Discussion
Right first impressions after a couple of hours with the car.
Waft/Glide/Serene/Hushed all words I'd associate with the car. The suspension is quite stunning really. Just floats over bumps you don't really realise you're in a car. At 40-50mph on B roads the car just glides along. At 70-80mph the car is extremely quiet thanks to the double glazing and the whisper quiet V6. When you put your foot down the V6 has more than enough urge and a very nice edgy exhaust note.
I've driven a few big BM's and Mercs and I have to say the suspension refinement on the Citroen shades all of them. Sure, there is roll, but it's not excessive and there is a Sport mode that firms up the shocks and makes quick progress easy on twisty B roads. In sport, using tiptronic mode, the car has a bit of a jekyll and hyde character, it can "hunt" corners quite nicely and the chassis feels very balanced. That was a suprise.
As for the interior, slightly disappointed. A bit fiddly button wise, and the materials are good, but not great in this day and age. If you imagine a slightly better quality than a C class and you have it. The head up display is a good idea I guess but it's pretty blurry and puts me off quite a bit so I switched it off pretty quickly. The lane change alert system vibrates the seat when you move out of your lane on the motorway, whilst it's another gimmick I guess it's not a bad idea if you're stuffing with the Sat nav or something at the time or get distracted by rowdy passengers. The seats adjust every way and have memory but still not sure I have them perfect yet but are pretty comfy. At 6ft 3" there is a good 5-6" of headroom above me so car would suit tall blokes quite well. Lots of lateral leg room too which is good, no console getting in the way and a proper left leg pedal rest. The rear seats are excellent, there is loads of room for 6+ footers front and rear with plenty of leg room and the rear seats can be adjusted in angle and height. As for the boot, again, will take a couple of sets of golf clubs no worries.
I'll report back in a few days but so far seems promising. The car certainly feels special, in an Avantgarde sort of way. To be honest never had that feel in a BM or Merc so big plus from my point of view. Would think the CLS (which I haven't drive) would be a natural competitor if you can get over the badge issue but I doubt the Merc is aimed at the same market.
Apologies for the rubbish photos, will take some more later:
Waft/Glide/Serene/Hushed all words I'd associate with the car. The suspension is quite stunning really. Just floats over bumps you don't really realise you're in a car. At 40-50mph on B roads the car just glides along. At 70-80mph the car is extremely quiet thanks to the double glazing and the whisper quiet V6. When you put your foot down the V6 has more than enough urge and a very nice edgy exhaust note.
I've driven a few big BM's and Mercs and I have to say the suspension refinement on the Citroen shades all of them. Sure, there is roll, but it's not excessive and there is a Sport mode that firms up the shocks and makes quick progress easy on twisty B roads. In sport, using tiptronic mode, the car has a bit of a jekyll and hyde character, it can "hunt" corners quite nicely and the chassis feels very balanced. That was a suprise.
As for the interior, slightly disappointed. A bit fiddly button wise, and the materials are good, but not great in this day and age. If you imagine a slightly better quality than a C class and you have it. The head up display is a good idea I guess but it's pretty blurry and puts me off quite a bit so I switched it off pretty quickly. The lane change alert system vibrates the seat when you move out of your lane on the motorway, whilst it's another gimmick I guess it's not a bad idea if you're stuffing with the Sat nav or something at the time or get distracted by rowdy passengers. The seats adjust every way and have memory but still not sure I have them perfect yet but are pretty comfy. At 6ft 3" there is a good 5-6" of headroom above me so car would suit tall blokes quite well. Lots of lateral leg room too which is good, no console getting in the way and a proper left leg pedal rest. The rear seats are excellent, there is loads of room for 6+ footers front and rear with plenty of leg room and the rear seats can be adjusted in angle and height. As for the boot, again, will take a couple of sets of golf clubs no worries.
I'll report back in a few days but so far seems promising. The car certainly feels special, in an Avantgarde sort of way. To be honest never had that feel in a BM or Merc so big plus from my point of view. Would think the CLS (which I haven't drive) would be a natural competitor if you can get over the badge issue but I doubt the Merc is aimed at the same market.
Apologies for the rubbish photos, will take some more later:
Finished my test drive of the C6. Did around 400 miles in 3 days. 24mpg combined/28mpg motorway.
Over the weekend I test drove a Merc CLS 500 and looked at a 7 series. First of all, the 7 series is a non starter in *my* criteria. Whilst on the road it looks impressive and has a certain presence especially from the rear, it really is an ugly car. Couldn't bring myself to test drive it as I just couldn't live with the looks.
As for the CLS, it is a very attractive car, from the side and the rear, the front less so. Altogether it is an impressive cohesive piece of design. Interior wise, the materials are about the same as the C6 in some areas it is better (seat leather) but in others it is worse (awful multiplay stacker and truely woeful indicator stalks). Interior space, the C6 is unbeatable, apart from a Limo or a Rolls/Bentley/LWB 7 series you won't find more room for the rear passengers. Internally the CLS is quite small compared to it's external dimensions, although the fronts bucket seats are better in my opinion than the wide/bench style seats in the C6.
To drive the CLS is very different to the C6, and maybe it isn't the right MB to compare the C6 to, but on looks, it really is the only option IMO. The big four door coupe is very similar in my eyes to the C6. The CLS looks more visually arresting than the C6, it has more "bling" if you like but the C6 more than holds it's own. But back to the driving.
The Benz has a good ride with the air suspension option, and it is obviously more sporting in nature. The steering is heavier and it really holds the road well when you attack a corner. The C6 by comparison is from another planet. The car rides like a spaceship, you think the turns and the car just floats over the road no matter the condition of the surface. It's quite stunning. The steering and the V6 seem so well integrated that it's not like driving a car at all, it's like piloting a plane. It really is a lovely, unique experience. I could go on for hours really, but all I can say is you should try one for yourself and don't immediately go for one of the big German three. I found myself happy to stay under or on the speed limit. I don't think I've ever driven a car that made me feel so relaxed.
As for the positives and negatives, the only thing I found that I didn't like too much was the reach adjustment of the steering wheel. It needs to go about another 4-8 inches to be really comfortable. I could get the perfect leg adjustment with the seat but the wheel would be too far from me for comfort. I'm 6ft 3" so I don't think this would apply to anyone < 6ft. In the end you get used to it, but the MB has the C6 beaten for driving position but only by a small margin. The seats in the C6 were also slightly too firm in my opinion, but again this is minor criticism. Sat Nav worked well except for some strange accent when announcing street names and the stereo sounds very good, I think helped by the super quiet interior at speed.
The C6 is something special. It's a long way from perfect but to me it offers the opportunity to choose a car that has genuine character, and that is something that is very rare these days no matter how much money you have to spend. The C6 is the perfect car to drive long distances, four up and arrive completely free from stress. If that's what you want from a car then I doubt you'll find a better one for the job no matter the price.
Big thumbs up from me!
Over the weekend I test drove a Merc CLS 500 and looked at a 7 series. First of all, the 7 series is a non starter in *my* criteria. Whilst on the road it looks impressive and has a certain presence especially from the rear, it really is an ugly car. Couldn't bring myself to test drive it as I just couldn't live with the looks.
As for the CLS, it is a very attractive car, from the side and the rear, the front less so. Altogether it is an impressive cohesive piece of design. Interior wise, the materials are about the same as the C6 in some areas it is better (seat leather) but in others it is worse (awful multiplay stacker and truely woeful indicator stalks). Interior space, the C6 is unbeatable, apart from a Limo or a Rolls/Bentley/LWB 7 series you won't find more room for the rear passengers. Internally the CLS is quite small compared to it's external dimensions, although the fronts bucket seats are better in my opinion than the wide/bench style seats in the C6.
To drive the CLS is very different to the C6, and maybe it isn't the right MB to compare the C6 to, but on looks, it really is the only option IMO. The big four door coupe is very similar in my eyes to the C6. The CLS looks more visually arresting than the C6, it has more "bling" if you like but the C6 more than holds it's own. But back to the driving.
The Benz has a good ride with the air suspension option, and it is obviously more sporting in nature. The steering is heavier and it really holds the road well when you attack a corner. The C6 by comparison is from another planet. The car rides like a spaceship, you think the turns and the car just floats over the road no matter the condition of the surface. It's quite stunning. The steering and the V6 seem so well integrated that it's not like driving a car at all, it's like piloting a plane. It really is a lovely, unique experience. I could go on for hours really, but all I can say is you should try one for yourself and don't immediately go for one of the big German three. I found myself happy to stay under or on the speed limit. I don't think I've ever driven a car that made me feel so relaxed.
As for the positives and negatives, the only thing I found that I didn't like too much was the reach adjustment of the steering wheel. It needs to go about another 4-8 inches to be really comfortable. I could get the perfect leg adjustment with the seat but the wheel would be too far from me for comfort. I'm 6ft 3" so I don't think this would apply to anyone < 6ft. In the end you get used to it, but the MB has the C6 beaten for driving position but only by a small margin. The seats in the C6 were also slightly too firm in my opinion, but again this is minor criticism. Sat Nav worked well except for some strange accent when announcing street names and the stereo sounds very good, I think helped by the super quiet interior at speed.
The C6 is something special. It's a long way from perfect but to me it offers the opportunity to choose a car that has genuine character, and that is something that is very rare these days no matter how much money you have to spend. The C6 is the perfect car to drive long distances, four up and arrive completely free from stress. If that's what you want from a car then I doubt you'll find a better one for the job no matter the price.
Big thumbs up from me!
Well it's good to hear that the car is something of a throwback to the classic Citroen design principles.
Interesting that you compare it to the Merc CLS - seems valid actually, executive choices with remarkable styling - I'm sure Citroen would be delighted!
Let's hope they get the build right, it needs to be a perfect ownership experience for the C6 to get anywhere in the UK.
Although considering Citroen UK's recent policy has been big discounts, and that the car is special order only, I doubt we will see many other than the dealer demo cars on the roads over here.
Interesting that you compare it to the Merc CLS - seems valid actually, executive choices with remarkable styling - I'm sure Citroen would be delighted!
Let's hope they get the build right, it needs to be a perfect ownership experience for the C6 to get anywhere in the UK.
Although considering Citroen UK's recent policy has been big discounts, and that the car is special order only, I doubt we will see many other than the dealer demo cars on the roads over here.
Unfortunately I agree with the comments on only seeing dealer demos on the road. The pricing from Citroen to lease one (I need a new company car) is significantly more expensive the the CLS Merc. For example you can get a 320cdi CLS Merc on a 3yr term for £500pm. The top spec Citroen is over £750pm. The Merc is best part of £10k more expensive to buy in the first place. There is no way I'd even think of sinking any capital into one what with Citroen's record with respect to residuals.
What a great pity this is. It's such a lovely car, and does feel very well built too and has top class safety stats from NCAP. But there is no way I'm going to pay over the odds for the car and I don't think many others will too. Damn shame.
What a great pity this is. It's such a lovely car, and does feel very well built too and has top class safety stats from NCAP. But there is no way I'm going to pay over the odds for the car and I don't think many others will too. Damn shame.
I understand your comments about the CLS, but in reality the C6 is competing in the same class as the S Class Merc, and if you compare residual percentages, the C6 actually compares very favourably (S Class retains 30-38%, costing £55-102k) (C6 retains 30-33%, costing £29.5-40k) {data from Glass's Guide!}
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