Its looks may divide, but Basalt is a great family all-rounder
There was a time when choosing a budget crossover meant accepting a rolling penalty box on wheels. Tinny doors, gutless naturally aspirated engines, and about as much cabin space as a telephone booth. Or opt for a Chinaman. The landscape has shifted, however. Major traditional carmakers are fighting back with clever machinery.
Take Citroën’s new Basalt 1.2T Max. Priced at a highly aggressive R370K, this coupe-styled crossover wades into the wild compact family fight to challenge China-cheap convention head-on. It represents another very good effort from what is now firmly established as Stellantis’ accessible budget brand.
Sure, its unorthodox fastback rear-end, odd window line and high-riding stance will divide opinion. Downright ugly to some, others will appreciate its distinct French eccentricity. Peel back those typical Citroën styling quirks, however, and you are left with a spacious, well-sorted family all-rounder that is pretty darned good at almost everything it sets out to do.
QUIRKY PROPORTIONS, GREAT SPACE
Viewed in profile, the Basalt blends rugged crossover cladding with a sweeping roofline that tries to pretend it’s a coupé. That plunges to a stubby tail deck. Citroën’s bold chevron nose splits signature split-level LED headlights in a boxy variation of an eggcrate grille. It certainly stands out from the sea of anonymous two-box clones clogging suburban traffic.
If we’re finding fault to balance the ledger, the standard 16-inch alloys seem under-tyred in those squared-off arches. Hop aboard, and the cabin plastics are also unashamedly hard and utilitarian. Lacking the soft-touch warmth of pricier contenders, they feel durable enough to survive heavy family abuse. And the doors slam tinny. But at the price, who should complain?
There's undeniable method to the Basalt’s unorthodox shape. Despite that sloping roofline, rear legroom and headroom are generous enough for tall adults, complete with dedicated rear air vents and smart winged headrests. Better still, the boot is an absolute cavern, a significant 470 litres of luggage comfortably outswallows almost every hatchback and compact SUV in its class.
SIMPLE TECH AND PUNCHY TURBO URGE
Up front, the cockpit is refreshingly straightforward, yet chic enough to feel contemporary without drowning the driver in convoluted digital sub-menus. A crisp 10.25-inch touchscreen handles wireless CarPlay and Auto alongside a neat 7-inch digital driver display. Proper physical buttons and knobs remain right where you need them to run the climate control on the fly.
Under the bonnet sits Stellantis' familiar 1.2-litre three-pot turbo petrol PureTech engine, sending 81 kW and 205 Nm to the front wheels via a smooth-shifting six-speed torque-converter automatic transmission. Not some afterthought screaming CVT. You have to love that three-pot thrum. It’s as if you’re driving a big six or even a V12, were it not for the vibes.
Strap on the VBox, and the numbers confirm a solid, middle-of-the-road performer. The Basalt hooks up cleanly to hit 60 km/h in 4.5 seconds and reaches 100 km/h from standstill in 10.3. The 120 km/h highway marker comes up in 14 seconds, while the standing 400-metre sprint is dispatched in 17.2 seconds at 130 km/h.
COMPOSED RIDE, HONEST EFFICIENCY
Out on the open road, that low-down turbo torque makes light work of everyday driving, even at highveld altitudes. The vital 80–120 km/h overtaking increment is a brisk 7.5 seconds, giving the Basalt ample mid-range punch to pass slower traffic without the six-speed having to hunt for ratios.
More impressively, where some turbo crossovers churn claimed fuel figures into pure fantasy, the Citroën stays remarkably honest at the pumps. We readily beat a claimed 6.3 l/100 km in a decent mix of country and village driving to give credence to the 45-litre tank’s 700 km range between fill-ups.
Best of all, Citroën’s traditional suspension wizardry has not been lost in the budget translation. Riding on 180 mm of clearance, the Basalt soaks up broken suburban asphalt, speed humps, and buggered Boland regional backroads with a supple, cushioned compliance that puts many a stiffer, more expensive rival to shame.
TAKING THE FIGHT TO THE ESTABLISHMENT
To appreciate just how hard the Basalt 1.2T Max hits at R370K, one needs only to consider its rivals. Against Chinese contenders like the Chery Tiggo 4 Pro, GWM Haval Jolion, and sleek Omoda C5, the Citroën trades away flashy cabin glitz yet matches the dual-screen theatre in exchange for a vastly superior ride, real ergonomics, and a much bigger boot.
Stack it up against top-selling traditional rivals like the naturally aspirated Suzuki Fronx and its Toyota offshoot and the pricey Volkswagen T-Cross, and the value equation skews even further. The Basalt’s 205 Nm turbo punch leaves the breathless atmo brigade for dead at altitude, while undercutting equivalent German and Japanese crossover metal by tens of thousands of rands.
Ultimately, the Citroën Basalt is a triumph of honest packaging over badge snobbery. If you can look past that polarising rear end and live with some hard cabin plastics, it delivers an unbeatable package, great comfort, and family utility for very reasonable money. – Michele Lupini
Images & Testing: Giordano Lupini
ROAD TESTED: Citroën Basalt 1.2T Max
Engine: 81 kW 205 Nm 1.2-litre turbo petrol I3
Drive: 6-speed automatic FWD
TESTED:
0–60 km/h: 4.51 sec
0–100 km/h: 10.31 sec
0–120 km/h: 14.42 sec
400m: 17.2 sec @ 130 km/h
80–120 km/h: 7.46 sec
CLAIMED:
VMax: 185 km/h
Fuel: 6.3 l/100 km
CO2: 142 g/km
Range: 714 km
Warranty/Service: 5y/100K km/4y/60K km
LIST PRICE: R370K
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