Citroën Xantia 3.0i V6 Exclusive

------------------------EXTERIOR---------------------

The Citroën Xantia is a somewhat odd 5-door liftback that seems as if it's trying to be both sporty and plain, yet instead looks odd. Can't put my finger on why, though.

You wouldn't know it from looking at the Xantia, but Citroëns used to be very interesting. Did I spell that right? C. i. t. r. o. ë. n. Phew, that's a toughie. Anyways, decades ago there was the 2CV; which featured a 2 cylinder air-cooled engine, in V formation. It is possibly the silliest production car ever made. The 2CV appears in GT4 as a prize, and is certainly an "interesting" car. There's also the sophisticated Citröen SM series, which at its most grotesque featured 6 headlamps, a bubble-encased license plate up front, rear wheel covers, and a fully-hydraulic suspension which could be raised or lowered at the flick of a switch. The SM looked like something from another planet, in case you've never seen one. Chances are you haven't if you've never been to Europe...Citroën has never imported their cars to the States, though you may find some in Mexico and Canada.

So the car in this review (the Xantia) is rather boring in comparison to these former automobiles, but is still odd in some unspoken way. Don't know much about it, but judging from the $30,000+ sticker price, it seems to be sort of a semi-luxurious type of vehicle. It costs more in GT2 than it does in GT4, simply because the Xantia in the 4th game is a 2000 year model, and is therefore 4 years old.

There's not a whole lot to say about the Xantia V6 "Exclusive". Gran Turismo 2's design graphics give it a rather angular, choppy look, though in real-life it's a bit smoother to the eye. The Xantia is rather heavy, but not too bad.

With two reductions, its weight falls from 3,300 pounds to just over 3,000 in GT2 (more in the 4th game). Since some of it is in the rear and upper structure of the Xantia, we can expect body roll and oversteer, and that's just what we get!

-----------------ENGINE / DRIVETRAIN------------------

Power starts off good. 193 hp is just below of the GT2 National race limits, so the Xantia will be able to roll in all the races from free to I-B, except for the three Kei-car events. In GT4, this power can get us winning both Sunday Cup and FF Challenge in no time.

There are three levels of tuning available. No turbos unfortunately, but power can be naturally-boosted up to 361 hp (GT2). Even though there are a lot of races with 591 hp limits, most of the cars in these actually only have about 350 to 400 hp at the most, making the Xantia unexpectantly competitive. Power is good and available thru a broad spectrum. Engine balancing and port / polishing boost the redline from 6,500 to 7,000, and the rev limit gets raised to 8,000 so this car has a good range of energy even though ultimately it's not the strongest auto we'll find.

The Xantia of GT4 doesn't get as many high-paced chances to shine, but it's still competitive in a healthy list of races. Clubman Cup, Tous France Championnat, and a few Easy-level Special Condition races are some examples. But forget about taking it to some real heavy GT-league races in this game. The Xantia is not a Civic Type R or Golf GTi.

Back to GT2 now. You might wanna get the racing gearbox for this one, um....otherwise the car will only able to hit a top speed of about 150 mph. Yes, there ARE times in which we'll need to go at least this fast, if not faster. ;0 The engine's torque drops off gradually after its 4 to 5,100 rpm peak (depending on which level of tuning is employed), so it's a good idea to dial gears high enough that this car rarely needs to redline. GT4's Xantia won't demand such flexibility of gears. In this game, it's possible to use either stock or close gearing for the majority of encounters. The Xantia's front-drive system in either game suffers from occasional sloppiness when power is planted out of corners, which can be remedied with a 1-way differential for the most part.

So while this car isn't all that special, fast, or fascinating, it does have its merits. It can dominate a few races here and there.

----------------CHASSIS / HANDLING---------------

When I was a kid living in Germany, I was fortunate enough to get a ride in a Citroën, though I don't remember which model it was. All I know is that it was like riding in an airplane with no turbulence. ....Really smooth down the highways. The seats were softer than soft; like the way a plush Victorian sofa might feel, perhaps.

Since the '70s (or perhaps even before the '70s), Citroën's trademark has been their patented hydraulic suspension, which is hydro-pneumatic, and doesn't use the conventional coil springs or torsion bars which are normally found in like 99% of the world's other cars. When at rest, these older Citroëns can be lowered--sort of like a lowrider we'd see nowadays. When driving, owners often raise them to get that unbelievable cloud-like ride going.

All of this is great, problem is: it kinda sucks for racing! So make sure to upgrade the suspension; it doesn't matter if you're getting the sports, semi-racing, or racing set-ups, though since the car can't be modified past 400 hp, it seems wasteful to get full-racing parts unless you're doing the Tuned NA series or something.

The Xantia is a front-drive car, and suffers from the entry-corner understeer we'd normally expect; though with early straight-line braking, it can be controlled. Still, it handles tracks in a rather gallopy fashion: understeer on-entry can turn to oversteer, as the car's rear slides thru turns if it is being driven too aggressively mid-corner. This happens even with soft racing tires installed in GT2.

The Citroën Xsara (not the Xantia of this review, but the Xsara, which is also found in both GT2 and GT4) is a much better car, with more precise steering & control when it comes to the Handling department. The Xantia "Exclusive" is not absolutely awful. I've won more races in a Xantia than I've lost when racing amongst cars with similar horsepower. If it were featured in GT1, the Xantia wouldn't have a very long career, but it does okay in GT2 and GT4 thru a variety of B and A-license races.