Topic: Unobtainium Road Trip: 2015 Citron Grand C4 Picasso

[Blueprint]

Great to read of trips in Europe by Canadians.

I lived close to Mulhouse for 3 years and was fortunate enough to visit the Museum when first opened to the public before it became the National museum.

https://www.flickr.com/photos/d70w7/6862694128/in/album-72157629292146274/

By the dust on the cars, it seems you visited the collection in its "as found" condition!

[Blueprint]

Great read, I really like these road trip pieces. As for the car, meh, French Mazda 5.

Thanks Fob!

The Picasso is a bit roomier than the Mazda5, but definitely more upscale. Soft materials everywhere. Interior quality was much higher than my Odyssey's, in fact. 

[Noto]

Really nice read!!  Great trip, very jealous.

...but that car, as amazing as it may have been, is ugly as sin.

[Blueprint]

Really nice read!!  Great trip, very jealous.

...but that car, as amazing as it may have been, is ugly as sin.

It looks better in darker colours. I saw a few in this palette:

[Blueprint]

The Picasso is also available as a 5-seater, and its styling turns the funky dial to 12:

[Fobroader]

The Picasso is also available as a 5-seater, and its styling turns the funky dial to 12:

Thats a little better....

[mlin32]

But outside of walking, we took the subway, buses and TGV...

We also took other travel modes: train to Paris from the airport, Metro while in Paris for longer stints, train to Versailles, ferry on Lake Como, cog railway up a mountain in Switzerland. TGV from Paris to Mulhouse was an option, but it would have been more expensive and would have prevented some nice detours on the way, like Dijon.

Great review and trip.  I'd love to have some of those French cars available in Canada.  But only a few Québecois excentriques would buy them...

Thanks! 

Yes, people in QC still think of the Renault 5 as a success story. That success, was very, very local to La Belle Province. We do get many Renault platforms at Nissan, and a French-built Yaris, but that's about it. Citroen's high-level design approach could carve itself a niche, but I noticed the French nameplates drop out of sight once you drive out of France, so again true potential may be limited.

Cars mirror national characteristics. The Germans aren’t interested in the design, rather the driveability and quality of their cars. Thus they see french cars as cars for people who can’t afford a real car like a VW (with cheating software), Audi, Mercedes, or BMW. Even Ford is seen as more palatable as many come out of Köln.

[Blueprint]

But outside of walking, we took the subway, buses and TGV...

We also took other travel modes: train to Paris from the airport, Metro while in Paris for longer stints, train to Versailles, ferry on Lake Como, cog railway up a mountain in Switzerland. TGV from Paris to Mulhouse was an option, but it would have been more expensive and would have prevented some nice detours on the way, like Dijon.

Great review and trip.  I'd love to have some of those French cars available in Canada.  But only a few Québecois excentriques would buy them...

Thanks! 

Yes, people in QC still think of the Renault 5 as a success story. That success, was very, very local to La Belle Province. We do get many Renault platforms at Nissan, and a French-built Yaris, but that's about it. Citroen's high-level design approach could carve itself a niche, but I noticed the French nameplates drop out of sight once you drive out of France, so again true potential may be limited.

Cars mirror national characteristics. The Germans aren’t interested in the design, rather the driveability and quality of their cars. Thus they see french cars as cars for people who can’t afford a real car like a VW (with cheating software), Audi, Mercedes, or BMW. Even Ford is seen as more palatable as many come out of Köln.

Besides the German cars, the German-speaking swiss seemed to have a thing for Seats and ... American iron. Many Mustangs, 'Vettes (one pictured in Ticino), Camaros, RAMs and Silverados in impressive numbers.

[MJMontreal]

But outside of walking, we took the subway, buses and TGV...

We also took other travel modes: train to Paris from the airport, Metro while in Paris for longer stints, train to Versailles, ferry on Lake Como, cog railway up a mountain in Switzerland. TGV from Paris to Mulhouse was an option, but it would have been more expensive and would have prevented some nice detours on the way, like Dijon.

Great review and trip.  I'd love to have some of those French cars available in Canada.  But only a few Québecois excentriques would buy them...

Thanks! 

Yes, people in QC still think of the Renault 5 as a success story. That success, was very, very local to La Belle Province. We do get many Renault platforms at Nissan, and a French-built Yaris, but that's about it. Citroen's high-level design approach could carve itself a niche, but I noticed the French nameplates drop out of sight once you drive out of France, so again true potential may be limited.

The 5 was a huge success... just not in the US or the ROC. I had two of them. Great cars!

[MJMontreal]

" I backed out… only to see a car blast in from behind the tractor to pass." --Sometimes it's safer to back into lanes where you're not able to turn around... it makes it easier to return to the public road.

[eurodriver]

This summer I went to Europe for 47 days and I had a chance to drive Citroen C4 PIcasso turbo diesel manual. A bit smaller than the one shown in the article, but it had stop and go system, push button start, no GPS, but touch screen. Fantastic vehicle. I was averaging between 900 and 1000 km on a tank and I have never filled more than 50 liters of diesel! My three kids were comfortable. On one highway stretch with speed limit of 130km (Croatia has fantastic highways and very cheap, unlike our 407!) on board computer was showing 6 liters per 100km consumption at the speed of 150km (flat surface, no much wind)!

[Scaerio]

(Croatia has fantastic highways and very cheap, unlike our 407!)

Those fab highways (I have also drive them - the route from Split to Zagreb is spectacular) are a big part of why VAT in Croatia is 23%.

[Blueprint]

This summer I went to Europe for 47 days and I had a chance to drive Citroen C4 PIcasso turbo diesel manual. A bit smaller than the one shown in the article, but it had stop and go system, push button start, no GPS, but touch screen. Fantastic vehicle. I was averaging between 900 and 1000 km on a tank and I have never filled more than 50 liters of diesel! My three kids were comfortable. On one highway stretch with speed limit of 130km (Croatia has fantastic highways and very cheap, unlike our 407!) on board computer was showing 6 liters per 100km consumption at the speed of 150km (flat surface, no much wind)!

I filled up mine after 800km on its first tank, with plenty left. The first days of the trip, including the long 130 km/h drive from Paris to the border, where on that tank, 5.4 l/100km calculated myself! One frugal family car!