Citroëns have earned a reputation for being practical, frugal, and loaded with character. However, they are still seen as rather exotic in our market, which has some definite downsides when it comes to repairs and maintenance. We did some research to find out whether it would be expensive to repair a Citroën in South Africa.
Far from being mere mass-market fodder, Citroëns have always had that “something” which set them apart from the herd. Be it quirky styling, an unexpectedly strong emphasis on versatility, or interesting cabin designs, there’s usually no mistaking a Citroën for anything else on the road.
Since the brand’s local re-introduction in 2019, this French brand has been offering 3 main product lines. Supermini buyers will find a lot to like in the little C3, the C3 Aircross offers similar virtues in a taller and more-practical wrapping, and the C5 Aircross is a plush and stylish alternative to mainstream mid-sized SUVs.
Unfortunately, Citroën cars have also earned an unfortunate reputation for being expensive to repair and tricky to work on through the years – especially earlier models and those which pre-date the brand’s return to local shores. Does this still hold true for modern Citroëns, or has the full support of Peugeot (now Stellantis) in South Africa finally improved this state of affairs?
Solid data about Citroën repair costs are almost impossible to find when looking at it from a local perspective, simply because such niche cars sell to such a small audience that few surveys ever take the brand into account. But, while it’s impossible to predict labour rates at OEM dealerships (this can vary between dealers), looking at spare part prices can provide a useful starting to point to compare Citroëns to other brands.
The 2021 AA Spare Parts Pricing Guide
In order to compare cars in terms of maintenance, the AA Spart Parts Pricing report groups some of the most-popular offerings in our South Africa according to their market segments, and then compare the various models’ spare part prices to those of their opponents.
The cars in the AA Spare Parts Pricing Guide were evaluated in 3 departments: Service parts, Maintenance parts, and Body repair parts. Service parts relates to short-term running costs, Maintenance parts relates to longer-term upkeep, and Body repair parts indicate how much it would cost to fix one after a typical collision.
In the latest (2021) report, only one model from the current Citroën range featured in the comparison tables. That model was the entry-level C3, competing in the “Budget” class in 1.2 Feel trim. This is the least-expensive local Citroën, with the simplest mechanical bits in the family.
Citroën C3 1.2 Feel
We’re off to a shaky start with the little C3, because its service parts basket was the second-most expensive in its group. And not by a small margin either, being only about R 2 000 less-expensive than the most-expensive service parts basket in the group (belonging to the Mahindra XUV300 1.2T) and a substantial R 3 600 pricier than the least-expensive service parts basket in its group (for the Ford Figo).
This is largely due to ludicrous prices for the OEM spark plugs, which will amount to R 1 177 for a set of 3 plugs! Even its pollen (cabin air) filter is extravagantly expensive, and costs almost 4 times more than the cheapest of its opponents (again, the Ford Figo); and its brake components are also on the upper end of the spectrum.
The picture doesn’t improve when we look at maintenance parts, either. The Citroën C2 Feel has the second-most-expensive maintenance parts basket in its group, once again almost matching the price of the Mahindra XUV300’s basket in this category. The Ford Figo again took honours in this category, with a maintenance parts basket that costs less than half as much as that of the Citroën.
Accident repair spares are also among the highest in its group, with only the Nissan Magnite and Mahindra XUV300 having more-expensive body parts baskets than the small Citroën. Crucially, the Citroën parts would again cost more than twice as much as those of the Ford Figo, and substantially more than those of the Volkswagen Polo Vivo.
Verdict
It’s a bit one-sided to condemn a brand’s entire range as expensive to repair based on the data of a single model, but it’s unlikely that upscale models and derivatives will be less expensive in this regard. Perhaps it’s because the current Citroën range is still very new in our market, or maybe it’s due to a very unfavourable Rand/Euro exchange rate, but there’s little doubt that these cars will be among the more-expensive cars in their classes to repair.
There’s some good news too, however, because owners at least now have the possibility of shopping for OEM-standard aftermarket parts through specialised spares outlets, such as ASAP Spares. And, because Citroëns are much more-conventional now than they were in days gone by, out-of-warranty labour charges should also be reasonable at non-OEM workshops.
Keyword: Are Citroëns expensive to repair?