Source: Wheels July 1982
Page 1 of 3
IT IS six years since WHEELS first and only road test of the Citroen CX appeared, but I can still remember the intense disappointment that CX Super 2200 four-speed caused the road-test staff. Our expectations for the CX had been generated by years of admiration for the marque; admiration, it must be said, which had been vindicated by the enormously high standard of innovation and practicality we had experienced in a variety of GS and D-series models over the years.
The CX Super simply wasn't the quantum step ahead of the 19-year-old D-series we had hoped for. Indeed, beneath that superb new body it lacked many of the refinements we had taken for granted on the big Citroens and we concluded that the CX needed power steering, a fully automatic transmission option and better finish. We added: "We'll wait for the 2.3-litre, fuel-injected engine and five-speed gearbox.''
The CX Pallas we have just driven almost 2000km is essentially the car we've been waiting for. lt has a 2.4-litre engine (although with carburettor and not fuel injection) power steering, five-speed gearbox and a superbly finished and equipped interior. The wait was most certainly worthwhile.
Our old enthusiasm for the marque has returned and the CX now fully deserves the lavish praise we are about to bestow, upon her. The CX has clearly enjoyed the full benefits of a principle that is nearly 50 years old and dates back to the Light 15.
Citroen's philosophy is to release an advanced design -- would futuristic be more accurate? -- and, through intensive development of the basic theme, refine and update it over many years.
So it is not just the inclusion of the power steering, extra ratio and added torque that have lifted the CX to new heights, but also the fact that it is smoother, quieter and far more refined in almost every area.
The CX replaced the D-series in 1974 and from a single model with a two or 2.2litre four-cylinder engine, has grown into an enormous range which includes sedans and wagon of varying luxury levels, a long wheelbase Prestige
limousine, and petrol and diesel engines with carburettors and fuel injection. Even the Renault single ohc Douvrin - used in
the 20 and the European Peugeot 505 -
is fitted to some models.
Today, Australians can buy just two examples of the CX. Both are Pallas 2400s in either five-speed manual or three-speed C'matic semi-automatic forms. Sadly, the chances of adding to that list are slim and there are few new Citroens available in Australia. More of that situation you can read in Wheels Within.
Apart from the, Prestige, the Pallas is the ultimate CX -- although there is a fuel-injected GTi sporting version in France -- and in Australia carries a price tag of $23,066 as a C'matic and $24,070 as a five-speeder - rather better value for money When compared to its obvious rivals was the $13,990 Super in 1976.
The extra capacity for the old DS in- line, but now transverely-mounted , ohv 2.1 litre engine comes from increasing the bore from 90 to 93.5mm for a small power increase of just three kW at 86.5 kW. More important to the general responsiveness of the CX is the gain in torque from 154 Nm at 3500 rpm to 191 Nm at much lower 2750 rpm. There has been no dramatic increase in acceleration, but the 2400 is quicker to all speeds and shaves 2.1 seconds from the 0-130 km/h time. to Complicate our figures, however, the standing 400m time has increased front 18.3 to 18.5 seconds.
Comparing manual with automatic is always dangerous but it is Worth printing out that the CX is now as quick through i the gears as the Rover 3500 and the Saab Turbo automatics. Not that it feels especially powerful - the driver still needs to remember that the large 1310 kg sedan is powered by a four-cylinder engine and that plenty of gear changing is required if overtaking is to be done safely.
The CX is a car which builds up its speed, gathers momentum and then retains it, but it doesn't rocket you away from standstill or press you back into the seats as it accelerates from, say, 100 km/h and the engine always feels reluctant to rev quickly. This can be disconcerting for the gearing is now so right -- in contrast to the old four-speed CX -- and the CX cruises so easily at 130-150 km/h that initially the driver expects the car to accelerate in a similar manner.
Of all the changes to the latest CX, it is the five-speed gearbox Which does most to lift the car above the old Super and give the Pallas the high-speed-lounge-room-on-wheels character that Was always one of the most appealing traits of the old DS.
The Supers four-speed gearbox ratios simply weren't up to job of matching the conflicting requirements of commuting and cruising. There was a very wide gap between second and third gears and fourth was relatively low, at least by Citroen (and French) standards, so that it was quite easy to reach the red line in top. The Pallas has a five-speed box, of course, with the same first and second gear ratios, a shorter third and fourth but much longer fifth. Combined with a change in final drive ratio from 4.769 to 4.357, this means that where the old car pulled 31 km/h per 1000rpm in top gear , the new CX has a much more relaxing 36.98.
The spread of gears is now just about perfect and there is a ratio for every condition, with fifth being a true overdrive and offering effortless high-speed cruising. Fourth will still go to the red line of 6000 rpm, but the best we could get out of fifth was 5600 rpm equal to 192 km/h; impressive indeed given the engine's power and a tribute to the CX's excellent aerodynamics.
The CX is not a fast car off the line, the clutch travel is quite long and the engine's lethargic nature and the way the car rises up on its suspension all insist the driver engages the clutch slowly and smoothly.
The accelerator travel isn't anything like as long as it was on the old Super and no doubt this plays a role in making the car feel more responsive than previously.
The gear change is positive, if a little Clunky, with long throws and is spring- loaded towards the three/four plane with fifth up and away. If not as slick as the typical japanese gearchange it is nonetheless pleasant to use and of a high standard for a front-drive car.
For a car of its size and performance, the fuel consumption is impressively small. We drove the Pallas from Brisbane to Sydney cruising Comfortably between
Page 1 of 3
IT IS six years since WHEELS first and only road test of the Citroen CX appeared, but I can still remember the intense disappointment that CX Super 2200 four-speed caused the road-test staff. Our expectations for the CX had been generated by years of admiration for the marque; admiration, it must be said, which had been vindicated by the enormously high standard of innovation and practicality we had experienced in a variety of GS and D-series models over the years.
The CX Super simply wasn't the quantum step ahead of the 19-year-old D-series we had hoped for. Indeed, beneath that superb new body it lacked many of the refinements we had taken for granted on the big Citroens and we concluded that the CX needed power steering, a fully automatic transmission option and better finish. We added: "We'll wait for the 2.3-litre, fuel-injected engine and five-speed gearbox.''
The CX Pallas we have just driven almost 2000km is essentially the car we've been waiting for. lt has a 2.4-litre engine (although with carburettor and not fuel injection) power steering, five-speed gearbox and a superbly finished and equipped interior. The wait was most certainly worthwhile.
Our old enthusiasm for the marque has returned and the CX now fully deserves the lavish praise we are about to bestow, upon her. The CX has clearly enjoyed the full benefits of a principle that is nearly 50 years old and dates back to the Light 15.
Citroen's philosophy is to release an advanced design -- would futuristic be more accurate? -- and, through intensive development of the basic theme, refine and update it over many years.
So it is not just the inclusion of the power steering, extra ratio and added torque that have lifted the CX to new heights, but also the fact that it is smoother, quieter and far more refined in almost every area.
The CX replaced the D-series in 1974 and from a single model with a two or 2.2litre four-cylinder engine, has grown into an enormous range which includes sedans and wagon of varying luxury levels, a long wheelbase Prestige
limousine, and petrol and diesel engines with carburettors and fuel injection. Even the Renault single ohc Douvrin - used in
the 20 and the European Peugeot 505 -
is fitted to some models.
Today, Australians can buy just two examples of the CX. Both are Pallas 2400s in either five-speed manual or three-speed C'matic semi-automatic forms. Sadly, the chances of adding to that list are slim and there are few new Citroens available in Australia. More of that situation you can read in Wheels Within.
Apart from the, Prestige, the Pallas is the ultimate CX -- although there is a fuel-injected GTi sporting version in France -- and in Australia carries a price tag of $23,066 as a C'matic and $24,070 as a five-speeder - rather better value for money When compared to its obvious rivals was the $13,990 Super in 1976.
The extra capacity for the old DS in- line, but now transverely-mounted , ohv 2.1 litre engine comes from increasing the bore from 90 to 93.5mm for a small power increase of just three kW at 86.5 kW. More important to the general responsiveness of the CX is the gain in torque from 154 Nm at 3500 rpm to 191 Nm at much lower 2750 rpm. There has been no dramatic increase in acceleration, but the 2400 is quicker to all speeds and shaves 2.1 seconds from the 0-130 km/h time. to Complicate our figures, however, the standing 400m time has increased front 18.3 to 18.5 seconds.
Comparing manual with automatic is always dangerous but it is Worth printing out that the CX is now as quick through i the gears as the Rover 3500 and the Saab Turbo automatics. Not that it feels especially powerful - the driver still needs to remember that the large 1310 kg sedan is powered by a four-cylinder engine and that plenty of gear changing is required if overtaking is to be done safely.
The CX is a car which builds up its speed, gathers momentum and then retains it, but it doesn't rocket you away from standstill or press you back into the seats as it accelerates from, say, 100 km/h and the engine always feels reluctant to rev quickly. This can be disconcerting for the gearing is now so right -- in contrast to the old four-speed CX -- and the CX cruises so easily at 130-150 km/h that initially the driver expects the car to accelerate in a similar manner.
Of all the changes to the latest CX, it is the five-speed gearbox Which does most to lift the car above the old Super and give the Pallas the high-speed-lounge-room-on-wheels character that Was always one of the most appealing traits of the old DS.
The Supers four-speed gearbox ratios simply weren't up to job of matching the conflicting requirements of commuting and cruising. There was a very wide gap between second and third gears and fourth was relatively low, at least by Citroen (and French) standards, so that it was quite easy to reach the red line in top. The Pallas has a five-speed box, of course, with the same first and second gear ratios, a shorter third and fourth but much longer fifth. Combined with a change in final drive ratio from 4.769 to 4.357, this means that where the old car pulled 31 km/h per 1000rpm in top gear , the new CX has a much more relaxing 36.98.
The spread of gears is now just about perfect and there is a ratio for every condition, with fifth being a true overdrive and offering effortless high-speed cruising. Fourth will still go to the red line of 6000 rpm, but the best we could get out of fifth was 5600 rpm equal to 192 km/h; impressive indeed given the engine's power and a tribute to the CX's excellent aerodynamics.
The CX is not a fast car off the line, the clutch travel is quite long and the engine's lethargic nature and the way the car rises up on its suspension all insist the driver engages the clutch slowly and smoothly.
The accelerator travel isn't anything like as long as it was on the old Super and no doubt this plays a role in making the car feel more responsive than previously.
The gear change is positive, if a little Clunky, with long throws and is spring- loaded towards the three/four plane with fifth up and away. If not as slick as the typical japanese gearchange it is nonetheless pleasant to use and of a high standard for a front-drive car.
For a car of its size and performance, the fuel consumption is impressively small. We drove the Pallas from Brisbane to Sydney cruising Comfortably between