Citroen Saxo VTS

I see lots of reviews across the internet and the forums criticizing these cars for being 'unreliable' or 'impractical' or the newest favourite referring to 'shoddy build quality' and so on. To a certain extent all of this is true.

These cars aren't likely to pull 300,000 miles with only routine maintenance like a Volvo or VAG machine.

These cars don't offer great running costs, with more than extortionate Tax (£245 a year at the last check), 30-35mpg with fairly economical driving, and Group 14 insurance prices, all of which price these cars out of the younger markets.

And although the boot is more than adequate for a teenage lifestyle, you may find it struggles to accommodate even the smallest of families - which rules out a lot Mums and Dads from ownership.

What it does have in abundance though is smiles per miles factor. My first Saxo experiences came in the form of a 2001 1.1 'Desire' model, which despite a close-ratio Gearbox and a measly 800kg kerb weight felt rather underpowered due to the 60bhp engine.

Yet I was still enthralled by the fantastically balanced and communicative steering, the lightweight nimble chassis, and the well sorted Citroen suspension. What a prospect then, when a fantastic condition albeit high mileage VTS came up for sale fairly close to me through The Rallye Register.

Upon sorting the glitches that come with the territory of a high-mileage performance French hatch such as this one, along with binning the ridiculously loud and anti-social Powerflow exhaust in favour of a standard item I took off on my first 'real' test drive.

Up to 4k rpm this car has just about enough low-down torque to ooze around the town without feeling the need to sit in a high gear, and at these kind of speeds this car is surprisingly good on fuel, returning an estimated 45mpg over 15 miles of casual town driving. This no doubt owing much to it's 935kg kerb weight.

But where it suddenly comes into it's own is in the upper rev ranges. Similar in characteristic to the Honda VTEC engines, the engine seems to have almost 2 different profiles (although it actually doesn't run any sort of Variable Valve timing). It starts to get more urgent from around 4500rpm, then gives almost a kick in the back as gets in and around peak torque at 5200rpm and gets progressively more hasty all the way to the peak power output at 6600rpm. The car will go on to a final rev limit of 7250rpm, however with the power trailing off, I'm not sure how beneficial it is to push the extra 650rpm, especially with the majority of these cars having covered a fair few miles now.

However straight-line performance is not the only card this card can play either. A surprisingly supple ride in standard form, the car begs to be thrown into apexes, and with a little wag of the tail as you lift off upon entry it is a real hoot to drive on almost any British B-Road.

With fairly good equipment levels (Electric Door Mirrors, 15" Alloys, ABS Brakes, Factory Alarm and Immobilizer, Sunroof and a plush and fairly well soundproofed if rather dated interior). The only thing worth noting is the standard soundsystem isn't particularly great, with many owners option to fit upgraded speakers and headunits to make those longer journeys more enjoyable.

One of the points this car is particularly poor is on safety in the event of a collision. It scored a 2* on the Euro N-Cap ratings in 1996, and although the VTS has a passenger airbag, even the late 2003 models still retain a 2* rating, considered very poor and well below average.

The brakes, which are also shared with it's smaller VTR brother are effective but not jaw-dropping. 247mm discs Front and Rear produce effective stopping power, while the ABS system is of older design and could be considered 'inconsistent'.

One of the main selling points of this car is the stupendous amount of upgrades, tuning and modification options available. In addition these cars are commonplace in Scrapyards and Breakers, with new parts being reasonably priced in most cases too, even from the main dealers. The car shares the majority of it's platform with the other Saxo models, and the Peugeot version; the 106, which greatly increases the likelihood of finding cheap replacement parts should anything go awry.

Key areas to look for when buying are a comprehensive service history indicating the Cambelt has been changed, along with regular oil, coolant and filter changes along with other routine maintenance. This is especially important if you have reason to believe the car has been driven hard. The Rear-Beams/Axles are notorious for failure around the 70k mark with the stub-pins wearing prematurely - budget around £400 for a replacement. Gearboxes can show wear if the car has had a hard life as can the clutch, the rest of the engineering is of a fairly good standard and shouldn't cause too much trouble. This car is a prime example of a car that needs looking after though, and by and large will give you lots of trouble free motoring if it's well maintained.

There are a few electric issues kicking around especially with the 3-Plug (2001-2004) models, however to call these common would be an exaggeration - just be aware that they can crop up, and should be dealt with swiftly and effectively with a diagnostics machine.

One of the other main benefits to ownership of these cars is the ease of ability to work on them. Unlike German and Japanese counter-parts these cars are simple and intuitive for most maintenance and repair jobs, which should you feel brave and have a decent toolkit to hand could be attempted at home, thereby saving on Garage bills. There is also a big following for them on the internet with many Saxo and 106 owners clubs, with excellent 'how-to' guides and offering invaluable information and advice should faults need to be diagnosed on your car.

Overall this is a car I would recommend to anyone to go out and drive. Whether it's a suitable car as an ownership proposition will depend by and large upon your personal circumstances. Should you feel the want to invest, find yourself a good, cared for example and reap the rewards of an entertaining, brilliant value car for little more than pocket money.

I have got a saxo vts on a 99 plate and its now done 78000. Ive had no problems with my car and actually in th e process in buying a new car but not managed to find one that live up to the expectations of the saxo. Great fun car to drive and very quick for a small car! Does beats many people from the lights. The only problem i had it when i first brought it, the radiater went but since then everything is good. Would reccomment these to anyone who looking for fun quick car!

A saxo 16v is a good car (if you're lucky) with a high revving engine wich likes to revv al the way.

Very fast

reasonable consumption

cheap buy

Good standard noise

Some parts are way to expensive

pretty noisy from bodyparts tokking inside the car

Fast ride really go like mad after 60mph it shocking for a little car easy to drive and good for long trips. Part abt same price as ford not expensive like Peugeot or Renault good equipment like heated mirrors. Electric mirrors window anti-lock breaks airbags.

Recommend it. Had no probs with mind except airbag light and eng management just needed clearing. 35quid main dealer. Rec mend after suspension kit might be a bit softer. Seat lovely on 2001 y reg.

I've owned both a new shape Citroen Saxo VTS and my current VTS and I can definetely say the VTS is in a different league, as someone mentioned the VTR is a warm hatch that is 'nippy' whereas the VTS is the flyer. The gearboxes are the definite weak point, my 75,000 one will crunch 2-3 and now 3-4 if you change gear quick-ish. It gets a lot of stick though so I can't really knock it, the engines are just so sweet, they are rev happy engines right up to 7000 and just 'hum' along around 4000revs, giving impressive acceleration even at motorway cruising speed as its sitting on peak torque at that speed so any acceleration is brisk. Light weight helps too as its only a 1.6. You cannot fail to be impressed, I really don't know if mine's standard as its kept with a sierra cosworth, (though cosworths are heavy the power to weight between the two isn't that much difference, though after that he would probably pull away as he just has more power), and lately a Nissan 300zx auto, again a heavy car but with 286bhp it should have left me, and his car was gleaming red so a nice example - I saw the moment he used the kickdown (as its automatic) cos it lunged like he stamped on the accelerator!

Its been ultra reliable, returning an average 38mpg for alot of town driving, and the usual heavy foot action combined, I can't fault it, doesn't use a drop of oil or water over 10,000miles so far. Handling is typical torsion bar feeling, a real chuck around and predictable oversteer, but I bought mine with lots of tread on the tyres but in the wet it is very slippery. I'm hesitant to replace 4 tyres as they have alot of tread but I wish they gripped better in the wet. I've had no water leaks apart from in one of the rear lights which has partially corroded the lighting board circuit, so a piece of insulated wire soldered from a good point, bypassing the corrosion and soldering again to make a good circuit has stopped any more odd brake light bulb happenings. Temporary bodge but even though it'll be fine I will eventually replace the lighting circuit board.

The heater works very well and quickly, the seats are comfy and a nice dark patterned colour, and also the windows are nicely tinted as standard so glancing in the car gives the impression of darkened windows as dark interior and tinted windows combined has that effect.

I've had many cars, done a review on a few if you want to check out some others, but this car I'm sticking with for a long while, even knowing it'll need a new gearbox when the clutch is due in the next 10,000 or so miles. I don't get hassled by boy racers as mines totally standard, even ride height, and its nice having a standard car when alot of previous cars have been modified.

I must add also that the alarm when it rained caused a few problems in that it kept going off! Standard alarm, if I turned off the interior sensors it solved the problem, strange seeing as the control box is inside the car under the dash, apparently the sensors are hyper sensitive and with no adjustment many owners simply disconnect them, very basically you just unplug them from the control box and hey presto, no more false alarms in the wet! Simple things like windows winding up quickly (electric) and nicely weighted steering, light-ish clutch pedal and ABS brakes add to a nice overall feel when driving the car, mines a Diablo Red which is a colour I've loved and now I finally have one I don't give it a second thought anymore!

I've added genuine Citroen roofbars to mine as I go mountain biking and use cycle carriers on them, the fit is good although it takes a bit of fettling and tweaking brackets so they don't rub when you shut the doors, I've amped up a 12inch sub in the boot and being a 4 channel amp it runs the fronts too (alpines) so boot space is a little limited but being a box shape boot with little intrusion from suspension struts either side it leaves an ok space for shopping and bags etc.

I've serviced mine a few weeks ago, oil, filter, fuel filter, spark plugs and new clutch cable (preventative measure!). All fitting except the clutch cable was straight forward for a DIY-er (I changed a clutch on my old 106 1.1-my parents now own it, and I've also done the cambelt and headgasket replacement on the 106 too as well as a reno 19 16v and clio 16v head gaskets over the years so I can do most jobs myself). Hmm, the clutch cable runs along the bulkhead and up under the steering rams into the car and joining up to the clutch pedal. Access down by the pedals is seriously awkward, as is trying to route the cable under the steering rams, a nightmare! I tried and finally succeeded by running a wire from inside the car through into the engine bay, attacing to a heavier cable, pulling back through into the car, and attaching the other end to the clutch cable and drawing them both through until the clutch cable was in place!

Fiddly is the word!

But anyway to sum up, i'd recommend one of these to anyone, as long as the size and interior space suits your needs, you can't go far wrong, insurance isn't much more than a VTR even though the books say it is- VTS comes standard with a CAT1 alarm for a start compared to just an immobiliser on the VTR.

performance=9/10

driving =8/10

mpg =8/10 38mpg combined

reliability =9/10

looks =8/10

security =8/10

fun =9/10

parts prices =7/10 Genuine Citroen ones

" " =10/10 Non-Genuine ones

Electrics =9/10 power windows,mirrors,reliability etc

overall =9/10

Easy to play with. I use mine for trackdays so it's lowered, yellow stuff brake pads, free flow exhaust and a air filter with heat shield (be wary of the filters aimed ant the 'chav' culture in modifying, all they do is suck hot air into the engine).

Also has a Unichip fitted to recalibrate the engine to the modifications.

Still not the quickest car out there but with sorted brakes and handling in a light weight chassis it can out perform a lot of things on road and on track with a decent driver.

Just a shame the boy racers have spoilt it.

I only had it couple weeks payed 2495 fsh 2 owners y reg. Def worth every penny. Easy to park n the drive exllent. Dont knock a Citroen. 100percent better than my old astra, I feel my age 22 that 46 driving my old 1.6 8v astra that got no kick.

I was lucky enough to purchase a 30,000 mile one owner Citroen Saxo VTS - in silver for £3800, its been quality to drive and I am guessing I will only know how good I had it when I purchase a 'family car'! Top handling, no mechanical problems, some electronic stuff like the alarm sensors not working properly from the off, airbag warning lights have come on the dash board after about 60,000 miles. But I can forgive that because its a driving car.

Its got 73,000 on the clock and still going strong after 2.5 years ownership. Mines is a Y reg and I reckon after 1.5 more years (4 years total) will be part exchanged on something newer but it should manage the next 1.5 years with no mechanical probs as I have serviced it yearly. Always gone straight through MOTs (brake pads needed changing though =)

Its a fun car but not a for a family or for a refined misses. The ride has my girlfriend moaning a bit on long journeys and when I throw it round a corner. However by myself its a blast.

Finally it brings a smile to my face when I eat up a BMW on the way home.....the look on the face of the owner is like "that's just a saxo and its got better performance than mine!".

My Citroen Saxo is very quick 0-60 in 3.0 sec, I have done many upgrades to achieve this. Max speed now I estimate at 165mph, but I am too scared to push it.

My mate loves his VTR more than I love my VTS but thats life!

How much will I be able to sell mine for.