Citroen C4 review

It’s actually a little bland and old-fashioned inside the C4 – we don’t want Citroen to fall foul of the temptation to smack in a huge touchscreen and hope for the best, but at the same time the chic style of the exterior isn’t really translated to the inside of the car. But if that’s the price we pay for getting proper aircon buttons back on the dashboard then we shan’t complain too loudly.

Is it nice and practical?

It is. There’s plenty of leg and headroom for adults in the rear seats and there are some neat little storage points around the front seats, including a little hidden area just behind the transmission selector. The central cubby between the seats is a decent size and you can finally fit more than an espresso in the cupholder. 

The boot isn’t as big as it could be – the standard C4 hatch gets 380 litres of space with the seats up and 1,250 litres with the seats knocked down. Those are basically the same numbers as the Volkswagen Golf and are matched by the all-electric e-C4.

Both the C4 X and e-C4 X up that to 510 litres with the rear seats in place and 1,360 litres with them folded, although you get a much smaller saloon-style boot opening to post items through.

What’s the infotainment like?

It’s the standard Stellantis set-up inside the C4 that we are familiar with from Peugeots and Vauxhalls galore. It’s not the most flash system, it’s occasionally a bit slow, but it does a serviceable job. The entry-level YOU! trim (which is only available on the hatch and not the X) gets Apple CarPlay and Android Auto as standard, but you’ll need to upgrade to higher trim levels to get inbuilt navigation and Citroen’s lethargic, ChatGPT-infused voice assistant.

Those higher trim levels (called PLUS and MAX) also get a 7.0-inch digital dial display as opposed to a 5.0-inch screen. Both are TFT displays and deploy graphics that look like they’re from a 1990s laptop, but at least they’re clear and easy to read.

Any cool tech?

Citroens aren’t meant to be cool – this isn’t the Seventies anymore. The C4 and C4 X interior is mostly dominated by slightly cheap plastic, but then it’s a very keenly priced car so that’s not all that offensive. There aren’t even that many functions or displays in the central infotainment screen. You do get a head-up display on all but the entry-level trims, although even that is adapted using physical buttons. All very simple and sensible in our opinion, but there’s nothing that’ll set your trousers on fire.

Anything else I need to know?

See that chunky-looking rear spoiler on the C4 hatch? That cuts right across the rear window and does impact rearward visibility. We quickly got used to its presence, but you might find it obstructive.