Sunday Drive by Hormazd Sorabjee: Citroën C5 Aircross is as French as it gets!

French. Very French. That’s what the Citroën C5 Aircross is. You might think I’m stating the obvious, but no, you can’t take the lineage of any brand for granted. It’s not uncommon for the badge on a car to have no link with its heritage or nationality. GM India was a past master of the badge engineering game, proudly pinning the Chevrolet bow tie on cars that were more Japanese, Korean and Chinese than American. The MG Hector too wears a British badge but comes from China, whilst closer to home, Citroën’s traditional rival, Renault has never given us cars that are genuinely French. Cars like the Duster and Lodgy are Dacias whilst the little Kwid is actually more Indian than French. Sharing badges, platforms and components isn’t necessarily a bad thing because the result can be a product that’s well suited to the Indian market. But all the mixing and matching can dilute the DNA of the brand.