I’m not in the saddle of my Citroën ë-C3 but something feels familiar. Déjà vu? Kind of. This time, though, the C3 I’m driving is a calming Monte Carlo Blue and a surprise lurks beneath its familiar blocky silhouette.
This is the C3 Hybrid, which sits (nominally at least) between the entry-level petrol C3 and the ë-C3. Priced from £20,615, it’s in fact priced slightly above the ë-C3 once you factor in the government’s recently revived EV purchase grant and comes with pretty much all of the same equipment, save for what’s under the bonnet. In the hybrid, there’s a 1.2-litre turbocharged petrol engine, along with a dinky battery and a gearbox-mounted electric motor.
An ideal opportunity, then, to find out how a powertrain alters a car’s character and see if a hybrid supermini can compete with an electric counterpart when price parity is reached.
So let’s take a closer look at how these two cars compare, starting with power. The hybrid and the EV are fairly well matched, with the former producing 108bhp and the latter 111bhp. The lighter hybrid will hit 0-62mph a touch quicker, in 9.8sec, as opposed to the EV’s 10.4sec.
The two feel largely similar to drive too, save for the handling, where the hybrid comes out on top. That it has 200kg less to lug around is evident when you’re carving through faster B-road corners. The difference is negligible when you’re buzzing around town, however, and I suspect most drivers would hardly notice the difference between the two in everyday scenarios.
Both cars are equally practical, with the same 310-litre boot, and no second-row leg room is lost to the positioning of the battery in the EV. Each supermini has roof rails, which is handy if you want to add a roofbox for trips away.
As for how easy both cars are to live with, the hybrid has an obvious advantage. I was able to eke more than 400 miles out of its 44-litre fuel tank, while the EV’s disappointing efficiency means I often need to recharge after just 125 miles – even in the summer – which is way below Citroën’s claimed range of 198 miles.
Given that this comparison took place on the hottest weekend of the year, I was also grateful to be able to use the climate control without noticeably affecting the economy. This boost in comfort was especially appreciated by my four passengers after a particularly sweaty game of five-a-side football.
The hybrid didn’t have everything its own way, though. The EV in general feels the more refined car, benefiting greatly from its silent powertrain, compared with the unpleasant snarl emitted by the hybrid’s Puretech turbo petrol triple. Such serenity really is a selling point, and I’m not ashamed to admit that I missed the silence when out and about in the hybrid.
