The Citroen C6 has been launched on the Beijing Auto Show, featuring absolutely crazy grille with the double chevron logo integrated in the top end. The lights are all LED. The lower bumper has a shiny hook on each side. This car has quite some presence, especially in this light white color.
The wheels however could be a little bigger. They seem to swim in the arches, and they are too narrow too.
The Citroen C6 is basically the same car as the Dongfeng Fengshen A9, with a fancier interior, a slightly different rear, a rather different front, and a higher price tag. The front of the Citroen is without a doubt better than the Dongfeng’s, but we think the Dongfeng’s rear is much better than the Citroen’s.
The Citroen C6 and the Dongfeng Fengshen A9 will be manufactured alongside each other by the Dongfeng-PSA joint venture. They are both based on the PSA EMP2 platform, which will also underpin the upcoming Citroen DS9 sedan which is scheduled to arrive in late 2017.
Dongfeng Motor can use the platform because they are one of the largest shareholders in PSA. Companies also have the long-running Dongfeng-PSA joint venture that makes various other Citroen and Peugeot branded cars for the Chinese market.
The engine too is the same for both cars: a PSA 1.8 liter ‘THP’ turbo with an output of 200hp 204hp and 280nm, mated to a six-speed automatic transmission sending power to the front wheels.
The Citroen C6 will compete with cars such as the Ford Taurus, the Buick LaCrosse, and the Toyota Crown. This segment is relatively unknown in Europe but very popular in China. Price-wise the vehicles are positioned just below the 3-Series, A4, and C-Class, but they are usually bigger and more luxurious.
Price of the new C6 will range from around 200.000 to 300.000 yuan. For comparison, the China-made Citroen C5 starts at 180.000 and ends at 240.000, and the China-made C-Class L starts at 314.000 and ends at 590.000 yuan. Price for the Fengshen A9 starts at 179.700 yuan and ends at 229.700 yuan.
The dash looks great with brown leather seats but without a single piece of wood, unlike in the Dongfeng. The all digital instrument panel is very good looking, but the central touch screen is a tad too small for 2016. Steering wheel is the same as in the Dongfeng. Vertical air vents are nice.
Not much chrome, no wood, cheap rubber pedals. I was a little bit underwhelmed.
The leather of the bench looked rather worn already, sure a lot of media folk sat on it, but it was only around 14:00 in the afternoon, and this was presumably a brand new car. No rear-seat entertainment system, no fancy armrest. Most exciting thing are again the vertical vents.
Rear lights are old fashioned giants, but fashionable connected by a thick chrome strip that ends up in said lights themselves.
Exhaust pipes almost too simple for a car in this class, let alone for a Citroen. Two tiny little pipes on the left, whereas the Dongfeng has a fat pipe on each side.
Grille is good, grille is God.
The new Citroen C6 for China, a nice big car with a big shiny grille, but otherwise not overly interesting.
the grill and the dash are great, the rest is ok, not exactly a true citroen, but better than it’s Dongfeng brother