Skoda Citigo review

if you really carry more than two people in your car then cars like the Skoda

Citigo can make a lot of sense these city cars are cheap to buy and run and

their small size makes them ideal for nipping around on our increasingly

crowded urban streets we’re willing to compromise a little on space here but

these cars still needs to be big enough inside to carry a couple of adults and

their luggage and their small petrol engines need to have enough pulling

power to cope around town as well as on the odd motorway jaunt now fortunately

there are plenty of 50 cars on the market to choose from ranging from class

favorites like the Hyundai i10 through to a trio of City cars from within the

Volkswagen Group to Volkswagen up but stay at me and this the Skoda Citigo the

city go can be had in three or five-door forms and although it’s fundamentally

the same car as its SAS and Volkswagen siblings underneath it’s cheaper than

both of those cars to buy there are only two engine options to choose from in the

Skoda Citigo and they’re both 1 litre petrol the 59 brake horsepower version

we put in this car is the one we ultimately recommend and that’s

primarily because it’s cheaper to buy it has enough power to keep you moving

around town but if you plan on regularly venturing onto the motorway or onto

faster a roads then you might want to look at the more powerful 17 full brake

horsepower version it does cost more to buy but it’s stronger acceleration is

noticeable both engines can sound a little coarse if they’re revved hard but neither send

too many vibrations packets the steering wheel all the pedals there

is some wind noise too especially at higher speeds but it’s never annoying as

standard the Citigo comes with this 5-speed manual gearbox which does a good

job of making the most of the 1 litre petrol engine if you’re looking for an

automatic option then there is one available but be warned it can be

sluggish to respond despite its small size the 50 goes does a good job of

keeping you comfortable it’s able to iron out most of the ruts and bumps

you’ll find on British roads this Montecarlo version comes with sport

suspension but it’s best avoided as it makes the ride a little too firm along

with it Fayette and Volkswagen siblings the Skoda Citigo is one of the best

handling CPR the rouse it feels stable and well controlled and doesn’t get

tossed around on the motorway as can happen to most other city cars the Skoda

Citigo makes a good case for itself on the road but what’s it like inside

nobody’s expecting a vast array of space inside the city go but Skoda has done a

good job of creating a car that feels relatively Airy even entry-level

versions get height adjustment for the

driver’s seat but you might not be able to find that perfect driving position

and that’s because this steering wheel only just for height and not for reach

there’s further evidence of cost-cutting

if you look to these when there is two because they have to be adjusted

manually and that means if you want to adjust the one on the other side of the

car you’re either going to have to reach over or ask your passengers to do it for

you in terms of parking and visibility looking out the front of the city Oh

gives you a good clear view of the road

ahead but it’s not so clear if you look out of the back fortunately though the

city goes square and boxy dimensions make judging parking distances easy and

if you really want to take the stress out of parking then you can add rear

parking sensors from the options list now cars like the city go are built to a

budget and it does show there’s lots of

hard and unforgiving materials on display even on this range-topping

version that said though it all feels solid and this monte carlo model gets

contrasting colours to liven up this interior entry-level versions of the

city go get a basic CD and radio combination with two speakers and you

can’t even add bluetooth an option upgrade to SEL or this Monte

Carlo car however and you get some more advanced setup with da B digital radio

but it does suffer from pati signal what is neat though is that you get this

detachable display which is a bit like traditional sat-nav units there controls

most of your infotainment functions now

2017 versions of the city go also get an SD card slot and the USB port for

charging your phone on the move but all versions of the car get a 12 volt port

in front of the gearstick

so then let’s see how easy it is to use this infotainment system now I’ve

already connected my phone via bluetooth and if I hit the phone menu then I can

use my phone keypad acts as my phone

book my recent calls basically use my phone while driving but without being

distracted let’s also see how easy it is to set a destination in the sat-nav so

I’m going to hit navigation and then to select new destination and I’m going to

enter an address and let’s head to Twickenham our offices are this hub

screen can be a little bit slow to respond at first but if I start typing

in Twickenham there we go it’s found it it can offer you to search by Street

we’re just going to aim for the center of Twickenham and it’s going to give me

three options like most sounds one will be the most economical route one will be

the fastest and one will be the most direct I’m going to go for this top one which I think will be the most

economical and if we give it a minute to think about it there we go it’s plotted

my route and it’s actually quite easy to see especially as it’s driving along surprisingly spacious is the best way to

describe the front seat in the Skoda Citigo because even if you’re a larger

person like me you’ll still have more than enough space to get comfortable

storage space is also pretty good by city car standards you get these nice

deep door pockets as a cup holder down here a small shelf in front of the gear

leaver file your mobile phone and of course there’s a traditional glovebox

too in the rear of the city go you’ll find two extra seats although it’s worth

bearing in mind the city car rivals like the i-10 can carry three back here instead of two so if you plan on

regularly filling this rear bench than

the i-10 it might just be a better bet I said once you back here there reads

enough space for two adults although if I put this seat back where a driver would be you can see that

legroom is pretty tight it’s all thoughtfully laid out though and each

passenger back here gets their own armrest and a cup holder down here at

the base of the seat it can also be a little bit undignified getting into the

back of the Citigo especially on three law models but five-door versions of the

car have doors which open nice and wide every version of the skirt Citigo comes

with these folding rear seats you can extend the boot area that said though

the city go standard boot is pretty generous by city car standards on the

options list you’ll find a variable height boot floor which in its highest

setting makes this loading area nice and flat one of the big things going in the

Skoda Citigo favor is the fact that it’s cheaper than both the say at me and

Volkswagen up to five and that means it represents real value for money and yet

is just as brilliant to drive the 59 brake horsepower version which we

recommend is performed well in our true mpg test and that means that running

costs will be nice and low insurance

premiums to achieve across the range and if you’re looking at if you go as a

company car then all versions will be relatively kind to your tax bills entry

level S models miss out on some of the more basic equipment like air

conditioning and remote central locking

so instead we go for se specification

which gets you front electric windows a rev counter and an upgraded infotainment

system in fact it gets you everything you’re going to be looking for in a city

car that said if you do want a swisher

version of the city go then monte carlo and SEL versions of the car get an upgraded interior and a generally smarter look the city goat can be safe as well because each version can be had with automatic emergency braking and

when this car was last tested by Euro encap in 2011 it received a full 5 stars rest assured the Skoda Citigo is one of the very best 50 cars around and if you’re looking for a new car in this market it deserves to be near.