CITROEN ZX 5 Doors 1996-1997 Photos, engines & full specs

Citroen refreshed the ZX lineup for the last time in 1996, and the five-door version was still the main selling version of the compact-segment vehicle.

Even after six years on the market, the ZX was appealing to the customers, but its design started to pale away as the bio-design trend started to get more and more followers. The Golf was the car to beat, and Opel was also among the sales winners. Then, Citroen made its last move and added some final touches that managed to keep the ZX image fresh.

While the car's front was still similar to the 1994 model, its overall look received a big boost by painting the door-handles and mirrors in body-color as the rest of the car. Most other vehicles on the market, including the Golf, had those elements black. Depending on the trim level, it featured fog lights. Just like the Opel/Vauxhall Astra, it showed three side windows in the five-door version, with a very raked-forward line for the last row.

The car was very advanced for its era and even had a sunroof, power windows, and standard power steering. Power windows and air conditioning were available; moreover, a radio-cassette player was fitted as standard from the second trim level up. Citroen introduced ABS and a driver airbag as standard features for upper trim levels to increase the safety factor.

Under the hood, Citroen installed a choice of six engines, both gasoline and diesel. The latter was available with a turbocharged version that provided 90 hp, which was the second-quickest version from ZX's lineup.