Description
Welcome to my advert listing for my 2007 Citroen C4 VTS 180 By Loeb, which I must stress from the outset of this description, must not be confused at all with any other C4s currently offered for sale – be it a VTS variant, or a By Loeb variant. I am very pleased to report that my C4 is that of the “C4 VTS 180 By Loeb”, which is 1 of 5 cars ever produced and sold in the UK. Prior to delving into the description, just to note that I am a Citroen enthusiast through-and-through, having been heavily involved with the workings and runnings of the Citroen Car Club in the past, and had C4s ever since I first passed my driving test, and this particular C4 is my 5th. Having been “through the range” of models of C4s, and By Loeb’s in particular – I must admit that the C4 VTS 180 By Loeb is easily the pick of the bunch.
If you are viewing this advert, then I may well be preaching to the converted, however I feel that it is important to give some accurate and informative background information as to what makes this particular C4 incredibly special, very rare, and equally sought-after too.
The two “sporty” variants of the uniquely styled C4 “Coupe” available to buy when the C4 was in production was limited to that of the C4 VTS 180, and the C4 By Loeb. The C4 VTS 180 featured the reputable EW10J4S 2. 0 Litre 16v petrol engine that produced a shade under 180BHP, and was certainly deemed as an entertaining and involved driving experience with it’s revvy (7400 rev limit) engine and Citroen’s usual bells and whistles in terms of specification (including Xenon Headlights, subtle-yet VTS’esque styling, Electric Folding Mirrors, Air Conditioning, Cruise Control, Speed Limiter, Radio/ CD Player (With CD Changer), Rear Parking Sensors, Electronic Stability Program, Climate Control etc).
The C4 By Loeb was marketed as a limited edition of the C4 to celebration the WRC success of Citroen’s infamous rally driver – Sebastian Loeb. There is a plethora of speculated information on the internet and adverts about how many By Loebs were made and sold, however I personally believe that following research it was 1000 cars for England. Either way, this is a rather lowly number for a modern day car and the specification differences certainly made them stand out. Firstly, the By Loeb’s were only available in two colours – Sport Red with White wheels, or Metallic Black with Silver wheels. The Pre-Facelift C4 By Loeb (available from 2005 – 2008) featured subtle C4 By Loeb graphics which adorned the door tops and boot lid, as well as an individual limited edition number too. The inside featured a fantastic interior redesign with striking seats finished in red 3D mesh and accompanying leather and suede touches too. Red stitched door cards, gear stick gaitor, steering wheel and red edged over mats completed the interior and made for an incredibly nice environment to be – a cut above other C4 models.
My reasoning for detailing all of the above is due to the fact that my C4 is in fact a combination of the two above cars – the C4 VTS 180, and the C4 By Loeb. Citroen only produced 5 of these C4 VTS 180 By Loebs, and therefore is the rarest C4 variant that was available on UK soil. The fantastic part of this is that whilst the C4 By Loeb originally missed out on many niceties of the VTS specification, such as the Xenon Headlights and of course the renowned 2. 0 Litre 16v engine, this C4 has the best of both worlds – the sporty VTS set up and high specification, plus the special By Loeb specific refinements of the interior touches and rarity factor too. In comparison, the most powerful engine offered in this era of C4 By Loeb was only a 1. 6 petrol, with 120bhp – thus quite a difference indeed to the 180bhp VTS engine in this car. It is worth noting that in the 6 years of having C4s, I have only ever seen 1 of the 5 VTS 180 By Loeb’s for sale, and therefore this is a very rare opportunity indeed. I had been on the look-out for such a model for many years and luckily, I managed to track this particular car down.
The C4 has been a pleasure to own and drive, however whilst it is an incredibly rare car and I am sure that I will regret selling – reality has kicked in and I have to be realistic. Last year I managed to track down my first C4 By Loeb (my first car which I also took my driving test in), however unfortunately it has not been looked after as well as this C4 has and is certainly a project and requires some TLC. Whilst I have this C4 on the road I realistically cannot see myself getting around to starting the restoration process and with the other C4 holding more sentimental and nostalgic value – I must bite the bullet and let someone else take the reigns of looking after this very special car.
As you can see from the pictures, one can see that the C4 VTS 180 By Loeb is that of a very striking and impressive looking car, finished in it’s Metallic Black paintwork with perfectly contrasting striking red By Loeb interior. Indeed, positive comments are often passed how people are impressed and admire the car, be it from friends or family, or that of fellow enthusiasts.
As previously mentioned, the C4 has been a pleasure to own and drive, and Citroen must be praised for getting the car so 'right' in this form. I had always hankered after this model, and with this being my first I can confirm I was not disappointed and it is a pleasure to drive indeed. It really is a car for all occasions - on the one hand, it can be a fairly sensible cruiser and can rival much larger and so called “executive” cars for longer journeys. On the other hand, if one felt like a more spirited drive was sought after, then the VTS character comes into it’s own with an involved driving experience and feel, direct handling, and accompanying sporty engine and exhaust soundtrack.
One would expect the MPG figures to suffer from the VTS engine however I am pleased to report they do not. I have personally experienced, on a 200 mile trip, average MPG figures of near 40 MPG, which I have always felt as very impressive and begins to rival diesels. General MPG figures are a little lower, however still in the mid 30s MPG, but obviously depending on how driven and journey type etc.
In regards to service history and literature, I am pleased to report that the C4 comes with a folder of old bills and receipts (totalling to over £1000 on there own), and of course the original Service History Book records to which detail that of a very nice service history indeed.
The services that have been carried out include those at the following mileages: 17, 000 Miles, 24, 000 Miles, 35, 000 Miles, 47, 000 Miles, 66, 000 Miles, 86, 000 Miles, and 108, 000 Miles.
As one can tell by the service history detailed above, the C4 has been looked after in it’s lifetime and evidently cherished by it’s owners. Indeed, I had the last service carried out and I must point out that I had the very important Cambelt and Water Pump changed too at the beginning of this year – this is very important on this nature of engine as I am sure you know. As well as this, I had the oil and oil filter changed, new air filter fitted, four new spark plugs, and a brand new engine mounting too. Therefore I obviously happy to report that the C4 always starts first time, every time, does not smoke, and pulls very well through all gears.
I had the C4 MOT'd in February whereby it passed with no advisories, and at this point in time I decided to upgrade the suspension system by treating it to the ever popular and renowned Eibach Pro Springs. These springs slightly lower the ride height of the C4 and are a very popular improvement in C4 circles, and are popular due to retaining an almost identical ride quality, whilst dramatically improving the aesthetics and handling characteristics - Eibach are renowned for being one of the ‘go-to’ upgrades with great quality.
As previously mentioned, the C4 has been a pleasure to own and drive however as with all cars, they have their own slight foibles and as I prefer to be 100% honest and upfront about such I shall obviously detail them here in the description. Starting on the outside, whilst looking rather splendid in the photographs and from a distance there is the odd ‘car park dent’ and slight marks here and there – however, importantly there is nothing majorly horrendous otherwise these would show in the photographs - it is very pleasant looking car with some age-related marks. There are also some slight discolouration/ markings on the alloy wheels too, however once again nothing which would be deemed as horrendous – just not ‘brand new’/’factory fresh’. Also, the very common glovebox handle is U/ S, which is available off eBay for around £5 - I never use the glovebox and something that has not bothered me, or I have gotten around to.
Importantly, whilst as an enthusiast myself I would deem it as a rather nice C4 indeed – please be realistic and expect some age-related marks here and there inside and out commensurate for the age and mileage. However, I am confident that you will not be disappointed, and I welcome all viewings and inspections to satisfy yourself of the condition. This is a very rare opportunity for one of these cars to come to market and one that I feel will not happen again for a good while.
I have tried to be as detailed as I can in this advert description, however if you have any further questions about the C4 then please do not hesitate to contact me, of if you would prefer to have a chat on the phone that is fine too.
Collection is from March, in Cambridgeshire, PE15 - there is a train station here which I am happy to collect you from if needed.
As mentioned, any questions, just ask.
Thanks.
