Citroen C4 facelift (2008): first photos

By Ben Whitworth

First Official Pictures

16 September 2008 11:13

Citroen has given its C4 hatch a mid-life brush-up with the introduction of two new petrol engines, a range of economy tweaks for the HDI diesels and an is-it-new-or-not facelift. 

It looks like a subtle makeover for the Citroen C4. Talk me through the changes

The C4’s nose gets a revised bumper and grille and a repositioned number plate, that according to Citroen imbues the C4 with a ‘stronger, sportier, more dynamic look’. But then you probably picked up on that straight away.

The bonnet – now more curved and rounded – is also new. The rear lights are now clear-lensed, there are three new alloy wheel designs, two new paint options and upper-crust models get a sprinkling of chrome accents.

Inside Citroen has fiddled about with the plastics and moved the rev-counter to the translucent central display unit. Just as well the changes are minimal – the C4, particularly the three-door variant is still a strikingly stylish thing.

Yes indeed it has. The C4 now comes with two new petrol engines – the 1.6 VTi and the 1.6 THP – which have been co-developed with the BMW group. The all-alloy VTi unit features continuously variable valve timing and develops 120bhp – good for a 10 second sprint to 60mph and a 121mph top speed.

Available with manual or automatic transmission, its novel valve lift system means 90 percent of its torque – 118lb ft – is available between 2000 and 6000rpm. On the combined cycle, the manual returns 42.2mpg and posts a CO2 rating of 159g/km, which is down 6 percent on the outgoing engine.

Click 'Next' below to read more about the facelifted Citroen C4

By Ben Whitworth