Citroen Gives C5 Brave New Face

The front end features Citroen's distinctive new grille, with the company's trademark double chevron motif worked into the bars to give a more aggressive look. The headlights are narrower than on the current car, and sweep backwards up the bonnet in a style similar to that of the C-Airdream, while the front bumpers are lower and rounder, reducing the C5's front overhang.

The new look is complemented even further by more steeply raked front wings and a reprofiled bonnet, while larger wheels and fatter tyres will add to the car's purposeful stance.

There are more modifications at the rear. Saloons will get neat 'hockey-stick' lamp clusters that cut into the bootlid, while estates have darker lenses and a smoothed-off tailgate. Other styling cues include wider door mirrors and chrome detailing on the flanks of upmarket models. Inside, the C5 will get a reworked dash, with the current car's awkward centre console reduced in size. The main instrument binnacle will be wider and clearer.

New seat fabrics and better quality plastics will be introduced, while the wood trim fitted to Exclusive models is expected to be replaced by brushed aluminium inserts and a black leath-er facia. Under the bonnet, the current petrol engine range will be carried over to the facelifted car, starting with the 1.8-litre 117bhp unit and including the 2.0-litre 138bhp powerplant and the 210bhp 3.0-litre V6. The 160bhp 2.2-litre unit from
sister car the Peugeot 407 could also feature, although insiders suggest it might not be available in the UK, due to a lack of demand. However that's something which won't be a problem for diesel versions of the C5, even though the model's current oil-burning line-up is all set for a shake-up.

The current 90bhp 2.0 HDi unit will remain as the entry-level choice, but the 110bhp 2.0 and 136bhp 2.2 HDi engines are set to be dropped. They will be replaced by two powerplants co-developed with Ford - the 110bhp 1.6-litre engine used in the Peugeot 307 and Ford Focus C-MAX, and a 137bhp 2.0-litre unit. The new-look C5 is already in the advanced stages of testing, as our spy shot shows.

Chassis revisions are expected, and the size of the suspension spheres will be reduced to give a firmer ride and sportier handling. Insiders suggest the car will make its debut alongside the all-new C4 at September's Paris Motor Show, and will be available across Europe by the end of the year. British sales are expected to start in late October, with prices similar to those of the current model range.