Automotive and Car Reviews

Excellent comfort and ride quality, with good behavior. The new 1.6 HDI engine noise does not stand out nor low.
Price: 23,533 euros. Warranty: 2 years with unlimited mileage. Internet: Citroën

Analysis:

The Citroën Xsara incorporates the new 1.6 HDI engine developed 110 hp along with Ford as the 1.4 HDI and replaces the old Picasso 2.0 HDI with the same power. The engine has overboost function that increases torque by 20 Nm when stepping on the throttle, Common Rail Bosch 2 nd generation with an injection pressure of 1,600 bars and up to four injections of fuel per cycle: 2 pilot injections for reduce combustion noise and 2 main injections to reduce nitrogen oxide emissions. In the case of incorporating particulate filter, made two additional injections post to improve the efficiency of regeneration. The new engine is an improvement in consumption, torque and emissions, with less weight.

All this technology also serves as Citroën, for acoustic and vibrational enhancements and increased driving pleasure. In practice, the results differ somewhat, as discussed below.

The Xsara Picasso is a well known model with commercial success and play the trick of the range, with excellent dimension of width, especially behind a bright interior with lots of glass area, and a pleasant interior environment with a velvet upholstery in soft colors, soft and warm but hot with an annoying tendency to attract all sorts of fluff, much spoiling the view.

The functionality is typical of a compact MPV, with 2 rows of seats with three independent seats back, very comfortable, that can be adjusted longitudinally 14 cm, with seat-back adjustment and can be folded completely forward without removing the head restraints to be lifted before sitting down and remove a lot of visibility.

The transformation of the rear is easy, you can do from inside or from the trunk. To fold the seat just use one hand, lowers the back first and then, if delayed to the maximum, the lever is pulled behind the bench and the whole seat tilts forward to lock in vertical position, preventing falls. To download is to use both hands, releasing the insurance while the seat tilted slightly, thus avoiding passing that we are falling on top of an oversight. The seats can be removed or be a table, folding down the backrest.

Access to the rear is spacious with plenty of room for the feet and the seats are comfortable but not large, are located at the right height, no central tunnel and can be accessed at the rear by the front door. The internal movement is carefully, as you can go from front to back without difficulty between the front seats, thanks to the gear lever is in the dashboard and the brake is attached to the seat. Only hinders some interior armrests of the seats.

The driving position is improved, as the seat is too high and has no tilt adjustment, only high (spring) and the steering wheel has no depth adjustment. It is sitting very high, with the wheel low, with little knee room, away from the controls scattered around the dashboard, the front windows are in the center console back into the dashboard, steering wheel left and covered by him, steering wheel radio and cruise control, as is standard in Citroen and Peugeot, and there are very low risk of rupture and knee injuries, consistently hits the right leg against the side of the console and the upholstery is as soft as warm. The visibility is minimal curves left by the position of sitting so high, and that there are a lot of glass and the front pillar is triangular, with fixed glass. And do not take counter (why savings or design of the picture?), Making it difficult to correctly break the engine as a daily use.

Driving the Xsara Picasso is very mild in general, does not mean that is satisfactory in every way, as the shift lever is a hazard. Has a serious defect, since the reverse is uninsured, is in the same aisle 5 th, you can enter without any problem pulling the lever back, like a sixth, and reductions to 4 th in curves to left Centrifugal force tends to bring the hand and the handle, the false 6 ª. Furthermore, the touch is very weak once inserted gives much progress and has a transverse clearance exaggerated to the point that in any gear lever tends to be at the level of 3 and 4. To summarize, regardless of the little pleasure of use, has the problem that compromises the mechanical integrity.

The trunk is very spacious with a low loading sill, yes, at the expense of carrying the spare wheel as normal on the outside, exposed to the foreign friends.

The test unit had the practical moduboard cart, a plastic and a touch better, when folded it feels to be from the hinges and removing the handle makes it so quickly that we must be careful not to bump into chin.

Dynamic test:

The engine is the same as fitted including the Ford Focus C-Max. Lacks low, with a steep and dying pulled high very well. The least pleasant is the noise, something uplifting, always present in the background, better quality, grunt, something resonant. Something clatter under acceleration in lower gears thoroughly. It is a road engine and gas tip at legal speeds can be heard clearly, it becomes tiresome, annoying, when the TDI engines like the Volkswagen Group, which are not renowned for his tact and finesse, that under these conditions or hear. Clog road noise and aerodynamic.

The benefits are more than enough to travel to or afford good pace to overtake, but change has to be used frequently if the engine is rather low returns. Consumption are quite content with 7.1 liters per 100 km in the mixed path, far from those approved by the manufacturer.

Which highlights the Xsara Picasso is in ride quality, with good filtering and excellent patching, without going as a result of the C5′s hydropneumatic ensures superb ride comfort, even in a bad firm, helped by an address superb feel, precise and smooth, which allows you to feel the reactions of the front and surely very sound for a 65-series tires, which we anticipated, do not affect behavior. The brake pedal is somewhat abrupt, much less than the C2 or C3, but it’s hard maneuvers modular soft walk fast but not to the SAFE act, and when it does arise the question of whether the warning will be switched off not running after restarting. Very well in braking curve, with a perfect support of both axes, a great poise and great stability, as in line. The resistance to heat is correct.

Xsara Picasso dynamically shines a good height, with a perfectly calibrated stability control keeps you always understeer when cornering traction and a highly directional rear axle, then it suggests that as gas is cut or goes into retention curve but without ESP lets slip. To summarize, we say that the behavior is atypical for this brand, but the rear axle tends to run riot at the first hurdle.