Citroen e-C4 X review

“The Citroen e-C4 X is a refined and comfortable EV with a big boot, but its quirky body style might put off some buyers”

Pros

• Comfortable ride
• Large boot
• 100kW rapid charging

Cons

• Saloon-style boot lid
• Sluggish acceleration
• Average driving range

Verdict – Is the Citroen e-C4 X a good car?

The Citroen e-C4 X certainly isn’t without its appeal, but it won’t suit everyone. Its soft suspension and sedate acceleration make it a comfortable pick for tackling pothole-strewn roads and motorway trips, but don’t make for an engaging driving experience. Its elongated shape means it has a surprisingly large boot, but access is restricted by Citroen’s decision not to go with a hatchback design. Some cheaper EVs like the MG4 Long Range can also go considerably further on a charge. 

Citroen e-C4 X range

Citroen describes its latest EV model as a fastback, but with the modern look of an SUV. Given its name, it would be easy to mistake the e-C4 X for just a slightly different version of the e-C4, but in fact, there are some quite big differences. The e-C4 X is 240mm longer, and because most of this extra bodywork is at the rear of the car, the boot has grown in size from 380 to 510 litres. Yet, Citroen has chosen a quirky raised saloon body style, so there’s a traditional boot lid instead of a hatchback.

The e-C4 X range is very simple because, unlike the e-C4 which also has a petrol version badged C4, the e-C4 X is only offered with an all-electric option in the UK. This also sets it apart from coupe-SUV rivals like the Renault Arkana and our Carbuyer Car of the Year for 2023  – the Kia Niro – which come with a variety of different electric, hybrid and petrol engines.

Every e-C4 X comes with the same 134bhp electric motor, sending power to the front wheels and supplied by a 50kWh battery. This gives it a range of up to 222 miles between charges, and the Citroen can be topped-up at speeds of up to 100kW using public rapid charging. This can take it to 80% capacity in around 30 minutes.

The only real choice for the buyer is between the Sense, Shine and Shine Plus trim levels. Standard equipment is pretty generous, with features such as a 10-inch touchscreen with Apple CarPlay and Android Auto, while the range-topper gets adaptive cruise control, a head-up display and a heated steering wheel – features that Porsche Taycan buyers have to pay extra for.

Citroen e-C4 X alternatives

The Citroen e-C4 X might have a rather unique and quirky design, but it isn’t short of rivals that offer a raised seating position and all-electric powertrain. These include popular models from mainstream brands such as Peugeot, Renault and Kia, but there are also more luxurious choices if you want to head further upmarket.

Family electric SUVs

• Peugeot e-2008
• Kia Niro EV
• MG4
• Renault Megane E-Tech
• Skoda Enyaq iV Coupe

Premium electric SUVs

• Audi Q4 e-tron
• BMW iX1
• Mercedes EQA

Coupe SUVs

• Renault Arkana
• BMW X2
• Cupra Formentor  

Range, charging & running costs

“A reasonable range and fast charging for the price point”

At launch, the e-C4 X is only available with a 50kWh battery, providing a range of up to 222 miles on a single charge. To put this into context, it’s a slightly better range than the 206 miles the Peugeot e-2008 can manage with a similar battery.

It’s nowhere near class-leading, however, with the MG4 Long Range able to travel up to 281 miles between charges, despite the fact it undercuts the e-C4 X on price. The Kia Niro EV is even better, managing a 285-mile range figure, thanks to its excellent efficiency and larger battery, but it also costs more.

The Citroen does at least get competitive charging speeds of 100kW DC, so a 20% to 80% top-up should only take around 30 minutes at a compatible public charging station. This is actually quicker than the 77kW charging available in the Kia Niro EV, but the MG4 gets even faster 150kW charging as standard.

Like all electric cars, zero tailpipe emissions will help cut motoring costs for anyone moving from a petrol, diesel or hybrid model. VED (road tax) is free until 2025 and company-car drivers will benefit from the e-C4 X being in the lowest band for Benefit-in-Kind taxation. It can also enter low emissions zones, including the ULEZ in Central London for free.

Insurance

Insurance groups haven’t been confirmed for the e-C4 X quite yet, but we do know that the smaller e-C4 with the same electric motor starts in group 23 out of 50. The MG4 will be more costly to insure, starting in group 27 and increasing to group 29 for more powerful versions. Models with petrol and hybrid powertrains like the Renault Arkana tend to fall into lower groups, with the Arkana E-Tech starting in group 14.

Electric motor, drive & performance

“Citroen has prioritised comfort and smooth acceleration over a sporty feel”

With underpinnings shared with the e-C4 and only a small increase in weight, it’s no surprise that the e-C4 X drives in an almost identical manner. The focus is on comfort, so if you don’t see the point in your electric crossover being overly sporty and firm-feeling, the Citroen should hold appeal.

The use of Citroen’s innovative suspension that’s been designed to better soak up large bumps, means the e-C4 X can maintain its composure over crumbling tarmac and unavoidable potholes. Despite this, it doesn’t sway uncontrollably from side to side as you tackle a series of bends.

Its steering doesn’t provide much in the way of feedback about the road passing beneath you, but the amount of resistance as the car corners is about right. Older Citroen’s were famed for offering a smooth and refined experience belying their size, and the e-C4 X should also be a pretty comfortable motorway companion.

Acceleration from the single electric motor is reasonably modest, but most buyers looking in this class should be content with the performance on offer. We also don’t have a complaint with the small delay between pressing the throttle pedal and the car accelerating. While some EVs zoom forward the instant you breathe on the accelerator, this isn’t always desirable for drivers predominantly switching from a combustion-engined car for the first time.

There’s also no denying some rivals offer more pace for the money. Despite being cheaper, the MG4 can sprint from 0-60mph in 7.7 seconds, while the Kia Niro EV offers similar levels of performance taking 7.8 seconds to hit 62mph from a standing start.

Interior & comfort

“If you prefer a comfy car, the e-C4 X delivers”

The interior isn’t as quirky or interesting as many past Citroen models, including the fairly recent and now discontinued C4 Cactus. Instead, the dashboard is relatively conventional, with lots of horizontal surfaces, an infotainment touchscreen perched above the air vents in the centre console, and a digital instrument display for the driver. It’s logical and feels well laid out overall – even benefitting from some physical controls for the air-conditioning – but we’d prefer not to be able to see and touch quite so much hard plastic.

Its highlight is the front seats, which feature 15mm high-density foam pads to provide additional comfort. A similar material to a memory foam mattress, we found we felt just as fresh at the end of a two-hour drive as when we set off.

Infotainment and navigation

Citroen has never been a leader in infotainment, and while the setup in the e-C4 X moves things in the right direction, it’s still far from perfect. The 10-inch landscape touchscreen looks okay, but there’s no way to move the sat-nav map around with your fingers or pinch to zoom and look at your surroundings. For this reason, we’d almost certainly switch to using Apple CarPlay or Android Auto’s maps instead, and connectivity is included as standard. It’s also worth noting that the head-up display system added in Shine trim uses a small transparent piece of plastic sticking out of the dashboard, which works okay but isn’t quite as neat as windscreen projection.

Practicality & boot space

“The e-C4 X has a big boot on paper, but the lack of a hatchback makes it less useful”

The e-C4 X has a saloon-style boot lid, rather than a full hatchback, so the rear windscreen stays in position when it’s opened. This separates it from the e-C4, and most other SUV-style models with a hatchback design that most European buyers tend to prefer.

While the passenger compartment hasn’t really grown in size, there does seem to be slightly more space in the back thanks to a more reclined rear seatback. The middle passenger won’t be very pleased with the slightly raised position, though, or the backrest which is home to a flip-down armrest, making it less comfortable for sitting in.

Boot space

The e-C4 X has been stretched in comparison with the e-C4, resulting in more space in the boot. Volume is now up from 380 litres to an impressive 510 litres, which is as much as you’d get in a large executive car and also beats the 464 litres up to the parcel shelf in the MG5 EV estate.

The rear seat splits and folds in a conventional 40/60 ratio, but doesn’t create a very large opening. If you tend to carry large, bulky items like bicycles or furniture in the boot of your car, you may want to look elsewhere.

Reliability & safety

“Citroen is performing better for owner satisfaction and there’s plenty of standard safety kit”

While it’s too soon to make a verdict on the e-C4 X’s reliability, it’s reassuring to see Citroen itself climb from near the bottom of our Driver Power owner survey rankings in 2021 to a respectable 13th out of 29 carmakers in 2022.

A reasonably low 18.7% of owners reported a fault in the first 12 months, which is better than Skoda (21.6%), Kia (20.4%) or Renault‘s (22.5%) showing. Owners told us comfort was amongst the best of any brand, along with interior quality.

Safety

The e-C4 X is equipped with an impressive amount of standard safety equipment. Sense trims get autonomous emergency braking (AEB), speed limit information, lane-keeping assist, lane departure alerts and driver attention monitoring. Upgrading to Shine brings Safety Pack Plus, adding radar technology to the AEB for cyclist and nighttime detection, along with enhanced traffic sign recognition. All this might not be enough to secure a five-star Euro NCAP crash-test rating, however, because the Citroen e-C4 shares most of its technology with only managed four stars when it was tested.

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