Where each one leads
Citroen C5
- Fewer Citroen C5 cars in the Netherlands carry an illogical odometer record (3.6% against 4.5%).
- New Citroen C5 cars registered in Europe in 2022 average 75 g/km of CO₂ on the WLTP test, against 116 for the Mercedes-Benz C-Class in 2022.
- Measured by the cars' own fuel meters, the petrol Citroen C5 uses 7.2 l/100 km on the road, the Mercedes-Benz C-Class 10.9.
- Measured by the cars' own fuel meters, the diesel Citroen C5 uses 6.0 l/100 km on the road, the Mercedes-Benz C-Class 6.3.
Mercedes-Benz C-Class
- Against cars of the same age, the Mercedes-Benz C-Class comes out better at its first MOT test (passes 1% more often than average) than the Citroen C5 (passes 3% less often than average).
Only measures that do not depend on how many cars were sold: pass and failure rates against cars of the same age, ratings, fuel use and CO₂. How we compare
At a glance
| Citroen C5 | Mercedes-Benz C-Class | |
|---|---|---|
| Model years in the US safety record | — | 1991–2012 |
| New cars registered in Europe | 226,597 (2010–2022) | 1,573,424 (2010–2022) |
| Licensed in the United Kingdom | 36,436 | 342,811 |
| On the road in the Netherlands | 9,577 | 78,492 |
| In traffic in Finland | 6,930 | 49,488 |
EEA new-car registrations (CC BY 4.0) · DVLA licensed vehicles (OGL v3.0) · RDW (CC0) · Traficom (CC BY 4.0) · generations: Wikidata (CC0).
Reliability and problems
| Citroen C5 | Mercedes-Benz C-Class | |
|---|---|---|
| UK MOT first-time pass rate | 73% | 80% |
| … against cars of the same age | −3% | +1% |
| New York safety inspections failed | — | 1.1% |
| … against cars of the same year | — | −38% |
| Illogical odometer records (NL) | 3.6% | 4.5% |
| US owner complaints | — | 192 |
| Most complaints about | — | Electrical system |
| Model year with most complaints | — | 1995 (49) |
| US recall campaigns | — | 6 |
| Manufacturer service bulletins | — | 73 |
| NHTSA defect investigations | — | 11 |
Complaint, recall and bulletin counts grow with the number of cars sold and are not adjusted for it. UK MOT: DVSA anonymised MOT results (OGL v3.0); New York: DMV inspections; complaints, recalls, bulletins and investigations: NHTSA (public domain); odometer: RDW (CC0).
Safety
| Citroen C5 | Mercedes-Benz C-Class | |
|---|---|---|
| NHTSA overall rating | — | 5★ (2021) |
NHTSA New Car Assessment Program, most recent rated model year (public domain).
Fuel, emissions and price
| Citroen C5 | Mercedes-Benz C-Class | |
|---|---|---|
| Real-world use in Europe, petrol | 7.2 l/100 km | 10.9 l/100 km |
| Real-world use in Europe, diesel | 6.0 l/100 km | 6.3 l/100 km |
| Real-world use in Europe, diesel hybrid | — | 6.0 l/100 km |
| Real-world use in Europe, petrol hybrid | — | 8.5 l/100 km |
| Official CO₂ of new cars in Europe | 75 g/km | 116 g/km |
| Average power of new cars in Europe | 126 kW (169 hp) | 152 kW (203 hp) |
| Average mass in running order | 1,691 kg | 1,818 kg |
| Dutch list price when new (median) | €36,530 | €54,166 |
| Average odometer in Finland | 257,000 km | 248,000 km |
Canada: NRCan Fuel Consumption Ratings, most frugal version of the latest year (OGL Canada). Europe: EEA monitoring of new-car CO₂ and on-board fuel meters (OBFCM), CC BY 4.0. Price: RDW catalogue price (CC0). Finland: Traficom (CC BY 4.0).