New 2021 Citroen C3 Aircross facelift arrives with updated look and tech
The Citroen C3 Aircross gets a new look, new infotainment and more versatile interior storage
The practical Citroen C3 Aircross compact crossover has been given a facelift for 2021. It's the first major overhaul for Citroen's Nissan Juke and Vauxhall Crossland rival since its launch in 2017. The changes introduce a new look, plus interior tweaks that enhance practicality and add new cabin technology.
The design changes are most striking at the front, with a revised lower apron section that features a larger air intake and a sharper looking front bash plate. The C3 Aircross’s distinctive split headlights remain, but the lower lights move from the rounded squares of the old model to thinner rectangular units, linked in to a new front grille.
Changes elsewhere aren’t as significant, but the car’s colour palette has expanded with seven new shades, and buyers now choose from a total of 70 contrasting body and roof paint schemes.
The C3 Aircross’s Colour Packs remain though. These add a dash of contrasting colour to the front skid plate, mirrors and rear quarter windows. A new diamond cut and gloss black alloy wheel design also arrives, available in 16 and 17-inch sizes.
On the inside, the basic design and layout of the dashboard remains, but Citroen has introduced new trim options with three “ambiences” for UK buyers to choose from. Basic cars use grey cloth seat upholstery with soft grey plastic dashboard surfacing, but a scheme called Metropolitan Graphite introduces graphite man-made leather and grey fabric upholstery with a strip on the upper part of the seat backrests and a dashboard strip in flecked grey.
At the top end of the line-up, buyers can choose real leather upholstery with the Hype Grey ambiance, combining grey-green leather on the seats and dashboard with graphite man-made leather swatches. Both the Metropolitan Graphite and Hype Grey schemes are now available with the Advanced Comfort seats seen on the larger C5 Aircross, too.
Elsewhere inside, high-spec versions of the C3 Aircross are now available with a larger and sharper nine-inch central touchscreen infotainment system with navigation, Apple CarPlay and Android Auto connectivity. There’s also a new, larger central console with more storage space, that can be accessed by those up front and passengers in the rear seats.
Core driver assistance technologies such as speed sign recognition, automatic emergency braking and automatic high-beam control are included. Further assistance features, such as a head-up-display and a top-down style 360-degree parking camera, can be specified. Off-road functions such as hill-descent control and a grip control selection feature can be optioned.
The engine line-up in the UK is unchanged, with no electrified options available. The range kicks off with a PureTech 110 1.2-litre three-cylinder turbocharged petrol engine developing 108bhp and sending drive to the front wheels through a six-speed manual gearbox.
More power is available with the PureTech 130 option, developing 128bhp, which is also offered with the choice of a six-speed automatic gearbox. Citroen will continue to offer two diesel options too - the 108bhp BlueHDi unit with a six-speed manual transmission, and the 118bhp BlueHDi 120 with an automatic gearbox.
The new C3 Aircross goes on sale in the UK in June, with UK trim levels and specifications not yet outlined. Prices are likely to start from around £18,000.
What's life like with a Citroen C3 Aircross? Click here to read our long-term test report...
