Citroen joined the highly competitive midsize SUV segment with the Aircross in 2023. It offers a duo of petrol engines, distinctive styling, and a unique seating arrangement, but the Aircross isn’t without its drawbacks. We’ve listed the Aircross’ most prominent strengths and weaknesses to help you decide whether the Citroen SUV is the right choice for you.
Excellent ride comfort and handling
One of the best-riding midsize SUVs
Citroen cars are renowned for their supple ride quality, and the Aircross’ suspension tuning follows the norm as well. As we pointed out in our Aircross road test, the SUV glides over bad roads and potholes at low speeds, delivering what is arguably the best ride quality in its segment. The softer setup does give rise to a bit of vertical movement at higher speeds, but overall, occupants will most likely have no complaints with the ride.
Light steering makes the Aircross easy to manoeuvre
Despite its 4.3m length and high centre-of-gravity, the Aircross has great body control and grip levels. The steering feels effortless to operate at low speeds and weighs up nicely as you go faster. Straight line stability is excellent, and the Aircross’ brakes are confidence-inspiring as well, with a good initial bite and progressive stopping power onwards.
Clever and flexible 7-seat layout
Gets a removable third row
One of the biggest USPs of the Aircross is the fact that it’s the only midsize SUV to offer a ‘5+2’ seating layout with a removable third row (in higher trim levels). This can be accessed easily using the tilt and tumble function for the second row, and while the space on offer is best suited to children, it’s adequate for adults over short stints.
Up to 839 litres of boot space
As noted in our Aircross review, removing the third row of seats entirely takes about 20 seconds, and they can be used as picnic chairs. With the third row out, the Aircross offers a boot space of 511 litres, and folding down the middle row opens it up to a substantial 839 litres.
Smooth turbo-petrol engine
Makes 110hp and up to 205Nm
Entry-level variants of the Citroen Aircross are powered by an 82hp, 1.2-litre, 3-cylinder naturally aspirated petrol engine, while higher trims get a 110hp, 1.2-litre, 3-cylinder turbo-petrol unit. The naturally aspirated motor gets a 5-speed manual gearbox only, while the turbo-petrol engine can be had with either a 6-speed manual or a 6-speed torque converter auto.
Responsive and decently refined
We’ve tested the Aircross turbo-petrol and found that this engine is one of the most tractable and smooth 3-cylinder powerplants currently available. Off the line, the Aircross turbo-petrol is quite responsive, and the power band remains intact throughout the mid-range too, making overtakes easy.
Refinement is good for the most part, too, with the three-cylinder thrum only audible during start-up and hard acceleration. The Aircross automatic completes the 0-100kph sprint in 11.87 seconds, while the manual achieves the same in 12.80 seconds.
With the Citroen Aircross’ pros covered, let’s explore some of the SUV’s disadvantages.
Relatively sparse equipment list
No sunroof, push button start/stop, cruise control, and more
Features are a major consideration for a big chunk of midsize SUV buyers, and the Aircross falls quite short on this front. While you do get creature comforts like a 10.23-inch infotainment touchscreen with wireless Apple CarPlay and Android Auto, a 4-speaker sound system, a 7-inch digital driver’s display, and more, the Aircross does not offer a sunroof, a 360-degree camera, a heads-up display, a cabin air purifier, a push button start/stop, ADAS, ventilated and powered front seats, and cruise control.
Evident cost-cutting in some areas
No-frills approach robs premium feel
Where midsize SUVs like the Hyundai Creta and Kia Seltos are adored for their premium trappings, the Aircross doesn’t quite imbibe the same feeling due to cost-cutting measures like dated flap-type door handles, exposed key slot, the lack of an auto-up function for the windows, scratchy and hard plastics in certain areas of the cabin, and, of course, the aforementioned missing features. This ends up leaving a somewhat budget car impression in the Aircross, even more so considering the top-spec variants cost north of Rs 14 lakh (ex-showroom).
Limited dealer and service network
The Citroen brand is still not as established as its rivals
Citroen officially entered the Indian market in 2021 with the launch of the C5 Aircross SUV and remains a relatively nascent brand even today. Therefore, Aircross buyers should be wary of the fact that Citroen’s dealer and service networks won’t be as ubiquitous as those of established carmakers like Hyundai, Tata, Mahindra, and Maruti Suzuki.
