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.