfortable car to do over a thousand miles in over a couple of days; it was quiet, had more than enough power and easily held the 130kph speed limit in France. During the time we had the Grand Picasso it achieved an average of 39.8 MPG, while its official combined fuel consumption figure is 47.9 MPG. It’s a good result for this size of car, especially considering the weight it was carrying and that we were cruising for many miles on the French motorways at 82mph.
The Grand Picasso is a stylish people carrier that has some good design cues. Its extra large panoramic windscreen lets in a lot of light, giving the impression that the car is endlessly spacious and airy, but this can present a problem with visibility if there’s a low sun and regular sun visors don’t always prevent the rays from getting to your eyes.
The interior has been intelligently designed and offers loads of room, particularly for the driver, the front passenger and the second row, which comprises of three seats that can be moved back and forth individually. The third row is a bit tight, but it’s more than adequate for children and could be tolerable for adults on a short journey. This row of seats can also be folded completely flat and they’re very easy to operate. The second row is not quite as easy to do, but these still fold flat and only take a few moments to put up or down. The driver and passenger have the luxury of armrests, which make all the difference to comfort on a long journey.
The car we had was powered by a 2.0 litre HDI diesel engine that produces 150bhp, goes from 0-62mph in 10.2 seconds and has a CO2 emissions figure of 154g/km.
The Exclusive trim is fully loaded with equipment including leather trim and a good sat nav system, which was extremely easy to use and worked accurately in both the UK and in Europe.
The C4 Picasso has many competitors; this sector has grown immensely of late so there’s a lot more choice available, however, the MPV market continues to grow at the expense of the D sector hatchback and saloon. The public has a long list of vehicles with either five or seven seats to choose from, with the C4 Picasso being a good option as it does offer a lot for a reasonable price.
The car we tested is priced at £24,005 on the road.
