1996 Citroen AX Echo 1.5 diesel from UK and Ireland

Summary:

What do you expect for the money, we paid £50 for ours with no MOT or tax, but only 65k and FSH

Faults:

Leaking solenoid.

Dashboard bulbs blew regularly.

Alternator light glows occasionally.

O/S drive shaft clunk.

General Comments:

Great economy.

Fair turn of speed.

Cold start problems, generally valve clearances, £40 locally.

All parts cheap and easy to fit.

Dashboard bulbs about 30 minutes to change.

Head gaskets and head refacing, about £40 locally.

Will run forever.

Peugeot 106 1.5 diesel is comfier.

Would you buy another car from this manufacturer? Yes

Review Date: 30th December, 2009

1996 Citroen AX 1.1 Carb from Malaysia

Summary:

Darn well built!

Faults:

1. Drive shaft (left & right)

2. Speedometer

3. Fuel gauge

4. Rear axle bearings

5. Horn.

General Comments:

1. Superbly rapid! The model I'm having is the Malaysian built "Proton Tiara 1.1" with 1.1l 4 cylinder 60hp engine (Solex single-carb). Malaysians generally snide at the mere mention of any French makes but this little tyke sure kick some turbo ass! Outran a Sentra (Sunny B14) fitted with a SR20 turbo for a good 10m from red light! Haha...

2. It corners like it's on rails, baby! Never lose a corner run to even a modified car since I started driving this French supermini.

3. Feels rock steady at speed. At 140km/h (my top speed anyway..), the car is steadier than most Japanese makes, which are incidentally more expensive and "high-tech".

4. Citroen heritage is strong in this one. More comfortable seating positions (front seats) than most other contemporary cars.

Would you buy another car from this manufacturer? Yes

Review Date: 8th June, 2008

1996 Citroen AX Memphis 1.1 petrol from UK and Ireland

Summary:

For a car of it's age it really isn't that good

Faults:

The driver's seat is stuck in a reclined position.

The engine sound is worryingly odd when running.

The brakes went at 55 000 miles while driving down a hill.

General Comments:

This car has great speed, and handles really well, but it will roll if you go round corners to fast.

The interior isn't that nice, but at least the seats are comfy.

Would you buy another car from this manufacturer? No

Review Date: 13th June, 2005

1996 Citroen AX 1.1 76hp from Greece

Summary:

If you want a nice and safe car... you should buy it at once!!!

Faults:

Nothing went wrong except once lately the pump that connects the fridge with the motor broke down and I had to change it.

General Comments:

It was a good chance to buy it. it didn't betrayed me ever!!

Would you buy another car from this manufacturer? Don't Know

Review Date: 3rd March, 2005

15th May 2005, 19:27

The AX a safe car? economical, fun, possibly, but the reason I sold mine was the flimsy lightweight construction. Plastic bonnet and boot panels and thin metal made me very nervous - esp when mine conked out with a 10 ton truck behind me! still that's the trade off between economy and safety with the ax. however my sister did role it when she owned it and it didn't even lose a hub cap! - not until I kerbed it two years later, but that's another story!!!

1996 Citroen AX Dimension 954cc from UK and Ireland

Summary:

A budget car which will keep costs low

Faults:

I crashed it soon after getting it as the brakes stuck after I broke hard on ice. I was quite surprised at the damage created, as I was going fairly slow by the time I actually hit the other car. It was initially quoted as being very expensive to fix by an independent mechanic, but after sending it to my insurance company's approved mechanic it is now back on the road.

Some problems with the front seat stuck in a reclined position.

General Comments:

It is a wonderful first car. I also drive a brand new Vauxhall Astra and a Land Rover Discovery Mk II which are both top of the range. The ax is probably my second favourite, behind the Land Rover. In the Ax, you get a real feel of the road and of the surroundings, and due to the body roll, you know when you're going too fast.

It handle's really well on the motorway, and fuel consumption is amazing - I drove from Sutton Coldfield to Solihull on two litres.

Would you buy another car from this manufacturer? Yes

Review Date: 4th March, 2004

1996 Citroen AX Mamphis 1.1 from UK and Ireland

Summary:

A giggle, but can be scary

Faults:

Bad vibration and the car pulled to the left. This was diagnosed as a drive-shaft which was replaced.

Rear brakes binding occasionally.

More vibrations. The other drive-shaft needed to be replaced.

Connection to the right front indicator occasionally fails - still needs to be sorted out.

About £1000 worth of repairs, but most of the problems were there when I bought the car - always take a long test drive.

General Comments:

I've still got the Lotus, and I have almost as much fun in the Citroen! It's not fast in a straight line, but will easily keep pace with traffic, it's safe to run flat out on the motorway as it runs out of steam at 85, and it gets 49mpg while it's doing it. Most importantly it's fun to drive with more feel than most cars due to its low weight, lack of power steering, and skinny tires. It also has an interesting line in lift-off oversteer...

On the downside when you're cornering enthusiastically, which the steering encourages you to do, you feel like you're going to fall out of the seat. The brakes are also rubbish, but that could be down to the tires, and driving it in a more spirited manner than intended. Then again, the tires are cheap. People also pull out in front of you as they don't think the car should be going that fast! This can be quite scary as it feels like it's made out of painted paper.

Would you buy another car from this manufacturer? Don't Know

Review Date: 29th July, 2003

19th Feb 2005, 10:02

Well after just over two years I'm getting rid of the little citroen. It's served it's purpose and built up my no claims bonus, and I've now got to the point where ABS seems like a good idea so I'm swapping it for a BMW 328.

The mileage is now reading 75k, but I think it must be faulty as I know I've done a lot more than 6000 miles in the last year and a half! The right indicator still cuts out occasionally, and I've had to have the tracking done a couple of times and it's worked its way out again, but overall it's been ridiculously cheap to run (after the initial costs anyway!). I've replaced all the tyres which cost about £80 in total, and spent about £150 on servicing. The mpg's down to just over 40, but then it's been driven very hard recently, and there's now a knocking / grumbly noise from the front right wheel which two garages have looked at and can't work out what it is.

Overall it's been a perfect run-a-bout for the last two years and I'm going to miss it, but when it's time for a change it's got to be done. It's still a great fun little car :-)