27 Jul 06
Underneath its Citroen skin with its aluminium bonnet and plastic front wings the C4 is broadly the same as a Peugeot 307, a car notably less fun to drive than its 306 predecessor. True, the hottest Citroen interpretation of that 306 platform was not exactly a paragon of handling - I've never known a hot hatch with more savage and less forewarned-of lift-off oversteer than the Xsara VTS - but to be a convincing sporty hatchback the C4 VTS needed to be a keener drive than the 307.
Which it is, but the price paid is a ride which is way too firm for Britain's pock-marked backroads. The suspension's tautness contributes to the quick, crisp and consistent steering response, the way a steering movement is instantly translated into directional action, and the C4's cornering line can be trimmed accurately enough on the accelerator to draw you into the action. But there really is no need for the springing and damping to be quite so unyielding; I own an example of that paragon of 1980s hot-hatch handling, a Peugeot 205 GTI 1.9 (fitted with genuine and recent Peugeot suspension parts throughout), and next to the C4 it feels really supple. That's how unnecessarily stiff car suspension has become. Is this really what buyers want?
This stiffness is part of the C4's slightly confused identity. Citroen has won world rally championships yet it's also famous for comfortable cars. Maybe the C4 VTS would be better cast as the fast hatchback that doesn't rattle your teeth. After all, there's another old-Citroen feature that the C4 emulates very well: violent, hard-to-modulate brakes. There's far too much servo assistance, and when driving slowly it's far too easy to stand the C4 on its nose when you just wanted to slow down a bit. This was my wife's biggest dislike about the C4, because each time this happened she got throttled by the non-height-adjustable seatbelt.
Logic suggests you don't give a car macho suspension and then mix it with feather-foot braking. But Citroen claims its buyers haven't complained, and that it's part of the Citroen feel. To which I would say a) why don't other current or recent Citroens do this? And b) if VTS buyers haven't complained, then the car is clearly selling to the wrong audience and not being taken seriously by car enthusiasts.
