Citroën Berlingo Van long-term test: report 2
The Citroën Berlingo Van promises car-like comfort and efficiency, and the practicality of, well, a van. Our photographer is living with one to see if it delivers...
The Citroën Berlingo Van Panel Driver Pro XL BlueHDi 130 EAT8 Run by Max Edleston, photographer
Why it’s here To show just how far modern vans have come
Needs to Serve as both a practical working vehicle and weekend leisure transport
Mileage 950 List price £24,995 Target Price £24,995 Price as tested £28,085 Official economy 47.7mpg Test economy 46.0mpg
3 July 2022 – Kit and caboodle
If there’s one thing which springs into my mind when I think about vans, it’s how many miles they’re expected to cover in a year. That means their drivers need them to be comfy and practical to spend all that time in. And, fortunately, it’s somewhere where my Citroën Berlingo van has been delivering so far.
I’ve been impressed by the sheer amount of tech inside my van. For starters, the keyless entry enables me to climb aboard with both hands full, without having to fumble around for my keys. Then there’s keyless start, so I just have to press a button to get the engine going, not to mention the 8.0in infotainment touchscreen, which offers everything from a DAB radio to Apple CarPlay smartphone mirroring and even sat-nav.
The system has so far been pretty easy to use, and while a set of physical controls would make it even more intuitive, I appreciate the handy touch-sensitive shortcut buttons on either side of the screen for accessing frequently used functions.
Another string to the Berlingo’s bow is the fantastic rear-view camera, which I mentioned in my initial report. It replaces the traditional rear view mirror, which is a bit redundant in my van because the bulkhead blocks its path. Whilst the live rear camera feed takes time to get used to, once I became comfortable with it, the stress of parking quickly vanished. I also found out that with the click of a button, the rear view changes into a side blind spot camera, allowing me to see even further around my van.
I’ve also grown to love Citroën’s take on adaptive cruise control, which is operated from a stalk coming off the steering column, rather than via buttons on the wheel itself as it would be in some rivals. I like the way that the system shows me very clearly how close I am to the car in front, so that I can leave a safe distance while the van does all the hard work of keeping me moving with the ebb and flow of traffic.
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