Updated Citroen C3 arrives in the UK with prices starting at £16,280

The facelifted Citroen C3 hatchback is now available to order in the UK ahead of the first deliveries beginning in August. Starting at just over £16,000, the French supermini boasts an updated exterior design, as well as a tweaked cabin and engines that comply with the latest emissions testing procedure.

Outside, the new C3 is marked out by its new, angrier face. The top grille, which used to be high-set and smiley, has taken on more of a frown, while there’s an altogether chunkier look to the bumper. The Airbumps have been tweaked, too, becoming cleaner in their design.

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The new C3 is also designed to be highly personalised, with a choice of colour packs centred around four roof colours: Onyx Black, Opal White, Sport Red and Emerald Blue. There are also two new body colours – Elixir Red and Spring Blue – and new ‘Techwood’ and ‘Emerald’ interior designs. And if that isn’t enough, you can also have “roof décor graphics”.

As standard, the £16,280 Feel model comes with the brand’s trademark ‘Airbump’ door panels, LED headlights and a seven-inch touchscreen infotainment system with Apple CarPlay and Android Auto. Automatic air conditioning is included, too, along with cruise control and lane departure warning.

Spending around £1,000 more gets you the mid-range Flair model, which is marked out by its 16-inch alloy wheels, contrast roof and colour-coordinated door mirrors. It gets rear parking sensors, too, and automatic headlights to sweeten the deal. The top-of-the-range Flair Plus trim, meanwhile, comes in at £18,730 and brings 17-inch alloy wheels, satellite navigation and a reversing camera to the party.

The engine range may look unchanged, with the same old mix of 1.2-litre petrol engines and a 1.5-litre diesel, but Citroen has put them all through the new, stricter RDE-2 emissions test. On the road, that doesn’t mean much, but it’s important for company car drivers, because the diesel-powered C3 is exempt from the four-percent company car tax surcharge for non-RDE-2 diesels.

The basic Feel model is offered solely with the entry-level, 82 bhp 1.2-litre petrol engine, which comes with a manual gearbox. The other two models get a choice of all three power units, as the 109 bhp petrol and 99 bhp diesel join the fun. Only the more powerful petrol engine is available with an automatic gearbox.

Citroen dealers are already taking orders for the new C3, but the first customer deliveries are not expected until August.

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