More than ten years ago, Tjibbe Beimers bought a Citroën C4 Grand Picasso with 140,000 km
Mainly thanks to the engine come this far
More than ten years ago, Tjibbe Beimers bought a four-year-old Citroën C4 Grand Picasso with 140,000 km on the digital clock. That silly French MPV just doesn’t know how to give up, so his owner sees no reason to part with it in the short term. Let’s just hope that Joep doesn’t pull any corpses out of the closet.
Tjibbe has been a Picasso driver from the very beginning. His previous car was a 2000 Xsara Picasso, the year of introduction. “I immediately fell for the appearance and practicality of the car. My choice fell on the 1.8, in which I had a gas installation from new.” That Picasso lasted twelve years and 440,000 kilometers, with slightly more electronic faults than Tjibbe had hoped. At the end of the ride it was really worn out and on the day Tjibbe bought his new Picasso, the old one literally stopped working too. “My timing couldn’t be better. It seems that a lot of the electronics in the C4 are from Bosch and I have to say that I have never had any problems with that.”
When he was looking for a replacement for the previous one, Tjibbe also looked at a model with a manual transmission. “But at that time I was stuck in traffic quite often and that is one of the reasons why an automatic seemed to be the better option. I have never regretted that, even if this is not the most refined machine on the market. You have to learn to deal with it a bit and I’ve grown with it completely. Immediately upon purchase, the clutch was renewed and again later. It shifts very differently, that’s right. I have also found that this tank functions better in cold and damp weather. With a controlled gas foot and some sense of technology, it is very easy to live with.”
Automatic is a drama
Once you’re talking to Tjibbe, you’ll have a lot of fun. With a kind of French nonchalance, he dismisses all the Picasso’s idiosyncrasies, without being indifferent. Somehow we understand that attitude, given the impressive track record of his Citroën. Judge Joep Schuurman can only endorse this, although he gets behind the wheel of a gas appliance with a robot tank with the necessary skepticism. “It won’t be the engine, it’s very strong. But everything around it is really quite worn out and that machine is a drama ”, we hear after the test drive. As said, Tjibbe can read and write with it. “Of course I also notice that the transmission is sulky and that there is a bit of rattling at the bottom. About three years ago he didn’t want to go into reverse anymore. The small switch on the steering column works with a magnet. I kind of repaired that first, that turned out not to be the solution. Fortunately, I found a similar car at the junkyard. The fact that the engine malfunction light is almost always on does not bother me. Every now and then I let it reset, but sooner or later it pops back on. Since we have a motorhome, we no longer go on holiday with the Picasso and I don’t have to worry about being stranded somewhere in a foreign country, even though it has never left us behind.”
Earned back
Just when we are talking about the fact that the fifteen-year-old Fransoos is as good as rust-free, Joep suddenly pierces the bottom with a tool. What will we experience now? Fortunately, it turns out to be only a cover piece just behind the left front wheel. It is not part of the chassis and otherwise has very little function. And you guessed it, Tjibbe does not dazzle or blush and dismisses it with a generous smile. “A small hole like that, he probably doesn’t drive any less. The gas tank also rusts, which is updated a little with every MOT, otherwise it will not pass the inspection. Do you know that I have already more than earned back the purchase price of this car by driving on gas? Recently I refueled for 69.9 cents per liter and the road tax is only fifty euros per month extra. The system still works well, but I have to replace the fuse every now and then.” We also find rust on the rear springs and when Joep checks the front left spring carefully, he fishes a broken piece out of the spring seat. Another surprise. Tjibbe: “Now get something! I had that too with my previous Picasso and on the way to the garage the other one broke. I do miss the BX’s suspension, which was fantastic. What then again argues in his favor is the fact that the exhaust and shock absorbers are still original. How to proceed now? I think I’ll get everything fixed. Costs a bit, but then I can go ahead for a while and with a year of driving on gas, it will pay for itself.”
The opinion of Carrec Technocenter
“Unfortunately, the Picasso has to be given a thumbs down. Positive note: it is great that the car has come this far. That is partly due to a very good engine!”
– Thanks for information from Autoweek.nl