Citroën Berlingo owner reviews
“The Citroen Berlingo MPV was very ‘no-frills’ before, but now has a surprisingly nice interior, lots of kit and Citroen’s latest safety features”
by Andy Goodwin
4 Apr 2023
Carbuyer Rating
3.7 out of 5
Owners Rating
4.6 out of 5
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Owner Reviews
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- 2 out of 5
- 1 out of 5
100%of people would recommend this car to a friend
Common Problems
- Other (1 case)
- Electrics (1 case)
Review 1 of 5
3 out of 5
Car Details
Model
multispace
Year
2004
Owned
1 - 2 years
Bought Car
New
Typical MPG
42
Tell us what you think about your car?
I loved the space inside, particularly the little secret hidey places for documents and glasses etc, but I *hated* the seats. I have a back problem and was in such pain after only half an hour in this car. I had to get rid. I have an ancient and thirsty Chrysler voyager now which I keep nursing through MOTs, because it is big and spacious but ohhhhh the comfortable seat is worth paying through the nose for.
For young folks who are better padded than I am, the Citroen makes a great kiddie and dog carrier though.
Would you recommend the car to a friend?
Yes
5 out of 5
Car Details
Model
XTR Hdi Blue 120
Year
2016
Avg annual mileage
10,000 – 14,999
Owned
2 - 3 years
Bought Car
New
Typical MPG
50
Tell us what you think about your car?
We purchased our Berlingo two years ago and it's been a delight.
Great in town and country, as well as long distance motorway muncher.
Supple suspension, without too much body roll and surprisingly good sound proofing for a van based car.
Position of steering wheel and gear lever are a little quirky and take a short while to get used to. Gear change is slow and somewhat agricultural, but this is no race car so that's not a major problem.
What we don't like: Stop-Start that cannot be disabled (horrid system). Automatic wipers can be a liability at times and there is no way to completely deactivate them. The 17l Adblue tank deprives main fuel tank capacity, reducing range by around 200 miles. Adblue pump threw a wobbly when we were abroad and threatened to cost us £800 to fix, but mysteriously started working again after i tried using high grade fuel.
Would you recommend the car to a friend?
Yes
5 out of 5
Car Details
Model
Petrol Flair with smallest engine
Year
2019
Avg annual mileage
0 – 4,999
Owned
Less than a year
Bought Car
Used
Typical MPG
50
Tell us what you think about your car?
I’ve a small problem with the daft 3 star review left by the bad back bloke who had 2004 Berlingo. So to shed the platform of that waste of space here is our review after 3 months of usage since new.
We’ve put 2300 miles on the berlingo since it’s 130 miles and we are still really pleased with it. We went via autoebid and got a decent slice off which allowed us to plump for the following extras. I’ll list our views on the ones we got and the ones we don’t.
Overall, this car slows down your driving into well paced and progressive. There isn’t space for stupidity with this car and for that I really like it. Going from a go cart Yaris into this made things much more... peaceful.
The berlingo is also very tall which is great. You step up into it and at 6’5” I would suggest this is the only car for tall people. I can even get my legs to touch under the steering wheel.
- cruise control package: awesome and very clever system. But it does means you get plenty of people dropping into your space.
- lane assist: I ride a motorcycle and you get similar strain through your hands as you do if you grip tight to the bars. I think the steering wheel is too stiff. Awesome for minute motorway control inputs but I reckon if you have any hand strength issues you should take a longer test drive and focus on this very seriously. It’ll be a deal breaker for you later.
- reversing camera package: we’ve not had one before so this is a must have.
- shorter version: with the reversing camera there isn’t an issue with length so I guess it depends on your needs. Does the extra foot really matter?
- smallest petrol engine: I test drove the smallest diesel and found it to be quite similar. There is plenty of ummph here so only consider bigger if...
you need to tow something in which case you should only consider diesel with a tow bar. 130bp would be enough for everything.
The turbo kicks in quite gently but more than noticeable and adds a nice bit of pep. I’m happy enough with it.
- modutop sunroof package: we’ve always liked the modutop and having the extra
Light in the cabin is excellent.
- air conditioner centre console: we like having the lump in the middle and the air con to the rear is popular. Worth the money although we have seen other comments which say that it’s a betrayal of the old versions which had the space in between the front seats. Unless you care specifically then I’d get the centre console. We find the air circulator is weak on cold (sub 14 degrees) so the air con is useful when like today we’ve hit 37 in the UK.
Colours: we went for the platinum because the others look to commercial. It’s a neat choice so far.
240v socket: one of those things that we’ll probably wish we had for 100 quid later on so we went for it. It’s tucked into the front passenger footwell area and it’s only active when there is sufficient power. When the engine thinks it can’t restart then it’ll switch it off so it’s usage isn’t in your control. How useful that is for people is down to them but for a hundred maybe worth a look.
Back window opening: get it for sure. Really useful and the access button is on the far right hand corner of the boot opening section.
What we didn’t get:
- XTR pack: who cares, we don’t and don’t miss it. You get the roof bars as standard on the flair.
- the terrain system: this is one that I would have opted for if I’d had unlimited cash. But really it’s for diesel owners only and even though ideal for those only with jobs like country vet or farmer who will need to use it. I’d only get it for towing if I had a diesel and the 130 bhp.
- the phone charger : might be useful if your into your tech but you can plug the usb into the glove compartment does the same job.
- kid pack: sometimes I think the blinds would be useful if we were going to sleep in the van. Maybe one to consider but the little reverse looking mirror probably would annoy me if I couldn’t take it off.
Negatives:
- I’m still not quite happy with the gear box. It’s a bit sticky and I still make errors with reverse and first as well as the slight clunk into the lower gears. Time will tell.
- seat colours are still awful and you only get the one choice.
- doors are heavy and could be susceptible to drop. an area to watch for sure.
Positives:
- great use of space
- great to drive
- people in the back like it even those with minor car sick susceptibility because yo7 can see so much around the front seats.
- makes driving more relaxed and about smooth progress.
- great technology at an awesome low price.
- ideal for tall people and I sat in lots and lots of cars across all types so happy to testify.
- low insurance
- better than the Peugeot and the Vauxhall options.
I’ll update the review if thing change but for the moment it’s been a wise decision and with the 5500 off from autoebid we could actually get the car we wanted instead of buying a compromise which has allowed us to get more great stuff for just over 18k. Not as good value as a 3-5 year old Vauxhall insignia but worth it to us.
Would you recommend the car to a friend?
Yes
5 out of 5
Car Details
Model
Belingo Flair 130 1.5 hdi M eat 8
Year
2020
Avg annual mileage
10,000 – 14,999
Owned
Less than a year
Bought Car
Used
Typical MPG
55
Tell us what you think about your car?
This is my 3rd new Berlingo and each one has been an improvement on the previous model, this one is fabulous the auto gearbox is linear in its power delivery, the air bump suspension irons out road unevenness, the interior is really well finished off. There are many automatic features ie, headlights, windscreen wipers, even air con comes on if the car interior is too warm, whilst I have only owned the car for 2 months and travelled around 2000 miles all I can say is this is one lovely vehicle with so much carrying capacity that the fortnightly trip to the supermarket is a pleasure.
Would you recommend the car to a friend?
Yes
5 out of 5
Car Details
Model
1.6 hdi
Year
2009
Avg annual mileage
10,000 – 14,999
Owned
3 - 5 years
Bought Car
New
Typical MPG
50
Tell us what you think about your car?
Best car I’ve ever had, it's now got 210,000 on the clock & still drives like the day I bought it, plenty of space and a pleasure to drive, only downside is no air con which can be uncomfortable on a hot summer's day.
Would you recommend the car to a friend?
Yes