On the 8 August my Elegance Greentech and I had our first anniversary! Having contributed quite a bit to this forum during the year I thought a summary of some of the information I have gleaned could be useful to those contemplating buying one and also for those of you wondering about a few things you have encountered with your Citigo.

There was little running-in information available, so I started the following thread to help others trying to find out more:

http://www.briskoda.net/forums/topic/248740-running-in-information/

My experience with cars started in the early '60's so I remember how vehicles sounded from inside pre all the extra sound deadening material that is now normally added to the larger ones. A car designer friend explained to me that the problems known as NVH (noise, vibration, harshness) are much more difficult to overcome in small car design development than in larger vehicles. The Citigo, with its focus on light overall weight for emissions reductions, mpg and performance is no exception, although what the designers achieved is a quite remarkable overall package!

Whilst mentioning performance, here is an interesting comparison I made last year comparing a 1963/64 Mk1 Mini Cooper S 1071cc and a 2012 Citigo 75 Greentech 999cc:

Cooper S

Power - 70 bhp (71PS) @ 6,200 rpm

Torque - 84NM @ 4,500 rpm

0 - 60 mph 13.5 secs

Top speed 92mph

Weight 650kg approx.

Citigo

Power - 74 bhp (75PS) @ 6,200rpm

Torque - 95NM @ 3,000 to 4,300 rpm

0 - 62 mph 13.2 secs

Top speed 107 mph

Weight 865kg.

Surprising what advancements have been made in 48years!

Back to noise – although my car has some transmission noise if you listen carefully (no radio on!), I believe by far the most apparent sound comes from the re-generative alternator – a subject much more fully discussed in the topic “A Little Whine, Anyone”:

http://www.briskoda.net/forums/topic/249109-a-little-whine-anybody/?hl=+little%20+whine%20+anybody

Like many others, I too have the clutch pedal 'click' – my dealer advises that Skoda are aware of this and this and have it listed under TPI 2032106/1 whilst they research a 'fix'. Not a problem, but because of the lack of insulation I can also hear the clutch mechanism operating.

None of these noises give me any cause for concern at all, I just come from the generation that likes to know why something makes a noise!

During the very cold part of the winter I noticed ice build up overnight when the vehicle was parked – I had also seen this on my previous Octavia. There was a lot of interesting discussion in the following topic, which new owners might like to read before winter comes in!

http://www.briskoda.net/forums/topic/258909-ice-on-the-inside-of-the-carwindscreen/

In standard form the Citigo does not have the best sounding radio system and if you enjoy good sound and are placing an order I would recommend having the rear speakers. Initially I thought the two speaker sound was pretty awful on the 'flat', zero settings. Many people simply ramp up the bass and treble fully and are quite happy with that! However all this does is push the mid-range sounds to the background (muddy!!) For me I find the treble up x2 and the bass flat, or reduced by 1 provides an acceptable and reasonably clear sound. Definitely not Hi-Fi though :think: ! Some other owners have found this useful.

The only faults I have encountered in the year have been one rusting black door lock bolt as seen when you open the nearside door and view the edge where the lock mechanism is, and slight 'pickling' around the two front wheel Skoda medallions which probably has been caused by road salt. I had this on both previous Skodas so I am surprised that such a minor design issue has not yet been resolved.

Until I got used to the rear parcel not having cords attached to the tailgate (impossible to have because of the size and angle) I sometimes used to drive off with the shelf still up and partially blocking my rear view – I am not the only Citigo owner to do this either! I read that some other small cars have the same issue too.

When I first bought the car I requested the autolock be enabled by my dealer which my previous Skodas had as standard. What I did not know is you need to specify whether you require the unlock too, as these are separate settings. From this forum I learned that other functions can also be switched on and my dealer, White Dove Skoda, have just enabled the cornering fog lights for me whilst carrying out the first service. That service is just an oil and filter change and was quickly carried out by White Dove with the car also being returned cleaned.

I found that the engine did not really start to free-up until about 1,800 miles – by that mileage there was a noticeable difference and should only get better as the mileage increases. I also notice low tyre wear. The controls are light, but not overly so, with nicely weighted steering. It is comfortable, has very good aircon when you set it correctly and a fast warm up heater because the engine manifold is part of the cylinder head. RF tax is free (!!) and annual insurance only £110.

My average mpg is around 52-55mpg, but I don't find it difficult to achieve around 65mpg without holding up the following traffic and it's great fun to drive!

All in all a brilliant package – however, in the UK we never did get the glove box handle bag hook holder shown in all the sales literature, did we!!

Excellent write up, thankyou for sharing

Good to know your still happy a year down the line.

Keep up the posting as we appreciate your contributions, especially myself who is new to the Citigo.

Regards

Damo

Really useful as am I coming to 1 year anniversary in 2 weeks or so

I have the clicking clutch pedal as well

I can't find the edit button to remove the duplicate paragraph starting "Back to noise" - sorry!

 

If you have the clicking clutch pedal issue,  report it to your dealer so that he can add it to the list of TPI complainants - the solution could found more quickly if we all do that!

Good info & useful too thank you.

I can't find the edit button to remove the duplicate paragraph starting "Back to noise" - sorry! 

Done it you fella

Interesting.  I would disagree about the aircon, as I think it is relatively poor.  My Getz aircon would produce air so cold as to give mist out of the vents when first switched on.  It cooled the car much faster than that in  the Citigo.  The parcel shelf is dangerous and I have just removed my one.

Damo - thank you for the edit!

 

CitigoAli - regarding your comments on the aircon:

 

When I had the car last year, I too was not impressed with the aircon and it was only this year, when the heat really hit us all that I experimented with the settings and found out how good it actually was.   It doesn't cool as fast initially as my previous Octavia's with climate control, but  like experimenting with my radio settings, it is possible to acheive quite a cold blast if you set as follows:

 

The right hand rotary knob needs to be at 3.00pm (so that the screen, centre and side vents are open) and then experiment by moving the knob to about 4.30 which then blends cooled air into the footwells.   If it is really hot then set it to 6.00pm so that all the air ducts are in use.    The fan will initially need to be on 3 or 4, then reducing to 1 or 2.    Most importantly it is vital that the extract ducts in the rear of the boot are not blocked with bags etc. to enable movement of the warm air out of the car.  They are positioned indide the boot either side of the number plate. 

 

Naturally you will need to set the slider control to allow fresh air into the car to get that circulation.  Hope this helps!

Nice post! I'm almost a year in with my up Black - just a quick point on the clutch click, my dealer changed the 'pedal box' in mine with no quibble. Since then all has been silent. Hope you guys get the issue sorted, as mine was driving me crackers.

Nice summary on your 1st anniversary, much the same here, well next month.

My thoughts would be exactly as yours, although I can't say I have heard a clicking from the clutch pedal, yet. Mine's on 6k now and have I thoroughly enjoy driving it over the last 11 months. Had the grandkids in the back in their car seats no problems, been to Ikea too and got a fair amount in there which I thought I would struggle to carry. Even had two guys confused standing a distance from the car, one thinking it was a Ford, the other a Vauxhall. Whether that's good or bad you decide.

One question, just an oil and filter change at the first service, really?

Hello MickA!   We have both contributed to quite a few items on this forum over the last year!

 

I could not find a definitive list of the servicing items in any of my literature, which is a disappointment.   Perhaps this is the latest trend in the motor trade - " the customer does not need to know".   Perhaps I am being unfair, but although I am a little older than your goodself, we both come from the time when you knew what you were paying for and this was clearly itemised in the service handbook.

 

Anyway - what I received was an oil and filter change, tyre tread depths listed, screen wash and a road test (and a clean in and out).  My Citigo was also connected to the computer to set the cornering lights, so I cannot confirm whether this is the norm.

Thanks CortinaGT; a grand summary.

Thanks for the write up!

 

Had mine about 13 months now, very happy with it.

 

Just some noises and things, but the car drives lovely.

Whilst mentioning performance, here is an interesting comparison I made last year comparing a 1963/64 Mk1 Mini Cooper S 1071cc and a 2012 Citigo 75 Greentech 999cc:

Cooper S
Power - 70 bhp (71PS) @ 6,200 rpm
Torque - 84NM @ 4,500 rpm
0 - 60 mph 13.5 secs
Top speed 92mph
Weight 650kg approx.

Citigo
Power - 74 bhp (75PS) @ 6,200rpm
Torque - 95NM @ 3,000 to 4,300 rpm
0 - 62 mph 13.2 secs
Top speed 107 mph
Weight 865kg.

 

This is a great comparison. A couple of reviews compared the Citigo's handling to the original Mini, and I have justified to myself the lack of creature comforts on the sport model as reflecting that ethos. It's nice to see the actual figures side by side.