Citroen C5 Aircross review

Citroen talks of a lounge atmosphere with a sofa-like dash. It has a point. As there's no pretence of sportiness, any notions of a 'wraparound driver-centric cockpit' would be badly misplaced. And there are none here.

So the dash is a broad level panel, with a main bar pleasingly wrapped in cloth that also runs into the door cards. Above that, the air vents, which being pretty distant don't jet at you but send a gentle zephyr. But in adjusting their direction your fingers meet cheap brittle plastic.

Down the centre of the cabin is a big touchscreen, sensibly divided into tiles for music, navigation or climate as you need. Unlike single-screen cars it has no need to show speedo, navi arrows or trip computer as that info is on the driver's display, or the HUD on top versions.

There's also a series of hard buttons below the screen for frequent climate and ADAS shortcuts. Tucked behind the screen is storage and cup holders. The phone charge pad is a 15 watt job with vent holes. Behind that is a big under-armrest box, piped into the air-con chiller for cool beverage delight.

All versions have areas of greys and blues so the cabin looks airy and fresh and, again, avoids sombre sportiness. The seats feel snug and soft, but with decent support for long distances or vigorous corners. Top versions have venting and massage in front, and heating for the outer rear.

In the back there's loads of room for legs, feet and heads, with a flat floor on all models. The EV battery doesn't steal space. Same with the boot, which is a clobber-hungry 565 litres whatever the powertrain. The PHEV even has the same 55 litre fuel tank as the MHEV.

Rear backrests in the top two trims recline a bit. The old C5 Aircross had that plus individual sliding for the three back seats. Maybe Citroen did the audience research and found it was a thing people didn't actually use, so they binned it to cut cost. But if you have the previous car and did make use of it, then tough.