Citroen’s updated mid-sized SUV is coming to Australia, but it’s unclear when.
“We can confirm the new Citroen C5 Aircross will be joining the Australian product range. Further information, including launch timings, will be made available in the coming months,” said a spokesperson for Peugeot Citroen Australia.
The company had previously said the C5 Aircross was “under evaluation”, something it also said about the updated C3 Aircross that was revealed early last year but has yet to eventuate.
Government documents show the C5 Aircross was approved for sale earlier this month, and the filing lists a range of three engines.
There’s no guarantee, however, all three engines will come here. Car companies have been known to have engines or variants certified for sale that are either never introduced, or which come later in a vehicle’s life.
There are two turbocharged 1.6-litre petrol four-cylinder engines listed, one with 121kW of power and one with 133kW, and a 2.0-litre turbo-diesel four-cylinder engine with 130kW of power.
The plug-in hybrid offered in Europe isn’t listed. Citroen has yet to introduce any PHEVs in Australia, even as sister brand Peugeot has rolled out its first.
The C5 Aircross is currently offered in Australia exclusively with the less powerful of the two petrol engines, which also produces 240Nm of torque. It’s mated with a six-speed automatic transmission.
This tune isn’t available in Europe, where instead the more powerful tune is offered and features an eight-speed automatic transmission.
The turbo-diesel engine also uses an eight-speed automatic, and produces 400Nm of torque.
The updated C5 Aircross was revealed in January.
The greatest changes have occurred up front, where the C5 Aircross’ split-level lighting has been conjoined, a departure from a design element present on every Citroen crossover since the Cactus.
The LED daytime running lights, however, remain in two separate lines, and link up with an unusual split-level LED light bar.
Instead of forming a continuous line, the light bar features dotted LEDs.
There’s a sportier-looking front bumper treatment, similar to that of the C5 X, with the air dam featuring horizontal bars on either side of the radar.
Other external changes include new wheel designs and tail light graphics.
Inside, there’s a larger 10.0-inch touchscreen that’s now free-standing instead of being flanked by air vents like the old 8.0-inch unit.
The vents have been moved beneath the screen, while there’s no longer a conventional transmission shifter.
The C5 Aircross has been upgraded to the latest Advanced Comfort seats, with additional foam padding. The front seats are heated and feature massaging functionality.
The current model’s price tag has grown this year while its list of safety equipment has shrunk.
Current C5 Aircross
All C5 Aircross models that have arrived since April have come without blind-spot monitoring and front and rear parking sensors.
Following a $2350 price hike for 2022, the C5 Aircross’ list price has also jumped by a further $2960 from July 1.
Peugeot Citroen Australia announced price increases across its range, citing an increase in production and logistics costs.
It remains a slow seller, with just 49 examples sold to the end of June. That puts it dead last in its segment, behind its Peugeot 5008 corporate cousin (98 sales) and the dated Jeep Cherokee (158 sales).
C5 X 
The C5 Aircross will get some company at the upper end of Citroen’s local line-up in the shape of the C5 X, due here in the fourth quarter of 2022.
It represents a return of the C5 nameplate, though the traditional sedan and wagon body styles have made way for an unusual higher-riding fastback-style appearance.
It’s powered by a turbocharged 1.6-litre four-cylinder petrol engine, producing 133kW of power and 250Nm of torque, mated with an eight-speed automatic transmission.
Citroen has yet to confirm local pricing.
