USED Citroën C5 Estate (01 - 08)

My car

I drive 35,000+ miles each year, and value the exceptionally smooth and quiet ride this car gives. The engine is ideally suited to this type of driving, and 138bhp is spot on for long haul motorway cruising. As an estate car, it's the best I've ever had, with the load capacity (both weight and volume)being a big improvement on my previous Passat estates. The opening tailgate window has been a real boon on busy shopping trips. Downside? Some problems with the tyre pressure sensors, eventually eliminated by reprogramming. My wife loves the parking sensor display and sounds!

My car

This is my second C5. With the first car, the phrase 'design fault' was something that I was to hear time and time again at the Citroen dealership, when various bits of the car had problems.

The big plus for me with this car is the load-carrying capability and the fantastic suspension. I work on farms around the country and this car is fantastic when you have to traverse difficult rough tracks. Rise the car up on its suspension and you can avoid the ruts, hidden stones and dips that will cause other cars to ground.

Previous Mondeos and Astras have had me wincing as things have struck the underside.

I had misgivings about having another C5. I was very tempted by the Mazda 6 and the new VW Passat. The C5 won out due to the high level of specification, the low carbon dioxide emissions and my hope that all of the old problems had been sorted out (fingers crossed).

I'm getting 49.1 mpg at the moment. I do like the cruise control and speed limiter for motorway driving. Time will tell if I have made the right decision.

My car

I bought this car because of its sheer comfort and effortless driving qualities.

My wife is very sensitive to bumpy roads (we live in the country) and long journeys were out until we got the C5. It drives like a limousine, is quiet at all speeds, has plenty of power for effortless overtaking and is very roomy so we can take the dog and a wheelchair and all caravanning equipment with ease.

I recently towed a large four-berth caravan 270 miles and the car behaved beautifully. My wife was able to 'suffer' the long tow easily and was able to sleep across the back much of the way.

The satellite-navigation was a boon as my co-driver was usually asleep when needed! The cruise control worked most of the time except when overtaken by buses when the drag made it change down then back up again but only when set around 60mph.

So far the car has had only one small fault, which was put right under guarantee.

This is my first purchase of a Citroen and I must say I am impressed, which having given up my dream X-Trail is saying something.

In my view it is a very underrated car and I cannot understand why residual values are low and the car gets generally poorish reviews.

The new 2.0-litre 2005 model with 38bhp more must be even more of a dream - to come!

My car

This car has done 60,000 miles. I only get about 40mpg. It's very disappointing, and very expensive on tyres. The dealer says that the tracking is OK.

Some internal components are of suspect quality. For example, the foot pedal rubber has worn through.

The inside of car seems to have been designed by a gallic eccentric with gothic enthusiasms. It's not very practical for carrying A4 maps etc.

The car and its electronics seem to be very reliable. It is surprisingly restful on long journeys. The standard-fit audio quality is rather poor.

I will be going back to VW Passat, which is in a different league.