Team-BHP - Citroen C5 Aircross Review

Quote:

Originally Posted by CliffHanger (Post 5191206)

What is the price hike for when nobody is buying the car?

May be Citroën is thinking about the Compass, but it has Jeep as its first name!

They are selling cars, though it’s very exclusive set of buyers. Consider if they have sold 10 units in your city. What are the chances of spotting them? These are not mass market yet. For example I haven’t seen much Kodiaq on the roads, though there were decent numbers sold.

In terms of price positioning it could be a play to accommodate Jeep Meridian.

Quote:

Originally Posted by CliffHanger (Post 5191206)

What is the price hike for when nobody is buying the car?

May be Citroën is thinking about the Compass, but it has Jeep as its first name!

Actually they are making Compass look like a more value for money option. There are people who went to check C5 Aircross but ended up with Jeep Compass.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Turbolove (Post 5190687)

Going by the success Jeep has got by the facelifted Compass, even with its expensive pricing, it won't be surprising to see the Meridian competing with the lower variants of the Fortuner. To be honest even I'm quite surprised by the number of the facelifted Compass S variants I'm seeing on the road, didn't think there would be that many takers at its high price.

I was a little surprised by this too, but then you need to factor in the fact that no other SUV in that range looks or feels that premium. The C5 aircross is overpriced for what it offers, otherwise it would have been solid competition.

If you are only going to sell 50 units or so each month, then might as well double or triple the margin.

I love how the C5 Aircross looks (its distinctively French ie; Not VW but not Korean either). Wish it was priced more sensibly. But outside of the A1 segment, which car is priced sensibly in India? Prices have been creeping North forever.

Quote:

Originally Posted by loki (Post 5192384)

Hope the price hike won't result to reduce the 50 bookings to 25. lol:

If they are already offering discounts and special interest rate for the car loan, It doesn't make any sense to hike the price.

Quote:

Originally Posted by loki (Post 5192384)

If you are only going to sell 50 units or so each month, then might as well double or triple the margin.

That is what probably what Citroen management thinks. At older prices too, only people who really really really wanted a Citroen would buy the C5. It made zero sense from a rational purchase decision process.

A lakh higher does not change it's appeal whatsoever.

At the end, (like Cherookee and Wrangler for Jeep), C5 will exist just to build the brand. C3, like (Compass was for Jeep), will be what Citroen will be betting heavily on from India perspective.

Between Citroen & Jeep both are not going to step on each other shoes. Jeep is not going to step in Sub 20 lakh space, this will be Citroen territory & vice versa. Rightly pointed out by other members current pricing of C5 has only driven folks to Jeep showrooms. C5 is a halo product for brand building exercise. With current price increase it will also make Meridian look good when launched.

Base who have bought this, would have got it, as it suits their certain needs. This is excellent engineered but overpriced product.

Well I saw around 10 C5s this week in Bangalore!

They were all in the Bangalore e city showroomrl:

On a serious note, came to know that Citroen is planning to further increase the price beyond the first price increase
Currently the top end in BLR is 41.6 lakhs OTR, add a lakh and a half in exS prices and wonder what Citroen is aiming at!

The aircross to me felt premium overall, rode and handled quite well(this surprised me), performance was marginally better than my Cruze, the autobox wasn't as dimwitted as the Cruze but not in the league of the Tuscon
Overall a decent package but couldnt figure out how it could make sense at that price point

I also had a chance to drive and experience the C5 Aircross over the weekend. Even the short drive revealed a car which had exceptional driving comfort. The S Cross i currently drive is a fairly well sorted car but the Citroen felt light years ahead in every aspect. I was positively surprised by the refinement, comfort, space, quality, and features. Sales staff didn't seem very enthusiastic but explained the features in great detail and promptly arranged the test drive on the spot. It's clearly an excellent all rounder but it needs to be cheaper by another 5 lakhs to make people sit up and take notice. The sales numbers are abysmal and this will have a cascading effect going downhill. Lack of advertising and poor discounts are not helping either.

I also didn't find the LA Maison experience anything to go gaga over. Overall sales experience felt strictly pedestrian which just doesn't cut it. The Audi salesman I encountered a month ago was infinitely more engaging.

I just don't see how Citroen can survive on this current path. Excellent car but the company seems to be happy doing lesser volumes than most luxury brands!

The C5 comes home :loveit ... and my signature is updated too lol: After a hell lot of deliberations over the last few months, the heart prevailed which resulted in getting this sweet guy home. It was a delightful delivery experience by the Citroen Pune dealer (B4S motors) and many thanks to the entire team.

Why Pune... well, lets keep the story for another day. Yes, I will share my ownership experience in detail, and will include the decision making, and the dealership experiences. I'd also like to mention that team-bhp was an important factor in the decision and buying process. Positive feedback by GTO, CircleOfLife were icing on the cake.

Delivery was done from their workshop as the front of showroom has been dug due to some construction work.

Thats me (super happy)

The dealership team provided 2 miniature models of the C5 Aircross to both my kids.

The mobile service van in the background. The dealership informed that the van is fully equipped for washing and servicing the vehicle at the owner's place.

After the drive back to Mumbai.

Initial feedback: Absolutely fantastic ride quality, in fact the family wanted the drive to be bit more longer. Fit, finish, quality and space is very good. In city as well as highway pull of the engine+gearbox is nice. Body roll is present, I graduated from the Fiesta 1.6S, so I have to be aware that I can't take corners that fast now. Brakes are too bitey especially in slow speed. Got 15.8kmpl as mileage. A long trip is being planned, stay tuned !

Quote:

Originally Posted by streetfighter (Post 5210179)

The C5 comes home :loveit ... A long trip is being planned, stay tuned !

Congrats for the this new member in your family. clap:
BTW a great choice, avoiding the herd mentality. :thumbs up
Even though it cannot be termed as a best VFM vehicle at this price point, it has an element of quirkiness.
Looking forward to your ownership reviews and ASS feedback.