TG's Citroen C4 Picasso review

You’re getting forgetful TG. You’ve already driven this.

Almost. That was the seven-seat Grand C4 Picasso we recently drove in facelifted form, deciding that it remained a likeably quirky and unpretentious seven-seat family hauler. Probably our favourite non-crossover in fact. 

But what if you’ve been stricter with the birth control and have merely the average 2.2 children to transport from place to place? Seven seats is overkill. Overkill that’s trickier to park, and a tad pricier to buy. For this very situation, Citroen offers the C4 Picasso. Understandably on Citroen’s part, it’s not called the ‘nonGrand’. 

Right, so what’s new about the Citroen C4 Picasso?

New wheels, new trim around the lights, new rear lights and some new colours, really. Like the seven-seater, it’s quietly handsome for what it is.  Which is to say, a car about holding things more than holding the road.

So it’s roomy then?

Very. Okay, in pure bottom-on-seat terms it offers no more person capacity than a Ford Fiesta, but the Picasso's huge barn doors and lofty roof offer simple, welcoiming access and a capacious sense of space inside. Big windows mean stellar visibility too. The seats are a doddle to fold. They’re comfy. Most of the materials feel relatively sturdy. It’s all rather fit for purpose. Look, it's not as sexy as an e-diff or launch control, but it sells cars. 

What about up front?

Less good. Our chief complaint is the two-tier screen set-up – the lower one for touching to control many functions, and the upper one a mixture of speedo, trip data, climate control and more.

It’s a mish-mash of fonts, shapes and colours which doesn’t make for quick-glance easy-reading, which is especially annoying when it’s centered in the cabin, rather than directly in the driver’s eyeline. Lo-spec Picassos, which use a simpler two-tone screen, offer this info far more digestibly. 

No great shakes to drive?

It’s perfectly on the pace. Body roll isn’t seasick-inducing, and the control weights are well judged. A few spec-worthy points crop up, though. For a kick-off, our top-spec ‘Flair’ test car wore, naturally, top-spec 18-inch wheels. Very smart they are too. The result was a noticeably nosier, pimplier ride than the lower-spec Grand Picasso we tried almost back-to-back. Comfort matters in big French family cars, so that’s an immediate check in the box for saving money and going for a cheaper spec. Hey, you get the more legible screen readouts too.

What else?

Impressed by the three-cyl petrol’s guts but non-plussed by its thirst, we tried a diesel this time, and though it soared into the high forties to the gallon, Citroen’s nowhere near as adept at damping out clatter from the motor when it comes to a diesel powerplant. The manual shift remains a clunker too, which cheapens the overall experience. 

So, good car, but spec carefully then, it sounds like?

Exactly that. The C4 Picasso remains a pleasing vehicle with few major vices, but you make life simpler, easier and comfier by picking one from the lower end of the spec sheet. Nice when life works out that way, huh?