Citroen e-C5 Aircross review

Introduction

Citroen is known for taking risks. Controversial styling comes naturally to it, with everything from the mid-to-late 20th-century 2CV to bubble cars, weird wedge-shaped concepts, and many more over the decades.

There's a significant step forward with this latest new car, albeit hardly ground breaking nowadays: Citroen has put an electric motor in one of its existing models.

There is a catch, albeit a welcome one: the C5 Aircross has been relaunched. It has provided a much-needed makeover for an SUV crossover that, after eight years, was showing its age, both inside and out.

Along with the brand-new second-generation model, an all-electric version has also been introduced: the e-C5 Aircross. Citroen is no stranger to electric cars now, having already launched the e-C3, e-C4 and e-C4 X, as well as ‘e’ versions of several vans. In fact, part of Citroen’s wackiness was its pioneering attempts at making electric cars in the 1990s, notably the AX Electrique and the C-Zero – and, more recently, the tiny Ami quadricycle.

As for the e-C5 Aircross, that’s about as normal as the French manufacturer gets. It’s the first Citroen built on parent company Stellantis’ STLA Medium platform, which Peugeot's e-3008, e-5008, and Vauxhall Grandland also share.

We’ve tested one to find out if it’s any good.

At A Glance

The new e-C5 Aircross bears little resemblance to its predecessor. It’s still rounded in some places and shares similarities, such as a thinned-out, two-barred upper grille, but has far more definition to its lines in all areas.

The front features a splitter that extends outward from the rest of the bodywork. At the same time, the Citroen badge is illuminated, nicely complementing a new light arrangement that includes thin LED light bars and a couple of pixels on either side of the badge. Blackened bodywork sits above the splitter, with two cut-out chunks mimicking air intakes.

Around the sides, the car has broader shoulders and flared wheel arches, bordered by cladding which is flattened on top. A notable vertical crease is visible beneath the door mirrors, while chunkier cladding is positioned at the bottom.

At the rear, there’s plenty of blank space, with taillights which appear to pop out from the bodywork’s corners. A black bar connects each side, while the number plate sits within a blackened cut-out that also extends down to the rear bumpers. It's a significant change from the outgoing model, which, while family-friendly, was showing its age, but there’s no such issue here.

Key Features

The e-C5 Aircross is available in three different trim levels.

Entry-level 'You!' models come with 19-inch alloys, a 13.0-inch infotainment touchscreen featuring voice control, Apple CarPlay, Android Auto, 3D satellite navigation, digital radio, and a wireless phone charger, as well as a 10.0-inch digital instrument screen. It also features automatic LED headlights, rain-sensing wipers, dual-zone climate control, keyless start, a chilled storage compartment, a synthetic leather steering wheel, and rear parking sensors.

Mid-level Plus trim adds front parking sensors, along with eight-colour ambient lighting, electric folding door mirrors, rear privacy glass, blue fabric and faux leather seats, satin chrome detailing, and gloss black front and rear bumper inserts. It also gets a rear-view camera.

Range-topping Max trim upgrades to matrix LED headlights and a 360-degree surround view camera, adding a head-up display, LED footwell lighting, welcome lighting, and an air quality filter, plus gold exterior decorations. It also gets some safety upgrades, which we’ll cover later.

Power comes from an electric motor producing 210PS in the Standard Range version, although there's also an Extended Range edition with a larger battery and 230PS.

That makes the electric versions the most powerful in the range, compared with 145PS in the C5 Aircross full hybrid (HEV) and 195PS in the plug-in hybrid (PHEV), although we'll focus on the all-electric model here. If you’re considering the hybrids too, the only difference in spec is that the HEV version’s You! trim gets smaller 18-inch alloys, rather than the 19-inch ones on the PHEV and fully electric versions.

Range & Batteries

The Standard Range e-C5 Aircross features a 73kWh battery and a claimed range of up to 320 miles, which is competitive for this class. However, Citroen has pushed the boat out with the Extended Range version, which has a 97kWh battery capable of travelling an impressive 422 miles.

Of course, these are laboratory figures, so you won’t achieve this in practice, as the real-world electric range depends on a bunch of factors, including ambient temperature and driving style. We were on course to achieve approximately 345 miles on our test drive of the Extended Range battery, which is within expectations.

Performance & Drive

The Standard Range e-C5 Aircross can do 0-62mph in 8.9 seconds, which isn't bad, while the extra 20PS of the Extended Range version, which we’re testing, is marginally quicker at 8.8 seconds. Somewhat disappointingly, though, both are slower than the C5 Aircross PHEV, which can achieve this in 8.3 seconds. It's mainly due to the e-C5 Aircross’ weight – at 2,246kg, the Extended Range is 372kg heavier than the PHEV, and a whopping 692kg heavier than the HEV – even the Standard Range weighs 2,109kg. Nevertheless, the e-C5 Aircross feels strong, with a brisk burst of pace off the line, which is sufficient for overtaking on motorways, and the rougher edge to the standard C5 Aircross engines is pleasingly absent here.

Citroens aren’t generally built for driving thrills, though – they tend to be comfortable cars, which usually comes at the expense of handling. And that’s right on cue, given the e-C5 Aircross's agility (or lack thereof). Around corners it generates body lean. However, it’s not all bad – the steering is precise, albeit lacking in feedback through the wheel. It’s certainly an improvement over the predecessor model, which sometimes felt like your steering inputs needed to be exaggerated to elicit a response from the car.

It’s incredibly comfortable around town and, thanks to the light steering, threading the car through city centre streets is easy. At higher speeds, it’s nice to waft along with, although lumpier surfaces cause it to wobble about like a jelly, sometimes excessively, if you’re on particularly poor roads. Indeed, it doesn’t take much to unsettle the e-C5 Aircross, and it then takes a while for it to settle down again.

The e-C5 Aircross’s regenerative braking is good. However, you may want it in its most ferocious setting, as you have to push the pedal some way down to activate the actual brake pads, at which point you’ll be wanting some additional stopping power. All things considered, the e-C5 Aircross feels more refined compared with the standard HEV and PHEV models, but it’s questionable whether the extra power is worth it, given this is a car that feels more adept at lower speeds.

Charging

Regardless of which battery you pick, AC charging maxes out at a rate of 160kW. Figures haven’t been confirmed for the Extended Range version, but it’ll likely be around a third longer than the Standard Range, which performs a 20-80% top-up in about half an hour. The e-C5 Aircross supports 11kW charging, which takes four and a half hours to charge from 20-80% in the Standard Range, and six and three-quarters hours with a 7.4kW home wallbox.

Running Costs & Emissions

The e-C5 Aircross has no petrol, diesel or carbon emissions, so it’ll be cheap to run, especially if you charge it up at home, avoiding more expensive public chargers. Zero emissions doesn’t mean zero road tax anymore, sadly, but you'll only have to pay £10 for the first year; however, it'll revert to full price (currently £195 per year) thereafter.

Reliability isn’t often considered a strong suit of Citroen’s, but it’s actually not bad these days and has surged up the rankings in recent years. Surprisingly, given its age, the predecessor C5 Aircross was one of Citroen's most dependable models, so we hope that continues with the e-C5, especially as there's no engine to go wrong.

Interior & Technology

What a difference Citroen has made inside, compared with the outgoing C5 Aircross. The new layout is light-years ahead of its predecessor, although that says as much about how dated the old one had become, rather than how modern the new one is.

Mind you, a glance inside the new cabin and you'll raise your eyebrows in agreeable fashion – it looks very lovely indeed, and certainly does justice to Citroen’s aim to improve its previously bland cabin designs.

Our Max test car features a lovely dual-colour black and grey upholstery, although it's an optional extra. The dashboard is two-tiered – sort of – with the top layer in black, and the bottom curved tier in a light grey suede fabric that weirdly feels like polystyrene, also found on the doors and the lid of the central cubby.

Leaning up against the fabric, like a tablet, is the infotainment screen – unusually portrait-oriented – and, at the bottom, the unit it's built into curves seamlessly to connect onto the raised centre console, which houses a tray, various buttons, and a cupholder. Citroen calls it the ‘Waterfall’ screen as its appearance isn’t dissimilar, floating in front of the dashboard like cascading water in front of a vertical drop.  The steering wheel, too, looks funky, with a flat bottom and a flat top, and only two spokes.

As for the infotainment system, it's impressive, featuring modern graphics and a sharp resolution on its 13.0-inch touchscreen, which is responsive to presses and prods. However, it’s not the most intuitive to use. Behind the wheel, a separate 10.0-inch digital instrument display is available, offering equally sharp and attractive graphics that are easy to read.

Compared with premium brands, the interior may not wow you, but put side by side against Citroen's previous offerings, this is a giant leap forward. Everything seems solidly in place, although there are plenty of thin plastics that cheapen the feel; however, at least most of them have been designed to look nice.

Practicality & Boot Space

The e-C5 Aircross's seats are very comfortable and supportive. It's also easy to find a comfy driving position, with plenty of seat and steering wheel travel, although electric seat adjustment isn't available. There is a lumbar adjustment – and it's powered – but that's an optional extra exclusive to the Max trim and comes as part of the ‘hype grey’ ambience add-on, which also provides ventilated seats.

Forward visibility isn't too bad, thanks to a swept-back windscreen and relatively thin pillars. The rearmost side window doesn't extend far back, though, so the rear pillars are significantly chunkier, and rearward visibility is restricted. Thankfully, rear parking sensors are factory fitted on all models, with front sensors available on the top two models. The mid-range Plus edition comes with a rear-view camera, which is upgraded to a 360-degree camera in our range-topping Max trim.

There’s loads of space up front and an impressive amount in the rear, which can accommodate three adults without much squeezing, while the rear seats can recline. The boot space measures 565 litres, expanding to 1,668 litres by folding the rear seats down in a versatile 40:20:40 split. The boot floor can also be adjusted between two positions to remove the loading lip. In terms of interior storage, it’s not bad, with reasonably sized door bins and a glove compartment. You also get four USB-C charging points in all models.

Safety

Euro NCAP won't assess the e-C5 Aircross as it’ll use the safety ratings for the standard C5 Aircross, which was recently tested. It earned a four-star rating, scoring 80% for adults, 85% for children and 62% for safety assists.

Citroen will be disappointed that it hasn't earned five stars, as it has failed to improve on its predecessor’s four-star rating, which was able to achieve five stars with an optional safety pack. In fact, the predecessor earned higher scores, but it’s impossible to compare like-for-like as Euro NCAP revises its scoring criteria every so often as technology improves. As such, it stands to reason that, in practice, the new model is actually superior, safety-wise, to the outgoing one.

The standard safety kit includes automatic emergency braking with video and radar assistance, adaptive cruise control with stop-and-go functionality, extended traffic sign and speed limit information, active lane departure warning, and driver attention alert.

On our Max version, we also get lane positioning assist, semi-automatic lane change assistance, anticipatory speed limit recommendation, long-distance blind spot detection, rear cross-traffic alert and driver attention alert. This is part of the Techno Pack – standard on the top model, an optional extra on the mid-range Plus trim, but not available to the entry-level You! model.

Options

There are several optional extras available on the e-C5 Aircross, although some are reserved exclusively for the Max trim.

Metallic ruby red is the default body colour, but black, dark blue, dark grey, a greyish green, and white are also available for an additional cost. Additionally, Plus and Max models can have a black roof for an extra fee. A heat pump is also available, although it’s standard on the Max trim.

Speaking of which, the Max can also be upgraded to 20-inch alloys, although all versions of the e-C5 come with 19-inch wheels as standard. Our top-of-the-range model can also feature a panoramic opening sunroof with motorised blinds, as well as premium synthetic leather seats.

This ‘hype grey’ seat upgrade also includes perforated and ventilated front seats that come with a massage function, heated rear seats, electrically adjustable seat bolsters, and floor mats. There’s also the optional Techno Pack for the Plus trim, included as standard on the Max, but not available on the entry-level You! trim.

Rival Cars

The e-C5 Aircross is in a crowded marketplace, but if you’re sold on an electric car, there’s a handful of rivals worth considering.

Peugeot's e-3008 and Vauxhall's Grandland Electricc share the same platform as the Citroen. In contrast, the Skoda Enyaq and the Nissan Ariya are two others worth adding to your car leasing list, along with the Renault Scenic E-Tech and the Hyundai Ioniq 5. Tesla has recently relaunched the Model Y, but it’s around a third more expensive than the Citroen.

If you’d consider a plug-in hybrid, then there's the standard C5 Aircross, along with the Kia Sportage PHEV and Volkswagen Tiguan eHybrid. There are also PHEV versions of some of the ones we’ve mentioned above.

Verdict & Next Steps

If you’re after a comfortable, practical electric car that doesn’t break the bank, then the new Citroen e-C5 Aircross puts up an impressive fight.

It’s got good looks, a much-improved interior, decent infotainment and a solid amount of performance, even if you opt for the lower-powered Standard Range version – and even the inferior range of that model is pretty good.

The Extended Range version, however, will take you a remarkably long way on a single charge. Nevertheless, there's little reason to choose it unless longer journeys are a regular occurrence, or unless you really dislike plugging it in.

If you’re not sold on electric cars, it’s worth considering the hybrid models, though Citroen is a brand to avoid altogether if you want any hint of cornering prowess.

The Max trim is nice, but the mid-range Plus grade likely has everything you really need, while the entry-level You! is hardly threadbare, feature-wise. Citroen continues to grapple with its Achilles' heel of not consistently achieving five-star safety ratings. However, the array of safety technology available should provide some reassurance.

Where to next?

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**Score based on Select’s unique meta score analysis, taking into account the UK’s top leading independent car website reviews of the Citroen e-C5 Aircross Lease deals. 

**Correct as of 06/09/2025. Based on 9 months initial payment, 5,000 miles annually, over a 48 month lease. Initial payment equivalent to 9 monthly payments, or £3,750.39 (Plus admin fee) Ts and Cs apply. Credit is subject to status.