Citroën has unveiled a new flagship, the Citroën C5X, which is it pitching as a luxury tourer. Interestingly, Citroën has come up with a crossover style for it, addressing the desire for SUV ride height, with saloon comfort and the practicality of an estate.

Citroën sees this as none of the above and all of the above, and was clear to say at the global premiere that it believes this bodystyle fits all those demands - so don't expect variations.

There's a coupe aesthetic to this model, with a long bonnet, a fast back and with less overhang at the rear than at the front - although at first glance you might think you're looking at the Citroën C4, which has a similar looks.

What's key here is that you get good legroom for the rear passengers as well as a 545 litre boot, so there's plenty of space for those long trips.

There will be petrol or plug-in hybrid versions of the C5X, with no commitment to a fully electric version at this time. The car does sit on the EMP2 platform, however, so could easily appear in electric form in the future - although we suspect the barrier to that at the moment is price.

Instead the C5X will get a powertrain based on what you'll find in the C5 AirCross, with a 225hp plug-in hybrid option delivering 50km/30 miles of electric range for those short urban trips.

Citroen C5X photo 6
citroen

There's going to be oodles of technology, with an the expanded heads-up display projecting important details onto the inside of the windscreen so the driver gets an augmented reality-like experience.

A 12-inch display sits in the centre of the dash, using an all-new interface, which Citroën says is much more like a smartphone experience. Haven't we heard that a lot recently from car manufacturers?

There's plenty of driving tech too, with level 2 autonomy, meaning adaptive cruise control, stop-start driving and lane assistance, so in some cases, the car will drive itself.

Citroen C5X photo 5
citroen

Comfort and luxury are at the top of the list: this car is designed to float like a cloud and take you from A to B with refinement and comfort.

The Citroën C5X will be available to order late in 2021, appearing on the roads in early 2022.