citroen xsara picasso 2000 2010 review

7/23/2019 Citroen Xsara Picasso 2000 2010 review

1/10

OverviewThe Xsara Picasso has been hugely popular, and it remained on sale after the launch of the

far more modern C4 Picasso, right up until 2010. It now feels very dated, but its good value

second-hand and there are loads to choose from.

Back in 2000, this five-door, five-seat MPV was Citrons answer to Renaults sector-

changing Scnic, and it sold in huge numbers up until its retirement in 2010. No surprise: its

both affordable and practical.With 470 litres of boot space, the Xsara Picasso is a good luggage carrier. You can fold

any of the three rear seats for more room or remove them altogether, giving up to 860 litres

if you stack things up to the window line. Three people can sit in the back without banging

shoulders, although tall people might find the seats lack thigh support. Leg and headroom are

good throughout, but the heater is weak and windows are difficult to demist. The optional full-

length sunroof is a boon.

The Picassos ride quality is one of its strengths; its compliant and comfortable. However,

the steering isnt precise enough and the turning circle is relatively large.

Reliability of the Citron Xsara Picasso is average, according to the latest Which? Car

survey, but the relatively high breakdown rate of 13% is a cause for concern.

Recommended modelsin the range

WHICH? CAR TOP CHOICE MODEL

2.0 HDi Desire 5dr

New price: -

Used price: 1,695

FASTEST MODEL1.8i 16v Desire 5dr

New price: -

Used price: 1,595

0-62mph: 10.8 secs

MOST EFFICIENT MODEL

1.6 HDi 92 VTX 5dr

New price: -

Used price: 2,825

Combined fuel economy: 55.4 mpg

CHEAPEST MODEL TO BUY NEW

-

New price: -

CHEAPEST MODEL TO BUY USED

1.6i LX 5dr

Used price: 695

CHEAPEST MODEL TO RUN NEW-

New price: -

Running costs: -3 YEARS/36,000 MILES

Good value for money secondhand.

Spacious and practical, and well-equipped.

Comfortable ride.

Wayward steering and poor brakes.

Feeling very dated alongside the newer C4 Picasso.No stability control.

Which? Car review

Citron Xsara Picasso (2000-2010)ON SALE: Jun 2000 CLASS: People carriers/MPVs

NEW PRICE: -USED PRICE: From 695

%TOTAL SCORE:PERFORMANCE:

BOOT & STORAGE:

RIDE COMFORT:

SAFETY:

HANDLING:

RELIABILITY:

OWNERS VIEWIt is reliable, practical andhas plenty of boot space ona flat level. Very economicaland comfortable. On longruns will do London toEdinburgh on a tank of fuel.

Which? works for you


2/10

We use the sophisticated electronic timing

equipment to record standing-start and

in-gear acceleration, and repeat each test

several times.

Ride comfort is assessed by our labora-

tory experts who have driven hundreds of

thousands of miles in a myriad of different

models.

On the roadThe Picasso is a decent drive, with excellent suspension and predictable handling, plus strong,

willing engines which can deliver some impressive performance. The steering could be better,however, and the brakes arent fantastic. The raised drivers seating position provides an

excellent view and the controls are, in the main, all thoughtfully laid out and easy to use. Its a

shame about the pedals, however, which are positioned rather too close to the floor.

Performance The 2.0-litre diesel engine is well-mannered and suited to the cars five-speed gearbox,

enabling you to get some swift acceleration out of the Picasso; gear changes are simple and

smooth and the clutch action is excellent.

Continuing versions on sale new have either the strong 1.6 HDI diesel (92bhp) or a 1.6i

petrol (110bhp); both are perfectly adequate if not particularly inspiring.

Model tested Acceleration (-mph) Rating

diesel .HDi (bhp) manual dr () . secs

Ride comfort The suspension deals with everything the road surface can throw at it bumps large and small

are taken in the Picassos stride and body roll in corners is kept to a minimum.

Model tested Rating

diesel .HDi (bhp) manual dr ()

How we test

Performance

Ride comfort

Which? Car review

Citron Xsara Picasso (2000-2010)People carriers/MPVs


3/10

On the road continued...

Handling Straight-line stability is excellent and the Picasso is untroubled by rough road surfaces.

Cornering is good, too, with a tendency towards understeer when pushed, which is the safer

option. Stability control is not available.

The steering is light but feels rather imprecise and doesnt give the driver enough

feedback. It also has a tendency to kick back sharply after cornering, which can take some

getting used to. Also, the turning circle is too large, even for this size of vehicle.

Model tested Rating


Brakes The brakes are just about acceptable, with ABS and electronic brakeforce distribution, but notterribly strong to halt a vehicle of this weight and size: their weakness is particularly noticeable

when the Xsara Picasso is fully loaded with passengers and luggage.

Model tested Braking distance (-mph) Rating

diesel .HDi (bhp) manual dr () .m

Refinement and noise Noise isnt generally a problem, but the optional large sliding sunroof can cause a lot of wind

rustle when travelling fast.

Model tested Cruising noise Rating

diesel .HDi (bhp) manual dr () dB

Which? Car review


On-the-limit handling is explored well

away from public roads to ensure a fair

test. Our obstacle avoidance test is one of

the harshest tests in the industry..

The Which? Car braking test measures

stopping distance from 62-0mph and is

repeated ten times in quick succession to

highlight any brake fade issues.

The Which? Car experts use a decibelmeter to record interior sound levels

at common UK motorway speeds, and

combine this with subjective assessments

to arrive at an overall score.

How we test

Handling

Brakes

Refinement and noise


4/10

On the road continued...

Cabin and controls The Picasso is an easy car to get used to and the main controls are located within easy reach

on the steering column, which can be adjusted to suit the drivers height. The gear stick is

well positioned and the trip computer and CD/radio system can all be operated from controls

mounted on the steering wheel. There are also lots of storage compartments both front and

rear, and theres an additional 12-volt power socket in the boot.

On the downside, the pedals are mounted too close to the floor so, when braking or

using the clutch, you can find yourself stepping on the pedal levers, rather than the pedals

themselves. Also, annoyingly, in cold weather the heater blower comes on full blast at the start

of every new journey, so you have to adjust it every time not the simplest thing to do given

the rather unclear heater controls.

It would have been nice to see some extra instrument panel lighting plus the addition of

reading lights in the back of the car.

Model tested Rating


Visibility and parking The driver sits quite high up and this provides a good all-round view when manoeuvring and

parking. The headrests are easy to see through and dont obstruct your vision, and the heated

wing mirrors are large, but wed have liked to have seen a larger rear-view mirror.

Model tested Turning circle Rating

diesel .HDi (bhp) manual dr () .m

Which? Car review


We penalise cars with difficult controls,

and we look for things like backlit light

switches and easy-to-use heating and

ventilation adjustments.

Visibility is a major issue for motorists

today, so each car gets a 360-degree

swivel view test to reproduce the drivers

eye view and any obscured areas.

How we test

Cabin and controls

Visibility and parking


5/10

We take measurements all around the

driver and passengers door apertures

and note the height of the seat, door sills

and step down onto the car floor. The

best cars dont require too much bending

or stretching to get in and out.

We assess seat comfort subjectively,

using our road testers expert knowledge

and experience from thousands of differ-

ent cars. And we measure the head-, leg-

and elbowroom on offer in every seat, to

see how well the car caters for people of

all shapes and sizes.

How we test

Getting in and out

Seat space and comfort

Comfort and practicalityTheres bags of room for both front and rear-seat passengers, and the boot is large and

practical. The versatile rear seats can be individually folded forward or removed altogether togenerate huge carrying capacity. Front seats are very comfortable, though rear seats lack thigh

support, which is disappointing. The biggest disappointment, however, is the pathetic heater

which struggles to keep windows mist-free and takes ages to warm up a chilly interior.

Getting in and out Accessing the front and back is relatively easy, aided by the high doors, although its all too

easy to brush your clothes on dirty parts of the door frame.

In the front theres lots of room and the seats slide back to accommodate those up to

around 1.9m tall. The seats themselves are ample. In the back theres also lots of room and

plenty of width: three people can easily sit side by side without banging shoulders and theres

sufficient legroom for those up to 1.85m tall.

Model tested Ratingdiesel .HDi (bhp) manual dr ()

Seat space and comfort The front seats are soft and comfortable, although back support could be a touch better. They

also have adjustable armrests, which is a nice touch.

In the back theres little thigh support, so youll find your legs bent at an uncomfortable

angle. Also, the headrests are too low, which means that if youre tall they press into the back

of your neck.

Model tested Rating


Which? Car review



6/10

Carmakers give official stats for boot

space, but our tests are more realistic. We

load the boot up with measuring blocks

only as far as the rear window line, so

that luggage is well secured and wont

obscure rear visibility. We repeat the test

with the rear seats up, and folded down

(where possible).

Feel sorry for the tester who has to warm

each car up from a frosty -10 degrees in

our climate chamber. Starting with a cold

engine, we measure how long it takes to

warm up the front and rear of the cabin.

Diesel cars usually take longer. We also

check the effectiveness of air condition-

ing, where fitted.

How we test

Boot and storage

Heating and ventilation

Boot and storage The boot is big (470 litres) and you can completely remove the rear seats to produce a huge,

flat luggage space if required. The boot sill is low and the lid opens very wide, making loading

and unloading easy, although the sloping nature of the roof does limit the available height

somewhat. Watch your head when loading, as its easy to bang it on the protruding boot lock.

Model tested Boot space (seats up/down) Rating

diesel .HDi (bhp) manual dr () litres / litres

Heating and ventilation The heater is disappointing. It takes ages to warm up the interior on chilly days and its difficult

to demist windows and keep them clear. Conversely on hot days, front seat passengers who

sit close to the large windscreen are subjected to lots of direct sunlight, which could getuncomfortable. We like the optional large sliding sunroof, however, which both front and rear

passengers can benefit from on hot days. Not all models came with air conditioning, though

both the versions (1.6i and 1.6 HDi Desire) which remain on sale have it as standard-fit.

Model tested Rating


Which? Car review


Comfort and practicality continued...


7/10


8/10

While testing fuel economy, we also

collect exhaust gases to enable us to

measure the amount of carbon dioxide

(CO2) emitted. We also check whether

particulate filters are effective at removing

sooty emissions from diesel engines.

We rate cars for safety using Euro NCAP

crash test scores (where available),

alongside our own comprehensive safety

checklist. Uniquely, we also feed in results

from our accident avoidance test after

all, its far better to steer around a crash

than rely on the airbags...

Security scores come from the security

experts at Thatcham, who break into

hundreds of cars each year. Most modern

cars are very difficult to drive away, but

are still too easy to steal from.

How we test

Emissions

Safety

Security

Emissions

The 1.6 HDi emits 135g/km of carbon dioxide, meaning a low tax banding for VED and

BIK company car tax; the 1.6i is less tax-efficient, putting out 172g/km.

Petrol (CO, claimed) g per km - g per km

Diesel (CO, claimed) g per km - g per km

Model tested Emissions (claimed/tested)

diesel .HDi (bhp) manual dr () g per km/g per km

Safety and security

Euro NCAP score

Adult occupant

Child protection -

Pedestrian protection -

Which? safety rating

Active (crash avoidance) -

Passive (crash safety) -

Child -

Pedestrian -

Security

Makes life too easy for smash-and-grab thieves; the Xsara Picasso proved easy to break into in

our tests, though it is quite difficult to drive away.

Theft of car: Theft from car:

Which? Car review


Running costs and depreciation continued...


9/10

Everyone who takes part in the Which?

Car survey tells us about their car and

the dealers who sell and service it. We

analyse this feedback across all cars to

give top-level satisfaction ratings for each

brand, including the brands reliability

record over the last eight years. All star

ratings are out of five.

These show how owners score this car

in 12 different areas, from performance to

heating. Owners ratings are subjective

so may differ from Which? Car test scores

but they give a good idea of what the

car is like to live with. Where relevant, cars

are scored against other cars in the same

class (e.g. for space).

About our survey

Brand ratings

Model ownership ratings

OWNERS VIEWIt is a good work horse.Loads of space and doesthe job well of carrying usaround. Nothing exciting.

OWNERS VIEWExcellent fuel consumption,

good storage and seatremoval.

Which? Car Survey resultsThe Which? Car Survey is the UKs most robust reliability and owner satisfaction survey. In

2015, drivers told us about 58,000 cars, covering more than 484 million miles in the previous12 months (thats equivalent to driving to the moon and back a hundred times). This unique

feedback allows us to rate satisfaction and reliability for hundreds of new and used cars.

Note: Star ratings below are from 1-5 (1 is very poor and 5 is very good). Percentages

shown under Most common faults indicate the proportion of owners reporting each problem

in the past 12 months.

Brand Sample size: 1,668 people

Citron ratingsOverall owner satisfaction for this brand 78%

Brand reliability -

Dealer Sales Service

Dealer Servicing & repair

Which? Car review


Model: Citron Xsara Picasso (2000-2010) Sample size: 201 people

Ownership ratingsOverall owner satisfaction for this range 77%

In-car technology

Driving enjoyment

Ease of driving

Comfort

Dash layout and controls

Practicality

Value for money

Running costs

- -


10/10

We split reliability into breakdowns (in-

cluding failure to start), faults (where parts

need replacing) and problems (minor is-

sues e.g. squeaks and loose trim). Where

the car has been on sale for some time,

and we have numerous survey responses

from owners, we also split scores by the

age of car and fuel type. Star ratings are

out of five the more stars, the more reli-able the car.

Want to know whats most likely to go

wrong as the car gets older? These are

the five most common faults reported by

owners, grouped by age into new, recent

and older cars. A score of 40% means

four out of 10 owners reported problemswith that part of the car over the previous

12 months. Engine electrics and non-en-

gine electrics (e.g. windows, stereo) cause

more headaches than mechanical parts in

most modern cars.

About our survey

Reliability ratings

Most common faults

Which? Car Survey results continued...

Reliability ratingsOverall Reliability

Up to 3 years old 3-8 years old

Petrol cars Reliability - -

Breakdowns - -

Average annual repair cost - -

Diesel cars Reliability - -

Breakdowns - -

Average annual repair cost - -

All cars Reliability -

Breakdowns % -

Average annual repair cost -

Breakdowns: Percentage of cars suffering a breakdown in last 12 months

Average annual repair cost:Average annual cost of repairs (not servicing), in past 12

months

Most common faults

Up to 3 years old

Air Con %Exhaust System %Lights

%Ventilation - Other %Fuel System %

3-8 years old

- - - - -

Failure rate: The proportion of owners reporting this problem in the last year

Which? Car review


citroen xsara picasso 2000 2010 review

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