Citroen is a brand having a long good reputation for technical innovation: its founder Andre Citroen being able to lay claim amongst other things to producing the earth’s first series-production front wheel drive car (the Traction Avant of 1934) and also the first serious utilization of hydro-pneumatic suspension (about the DS of 1956).

Since 1974 it’s been part of the identical organisation as former rival Peugeot but whilst both brands share resources and knowledge, each remains fiercely individualistic.

The present crop of Citroen cars covers every main market sector in the little C2 as much as the large C8 multi-purpose people carrier, but there are still some oddball machines like the C3-based Pluriel which 2CV de nos jours, the Berlingo.

The newly-arrived C4 offered in both coupe and hatchback variants, could indicate how the company sees the era of the traditional sedan as numbered, for those however the sales representative and senior executive markets.

Citroen includes a practice of getting things right, so other manufacturers is going to be watching the sales figures with interest.