Advice for buying a 2007 Citroen C4 2.0L VTS.

[kemrungsung]

Hi, Just joined yesterday and this is my first post in the forum
As the title above, Was in the market to get 2nd car with $10K-ish budget. This C4 caught my eye, has done 94K-ish on the clock, interior and exterior still in good condition (based on the picture). So need a little advise should/shouldn't I go for this car. Especially the expensive parts and servicing price.
Since I never own an european car (I drive small japs car ATM) My questions will be :
1. What should I focused when I come for a test drive? In terms of what I can check with amateur eyes that important to know.
2. I've done a bit research and found that most of the owner will replace the water pumps & timing belts when reached 100K. Should I do the same thing if I decided to go with this car? And can anyone estimated how much is it gonna be roughly?

Really appreciated for all the insight.
Kind regards,


Stev

 

[David S]

The service cost depends on what you let a mechanic/dealer do. If you change everything, including the pollen filter etc. every service, it will cost a lot, but basic maintenance shouldn't be outrageously expensive. Anyone can change the oil, provided the right grade is used.

Obviously, do the normal used car checks, but you might check for things like failing HID headlamps if it has them, cooling system leaks, non-cancelling indicators (fairly expensive to fix properly) and noise/leaks from the water pump. See if the history shows whether it had the water pump changed under warranty as it might have also had the timing belt and tensioner changed at the same time and that could delay your need to change it in your ownership. Ask a local dealer about costs. A lot of C4's had bumps from the rear end, which was usually no more serious than the bump stop falling down. Does it have all it's keys? Do they work and are the cases broken? Seat heaters can fail when the wire fractures, but might now be best ignored given their limited use and likely repair cost if it requires a new seat cushion.

On the subject of glass: The windscreen overhangs at the bottom, so don't push on it or it might break. Check for delamination/cracks. The air intake at the bottom of the windscreen should not be loose as it often is and needs to be securely stuck to the glass (with care). If it has a glass roof, then you want to factor in the cost of insuring against breakage as it's a seriously expensive part to buy.

 

[kemrungsung]

Hi david, thanks for your reply. Regarding failing HID headlamps, if it's got the problem so the headlamps will be stay in 1 position (like downwards all the time) or it looks normal but when it turns they won't move to the designated directions?

 

[David S]

I meant the Xenon headlamps. They last a long time, are a desirable feature, but the globes are expensive when they do eventually stop working. Normal Halogen globes are probably of the order of 10% of the price of the Xenons. It's not a dealbreaker, just something to check, particularly if you buy privately during the daytime!

The issue with the indicators is that all the stalks behind the steering wheel come as a unit and eventually get past the point of repair. Search for "Comm unit" problems and you should understand what I mean. Again, probably not a dealbreaker, but they can be expensive to replace with a new item.

All cars have some weak points and Citroen/Peugeot are no different.

 

[RobL]

We have owned a Rouge Lucifer C4 VTS, purchased new from Continental Cars since 2008.CC have also serviced the car since new. We have had almost 70,000Km of completely trouble free and highly enjoyable motoring. The VTS is a sports vehicle, which is the main reason we chose it, so the suspension is therefore intentionally quite firm, but the ride is by no means uncomfortable, and driving on a winding mountain road is great fun. There is plenty of power, although a sixth gear (which C4's now have) would be really nice, as the powerful engine is quite unnecessarily busy at motorway speeds. There is plenty of room in the back, and the large doors make entry and exit to the rear seats easy - but they can be a problem in very narrow parking spaces. The VTS driver and passenger seats are extremely comfortable and supportive, especially laterally - much better on long trips than our 2009 C5 HDi. Our VTS does not have the panoramic roof, which we did not want, but it does have the directional Xenon headlights. Specifications on the C4 VTS can vary considerably, so make sure you do your research, and you know exactly what you are getting for your money. Make sure you have a complete service history. David S has given excellent advice, so follow that. The C4 VTS is one of Jeremy Clarkson's 25 favourite cars, for what that is worth! Tyres for the 17" mag wheels are expensive. Servicing costs are reasonable - ask a dealer for details. Access to a good dealer is an essential back up in running a Citroen, so make sure you can get that support. There is also plenty of information on the Net on the C4 VTS. So, in summary, based on our experience, the C4 VTS is highly recommended. They look great, and they have outstanding performance and handling. We are still on the original tyres and brake pads.

 

[CorneSoutAfrica]

I am so glad I saw this thread!! Been thinking of buying one myself... Regarding the tyres. A good friend of mine has got a C4 VTS and instead of the orinigal size he went to a more common 225/45/17 which aparrently is a more commercially used tyre. He also suggests to check the underside of the car to make sure all the plastic covers are in place because they are expensive to replace. Check the bumpers to make sure the plastic clips keeping them in place aren't broken. He also suggests to stay away from the sunroof models because he took a few for a test drive before deciding on the one he currently has and the windnoise on the sunroof equipped model was quite alot!

Mostly (like most XENON headlight equipped cars) the bulb itself is not always the problem but the ballast supplying the bulb with high voltage fails. After driving his car for about a year he developed a wheel wobble/bounce at about 110km/h which was caused by the control arm bushes being worn, so take the car for a test drive and listen/feel for any shakes through the steering wheel. Aparrently the bootlatch mechanism is a weakpoint. I can't remember exactly why but maby someone experienced this before?

He also said that the car is one of the nicest modern Citroens and quite economical fuelwise.

Hope you find one that is exactly what you look for!!

Cheers
Corne

 

[CamM]

He also suggests to stay away from the sunroof models because he took a few for a test drive before deciding on the one he currently has and the windnoise on the sunroof equipped model was quite alot!

Not saying it's untrue (as I don't have the panoramic roof on my VTS), but I've never heard that one before...

Aparrently the bootlatch mechanism is a weakpoint. I can't remember exactly why but maby someone experienced this before?

It's the microswitch that typically fails. Common enough issue. Not the cheapest part to replace, but well documented.

 

[CorneSoutAfrica]

Not saying it's untrue (as I don't have the panoramic roof on my VTS), but I've never heard that one before...

Maby it's possible the car got some previous unknown accident damage and the sunroof wasn't fitted properly... I don't know.

The colour of the C4 in your avatar must be the colour that suits the VTS the best!!


Cheers
Corne

 

[CamM]

The colour of the C4 in your avatar must be the colour that suits the VTS the best!!

Thanks

 

[David S]

It's the microswitch that typically fails. Common enough issue. Not the cheapest part to replace, but well documented.

Re the tailgate: Not a problem unique to PSA products, but sometimes, it's the wiring harness fraying where it exits the roof and enters the tailgate. It can also result in random operation of the rear wiper and other things back there, depending on which wires are damaged.

 

[CamM]

Re the tailgate: Not a problem unique to PSA products, but sometimes, it's the wiring harness fraying where it exits the roof and enters the tailgate. It can also result in random operation of the rear wiper and other things back there, depending on which wires are damaged.

Thanks for mentioning that Dave - you are absolutely correct! In fact, it's also worth mentioning at this point that Citroen issued a recall on certain VINs for faulty tailgate wiring looms (again, well documented). The OP should consider contacting a dealer to confirm whether the vehicle in question was affected and if so, whether the work has been carried out?