(Thu 20 May 10)

As a general rule, manufacturers let older models fade out of sight without much comment. Citroen, however, is making a bigger deal of the fact that the Xsara Picasso has finally been withdrawn from the UK market.

It has had quite a history. First revealed at the Geneva Show back in 1999, it became very popular among owners who realised they wanted this sort of thing in their lives - more than 270,000 were eventually sold in this country - and was the first step towards Citroen considering itself as largely a builder of SUVs rather than conventional cars. The launch of the C4 Picasso in January 2007 did not kill off the Xsara version, which Citroen continued to sell as a cheap alternative for a further three years.

Sales have recently fallen to the sort of levels you might expect of a ten-year old design, however, and there is the added factor that people wanting to pay sub-C4 Picasso money can now buy a C3 Picasso instead. Right-hand drive models of the Xsara are the first to go, and all production will cease over the next couple of months. There won't be a wake, but we did ask.

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