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In 2022, to try and boost sales of its third generation C3 supermini, Citroen launched a far cheaper entry-level version, the C3 You. Does it makes sense as a used buy?
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History
By mid-2022, not many auto makers were still offering tiny city cars. By then, Citroen was one of the manufacturers who'd only recently exited the segment (earlier in 2022 with the C1), partly because by the end, that car had become priced almost at supermini levels (the next class up), so there wasn't much reason for customers not to buy a supermini. Perhaps one like Citroen C3. Originally, the C3 sat in a higher price bracket - but this entry-level version didn't; the C3 You.
Originally launched in Spring 2022 (at just £12,995), the C3 You really was a supermini at a citycar price and from launch it was one of the UK's cheapest new cars. Prices rose by £1,000 by 2023 but even then, this base C3 could still be considered a best buy on price for those prepared to take equipment into account. The C3 You sold until Summer 2024, when it was replaced as part of a fourth generation C3 range.
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What you get
You wouldn't think this was the super-cheap budget C3 model. You get body colour for the bumpers and door handles, contrasting C-pillar styling and white door mirror caps. Original buyers could even have a white roof. So no judgement points for austerity will be lost in the gym car park. At 3.99m in length, this third generation C3 was slightly smaller than some of its rivals, but it was arguably more interesting to look at.
At the front, there's the distinctive two-tier front light signature, along with a deliberately high bonnet line, white finishing around the standard front fog lights and short overhangs. It's not quite as nice or jaunty inside unfortunately, with dark mouldings, a cheap-feeling plastic steering wheel and an ancient-looking 5-inch monochrome infotainment set-up that can't do anything with your 'phone apart from Bluetooth-link to it. As usual with a third generation C3, the perception of space is heightened by the horizontal dashboard, which runs across the whole width of the vehicle.
In the rear, it's quickly evident that this isn't one of the more spacious superminis in the segment. The room on offer will be fine for kids of course, but adults stuck behind reasonably tall compatriots up-front may well struggle a little when it comes to room for their legs and knees. Out back, there's a decent 300-litre boot, extendable to 922-litres with the rear seat backs folded.
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What to look for
As with other superminis, check for child damage inside and alloy wheel scuffs outside. And of course you'll want a fully stamped up service record. What else? Well examine for flaking of paint on the bumpers and check that the air conditioning works and that the pixels on the centre display are all good. Also check for rear bumper scrapes. Finally check that the Bluetooth pairs reliably with your phone handset. Electrical glitches are relatively common, so make sure everything electrical in the car works and double-check that there are no unexplained warning lights on the dashboard. Citroen's infotainment touchscreen software can sometimes cause the monitor to freeze or fail completely. A software reset may solve the problem, but some owners have had to replace the entire unit, which is not a cheap operation.
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Replacement parts
(approx based on a 2020 C3 You 1.2 82hp excl. VAT - autopartspro.co.uk) A pair of front brake pads are between £15-£23 depending on brand. A pair of rear brake pads are between £14-£22. A pair of front brake discs start in the £22-£42 bracket. Oil filters cost around £4-£18, air filters cost around £6-£15 and fuel filters cost £3-£19. A starter motor starts from £82 upwards. A headlamp is in the £97-£362 bracket.
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On the road
As you'd expect, the You comes with the most basic possible powertrain and transmission combo, a naturally aspirated 82bhp 1.2-litre three cylinder petrol engine mated to a five-speed manual gearbox. This doesn't provide quite the driveability that you'd get from the rival Dacia Sandero's little turbocharged unit, but if you're prepared to give your left arm a workout with the stick shifter, acceptably hurried progress can be managed on the rare occasions it might be necessary. 0-62mph takes 12.5s en route to 103mph.
Soft damping disguises the old PF1 platform's ultimate lack of sophistication and it's this approach you'll feel almost immediately when you set off on your test drive. Rather refreshingly, no attempt was made here to provide a dynamic Fiesta-style driving experience. Instead, the suspension has more compliance than you'll find with rival superminis and the result is that things like potholes and sleeping policemen will bother you far less than they usually would. It's almost enough for small but subtle changes to the way you go about driving. In this C3, you don't have to anticipate and avoid poorly-surfaced stretches of road; you simple drive over them as if they didn't really exist.
The downside to this is predictable; extra body lean through the corners. There's certainly more of that than you get in obvious rivals and when you're dealing with this, it doesn't help that there isn't a great deal of feedback from the steering. Stay with it though and you'll find that there's actually more grip and traction on offer than you might think.
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Overall
After looking at this C3 You, we can't really see why you'd pay vastly more for a conventional mainstream version of the third generation C3. The price difference between the You and one of those (or more likely a Corsa or Polo-sized rival from the 2022-2024 era) is so great that with it, you could probably buy a perfectly acceptable second-hand city car as an extra family run-around.
True, similarly positioned rivals from Dacia and MG from this era offer more cabin space for the money. But the You feels less of a 'hair shirt' budget choice and the equipment downgrade to create the eye-catching original sticker price didn't rob it of all the conventional version's infectious joie de vivre. As a result, if you're looking for a high value supermini choice from the 2022-2024 period, this one deserves to be high on your list.
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