Australian Citroen importer Sime Darby has confirmed the release of both petrol and diesel versions of the all-new C4 Cactus compact SUV from early next year – both priced from under $30,000.
As we predicted here, Australian buyers will be able to choose from PSA’s 81kW/205Nm 1.2-litre turbo-petrol three-cylinder engine or a 68kW/230Nm 1.6-litre turbo-diesel.
However, there will be no transmission choice for either engine; only a five-speed manual will be offered with the petrol triple and a six-speed automatic with the diesel.
That's because the petrol Cactus is produced only with a manual transmission while Sime Darby believes the diesel-auto is the better combination than a diesel-manual for Australia.
Therefore we expect the petrol version to open C4 Cactus pricing at around $25,000, while the diesel auto will top the range at closer to the $30,000.
Both engines will incorporate a fuel-saving idle-stop feature and both Cactus models will be offered with the unique Airbump technology (soft side protection on the doors), a 7.0-inch touch-screen, sofa-style front seats, a roof airbag for the front passenger and the option of a glazed panoramic roof.
The Cactus’ arrival here has been held up by the lack of ADR-compliant tether points for child seats on the rear bench -- only two ISOFIX points on the outboard seats were engineered during Cactus development.
Australian-market models have now been engineered so that three tether points (including the two ISOFIX points) will be fitted at the factory for both this market and others.
A 60/40-split folding rear bench seat was engineered specifically for Australia with tether points integrated into the seat backs. The split/folding seat design prompted by our tether requirements has resulted in the design becoming a global offering from next year.
Citroen Australia General Manager John Startari said the changes demonstrated Citroen’s commitment to our market.
“We were devastated when we realised that the specification would preclude the C4 Cactus from being sold in Australia,” said Startari.
“Upon discussing the issue with engineers and designers, they realised the unique requirements Australia presented also offered the opportunity to increase the utility and practicality of the C4 Cactus and commenced development of a split-fold rear seat.
“We are thrilled we have been able to engineer a factory-based solution for such an important and ground-breaking vehicle.”