The debut of the C2 took place in 2003 in Frankfurt, where the new product from Citroen was greeted with great enthusiasm. The car is a three-door hatchback that fits well into the line of Citroen models between the C3 and C3 Pluriel. Expressive, stylish, extraordinary inside and outside, it is built on a shorter Citroen C3 platform. The body length is only 3.66 meters, which is 20 centimeters shorter than the C3 model, the width is 1.66 meters, the height is 1.46 meters, the wheelbase is 2.31 meters. But, despite such small dimensions, the car is designed to carry four people. The appearance of the C2 was very attractive.
The design of the front end successfully combines smoothness and dynamics - a convex hood, original acute-angled headlights, a massive front bumper with an integrated false radiator grille look quite aggressive. The clearly defined wide wheel arches emphasize the sporty character of the car. C2 has its own peculiarity - the designers deliberately directed the line of the rear window downwards, from which the car seems divided into two parts. In addition to creating a decorative effect, it provides better visibility to passengers of the second row. The expressiveness of the rear of the car gives large angular brake lights and panoramic glass luggage compartment.
The modernity of interior decoration emphasizes such details as bright colors and transparent elements of the decor. Car interior can be presented in four colors: amber, blue, green and gray. Colored inserts are used to trim the seats and door panels. In tune matched gear knob and door handles.
The instrument panel was inherited from the C3. The rear end has become completely different. Instead of a three-seater sofa, like in C3, there are two separate chairs here. They can be easily moved away, folded back, or even folded to increase the initially small amount of luggage.
In the first case, the luggage space is increased by about a third, in the second, you can already put something more bulky than a suitcase with things, in the third case, a similarity of a van is obtained from the cabin. The tailgate consists of two wings: the top and bottom. It is designed in such a way that, if necessary, only its upper part can be opened, which is very convenient on narrow city streets. For access to the back row, the front seats are pulled back, and their backs are folded forward. Due to the presence of mechanical “memory” they return to the same position from which they “opened”, without additional adjustments. The line of power units consists of four engines.
Three petrol: 1.1 l / 60 hp, 1.4 l / 75 hp, 1.6 l / 110 hp and one diesel 1,4HDi / 68 hp with common rail system. The C2 is equipped with both a conventional manual gearbox and the automated SensoDrive “box”, which is designed for versions with 1.4 and 1.6 liter engines. Feature SensoDrive is that the driver can independently choose manual or automatic mode of the transmission. Versions are also rigidly tied to the units: a car with a more modest engine is offered in the SX version, and a 110-strong version is in the VTR configuration.
The standard equipment includes power windows, adjustable front seats in height, electric power steering, air conditioning, automatic headlights and wipers, central locking with remote control. Safety, depending on the version, is provided by ESP, ABS and brake-assist emergency braking system. In addition, the small C2 can have six airbags (standard 4): front, side and inflatable curtains. Depending on the type of engine and configuration, you can choose rims ranging in size from 14 to 16 inches. Latest for VTR version in basic equipment. Based on the Citroen C2 VTR built C2 GT. However, these two cars have a number of cardinal differences.
First of all, the C2 GT is equipped with a classic manual gearbox, instead of the semi-automatic Senso-Drive used on the C2 VTR. The engine was inherited, but the GT dynamics is higher due to the lighter weight of the car and manual transmission. This is confirmed by the fact that from zero to one hundred kilometers per hour, the C2 GT accelerates in 9.5 seconds, which is 1.5 seconds less than the C2 VTR. Of the other differences can be noted the new rims, created specifically for this modification, as well as a slightly modernized body kit and a slightly different trim.
In 2004, Citroen introduced the “charged” version of the C2. This car is the ideological receiver of the model Citroen Saxo VTS, and even retained the abbreviation VTS in its name. Under the hood of the C2 VTS is a 125-horsepower engine, which is aggregated with a five-speed gearbox. Standard equipment of this version includes: 16-inch rims, sporty-style trim, six airbags, air conditioning and electronic stability. During its short history of existence, C2 managed to collect a sufficient number of awards.
For example, the French magazine Automobile gave the C2 a design award, the German Bild am Sonntag received the Golden Steering Wheel, and the crash tests of the EuroNCAP brought four stars for safety. The debut of the car can be called successful, before the restyling of 2008, just over 480 thousand units were sold, so the updates are minor. The exterior of the hatchback was slightly refreshed: a new bumper with a different design of fog lights will appear in front, the air intake in the center was different, the new grille received a chrome edging, side mirrors with new bodies partially painted in body color. In addition, the choice of the design of alloy wheels has expanded.
Body painting options became one more. For the European market, the upgraded C2 received a 1.6-liter 110 hp turbodiesel. This engine is equipped with a carbon filter and consumes only 4.4 liters of fuel per hundred kilometers, while the emissions of harmful substances into the atmosphere are 119 grams per kilometer. On the C2 with a 1.4-liter turbodiesel with 90 hp Europeans will now be able to order the Start & Stop system, which saves up to 10-15% of fuel depending on operating conditions.
In Russia, the Citroen C2 is available with a 1.4-liter engine, equipped with a Senso Drive robotic gearbox or 5-speed “mechanics”, as well as with two versions of a 1.6-liter engine, the first of which produces 110 hp. and is equipped with all the same Senso Drive, and the second produces 125 hp and is paired with a five-speed manual gearbox.
