Weekend Drive: Citroen Cactus 2017

The Citroen cactus 2017.

THE SPECS

Halogen headlights for great viz.

Gentle, subtle beeping reminder to put on your seatbelt (take note other manufacturers), 17-inch alloy wheels.

From about $30k.

THE CAR

And it was all yellow. Well, more like citron, if you want to split hairs, but on the yellow spectrum. And when I picked up this little number, there emerged a legit but completely unplanned theme: we drove in the citron-coloured Citroen to a French cafe in Dominion Rd (which you can read about in this week's Canvas brunch review), and we ordered citron tart. I drew the line at having Coldplay on the stereo.

It's very eyecatching (safety first) and the black padding on the sides - Airbumps - are a sort of pre-emptive safety design strike. So if someone bumps your door and scratches your little yellow bumblebee, you can remove the panels and - voila! No scratches. This panel feature could only have been designed by someone accustomed to driving peak hour down the Champs Elysees, around Place de la Concorde, up the Champs-Elysees, and around the Arc de Triomphe.

THE DRIVE

It's a fast little beasty. Sounds like a racing car and once upon a time this was diesel, but they switched it to petrol. After I acquainted myself with the functions - automatic, find good radio station, adjust seat, put coffee in the holder - I set off on the southern highway to Auckland central. It's eyecatching. People totally gawk at you in this. I park up and a passer-by says how refreshing it is to see a change from grey and white. On our Labour Weekend sojourn, we could easily exceed the speed limit because it has so much pep. But we are not on the Autobahn. Instead we head off up to the Whangaparaoa Peninsula, with the kids piled in.

They think it's brilliant. Comfortable, compact, capable and cute.