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I thought I'd just like to say that the Peugeot 206cc that we bought after getting our money back from the Pluriel has been trouble free after two and a half years and just over twenty thousand miles. No lock ins, no boot randomly locking itself, the alarm doesn't go off randomly, the doors fit, it doesn't leak, bits of dashboard aren't hanging off and you can put the roof up and down, something that never worked on the Pluriel. The dealer, Blacklers in Torquay, couldn't be better, they answer the phones, you can speak to them, they don't run and hide, and I'm sure if I wrote them a letter they would reply to it instead of ignoring it! I still like the Pluriel and with some of the current second-hand prices I could be tempted with a basic model.............cheap enough and with no fancy extras might be worth it....

Yes that's it. I had so many problems with the car that we had our money back and we bought a 206CC which has been trouble-free. I sold the gear-stick on ebay. I bought it on ebay and I made a profit. It did look smart, it just didn't fit properly. It is quite expensive so maybe the garage will show you one fitted.

The 206cc doesn't have a spare wheel and has the squirty aerosols but if you have to use them you have to change the tyre......... I wasn't happy about not having a spare wheel but my wife said there is no way she'd change a wheel or even know how to do it, and I guess she's not alone. I put an electric pump in the boot as the most likely scenario is a flat caused by a nail when you get back to the car in the car-park and a pump-up is sufficient to get to a garage or get you home. I certainly wouldn't go without comprehensive breakdown cover; if you're over 50 like me, comprehensive european cover from Saga is £85.

Since I started off this topic! Just to say I bought a 206cc 1.6 Allure, nearly a year ago and have not regretted it. We had some torrential rain in the first week and the roof leaked (not again I thought!) but the Dealer had it in for 2 days and it's been no trouble since, and we've had some pretty heavy rain! No other problems and we've done nearly 10k miles. My wife did start the engine while the roof was in mid travel and it just stayed there but there's a comprehensive description of how to close it manually in the handbook and it wasn't a problem; once it was shut it knew where it was and has been fine since. A quick rub round with some rubber lubricant on the window rubbers once a month cures any rattles, although I've not really had any. I'd certainly have another, probably the diesel.

Having owned a 206cc for nearly a year now we've had no problems whatsoever with it apart from a leak in the first week quickly fixed by the dealer, Blacklers of Torquay, and considering the downpours we've had he did a good job! I do miss the Pluriel with the random lock-ins, the boot that refuses to open, the random car-alarms, the doors that don't shut, the roof that won't go back and the dealer that doesn't care.......... All I've had is a year of care-free open top motoring with a roof that can be closed with the touch of a button if it rains..............I agree about the leather seats though, not something I would have wanted but they are standard fitment, not so bad when you can close the roof so easily. Oh, and I was told recently that the dealer now has a sign up saying that if you aren't totally happy with your new car within 30 days you can have your money back (as opposed to the nearly a year that it took me) so maybe I did achieve something!

Jenny, The recovery driver locked in the vehicle is a gift for the newspaper, they will bite your hands off for it. All documented with witnesses.......wow!

I am indeed the expert on being locked inside your car !!! You could (almost) always open the window and open it from outside as I ably demonstrated on Westcountry News.................(top item!!! pace of life is slower in the westcountry) It did speed up Citroen and they fitted new software a few weeks later which cured it; not as far as I know a recall, only if you complain. That was back in July so probably standard by now; affects C3s and C5s with the alarm. When I started one cold morning the clock reset so they fitted a bigger battery. They never fixed the alarm going off randomly. We now have a 206cc, the cheapest 1.6 Allure, no fancy gizmos but it comes with pearlescent paint, white leather seats and alloy wheels AND the roof goes up and down, something I was never able to do with the Pluriel. Had to put £1000 to the money we had back on our Pluriel 1.6 senso with air-con. Yes, we did look at the Tigra Twin-top but my wife cosidered it ugly and we have squeezed 4 adults into the 206cc!!!! (not recommended) This is our first Peugeot; we've had different Citroens over the last 20 years or so.......and one month on no problems........

My Dealer couldn't wait to get the cheque into my hand. It was the Dealer who wrote the cheque, I think all Citroen UK did was to tell them to sort it. Try a bit of publicity; worked for me. Nice picture of you sitting in the car with your wellies on and a sou'wester on your head should do it!

As I said my Dealer didn't reply to letters. phone calls or personal visits. I hand-delivered letters quoting the law but to no avail. I'm a Which? subscriber so you can use their legal service (£9.95 every 3 months I think) for telephone advice. Maybe I was unlucky but when you can't discuss the problem with anyone it gets very difficult!

Slightly different scenario to yours. The newspaper interviewed my neighbours about the alarm going off constantly and then asked the Dealer to comment. The Dealer phoned me offering a cheque immediately if I stopped the article. It took a day or two to organise as it was our only car but I got the full purchase price I paid in November, around £13k. I didn't ask for compensation, considering the wicked depreciation. The car is on their forecourt at just over £10k (losing £3k in 9 months) We did like it a lot. On the occassions they loaned us a car we took down the top and it was great fun (we were unable to do this on ours as the back window never, ever went back into place!!!) We've been looking at the Peugeot 206cc which suffers hardly any depreciation and although they've had problems and unhappy owners it hasn't unduly affected second-hand prices. Hard to see how Citroen got it so wrong, maybe something in the way they deal with problems? The Pluriel should have been a car in demand that held it's price. My 18 year love-affair with Citroens has now ended.

I would agree with all that Ian has said; I took photographs and documented everything. The problem with engaging a solicitor and taking it to court is that you are not automatically awarded the legal costs. I also found Trading Standards unwilling to get involved as were the credit card company. The Dealer did not reply to letters and would not discuss the matter, Citroen UK refered me back to the Dealer. The Dealer had ISO9000 accreditation for customer service but they didn't seem to follow the complaints procedure in the statement on their showroom wall. My only choice was to discuss it in the media and you will need documentary proof as they will put it through their legal people. I was told that just threatening them with the media would have been enough...........it wasn't. They didn't like it though!!!!!!!

We loved ours and it was such a shame that it had so many problems that we had our money back after 10 months. I agree there are a lot about but that may be because of the low price rather than whether they have problems or not. You may be willing to forgive the poor quality at the lower price. I was a bit tempted by this one on ebay though......at that price I could have foregone the warranty and the hassle with a main dealer and had any problems fixed by an independent. http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?Vie...=ADME:B:WN:UK:1

Now that my Dealer has refunded my money for my 1.6 Sensodrive with air-con what should I buy? I've looked at a Peugeot 206cc but I've been told some real horror stories about leaking roofs; although I'm not sure if it only applies to the earliest cars. I also looked at the Renault (Rubbish) Megane coupe-cabriolet, more expensive and larger. Delivery looks like 3 -6 months but is it too early to know about any problems. Maybe I should wait for the Ford and Nissan "tin-tops"? Any comments?

Thanks for the vote for Howards. Several people recommended them to me. We loved our Pluriel but our neighbours were keeping a log of the times that the alarm went off, 9 times in one week! The dealer has given us our money back and we visited Howards to look at a Peugeot 206cc.

There is a software update which solves it (and "corrects some other problems", although I've never found out what they were) After my "lock-in" appearance on Westcountry TV it focussed Citroen's mind, before that I was treated a bit like I was making it up (a bit like some of my existing problems). I've had the software over 2 months and the boot hasn't locked itself and refused to open and I've not been locked in. Apparently it isn't a recall so there is no record on the fuse-box cover. I never had a proper reason as to why my car constantly locked me in, although I know people who've been locked in the ordinary C3 and in the C5. Probably should be a recall, it's pretty frightening when you get locked in; the lady I know who was locked in her C5 was absolutely terrified. Probably Citroen quietly update it at a service or when you complain you've been locked in! With 20k service intervals who wants to wait to be locked in? :o

Unfortunately Ian, I had intended to take it to the Citroen Dealer in Taunton however they could not accept it as many of the problems had been reported to my dealer in Exeter who had agreed the repair with Citroen, done it (albeit unsuccessfully) and been paid. The dealer in Taunton therefore could not be paid by Citroen to do a repair which they had paid the dealer in Exeter for. I took this up with Citroen UK but with no joy. Most of the problems date back to just after we had the car in November; I agree with your conclusion though......

Unlike others, I have a Dealer who doesn't reply to letters, return phone calls and is too busy to see me. As Citroen UK refer me back to the Dealer it is very hard to get a resolution, even after 2 newspaper articles and a TV appearance. Here's a list of the problems we've had in our Pluriel bought Nov 03, in no particular order, some still not resolved: Delivered with door trim hanging off, mirror plastic covers broken and steering column not together (photos available!) Delivered with Ultrasonic alarm disable button not fitted on dashboard. Alarm going off randomly (reported in December and still not fixed) Rain leaking into the boot. Rear seats did not clip correctly into place (boot contents flew into car on braking, several visits and then it was adjusted correctly) Passenger door not shutting properly (initially told to lean on door to shut it, eventually after several visits the engineer was sent for training and adjusted it correctly) Sharp edges on boot-lid (my wife cut her hand) Rusty boot-lid Black grease leaking out of the back window and over our clothes (trim replaced after several visits) CD player faulty and had to be replaced. Clock reset on starting (bigger battery fitted) Constantly being locked in (more than 22 times, countless visits before it was resolved) Boot that locked itself and refused to open (several visits) Seats that did not adjust properly Boot that did not lock properly so roof could no be removed (part has just arrived 18th August and fitted, still not correct) Fixing strap on tonneau cover snapped on first use on loan car (strap too short, unable to test replacement cover as we have been unable to remove roof on ours) Roof leaking, passenger and driver side (not fixed) Classed by Citroen as a "slight leak" Ticking noise from the dashboard (loud enough to be commented on by visitors travelling in the backon a trip from Taunton back to Exeter) (not fixed) Sensodrive problem. When reversing up a slope the car loses grip and hurtles forwards. (not fixed) I can see no will on Citroen's part to resolve these issues, which is frankly very sad.

I've got it!!!! Really annoying, like a geiger counter on the dashboard. Not always there but when it is it sounds like static on the radio making it impossible to hear. Unlike yours, my dealer will not do anything until I demonstrate the problem to him and on the one occassion I tried, it was present, but quiet. On a recent trip back from Taunton to Exeter it was commented on by the back-seat passengers, it was that loud. You would think that after the episode of the "locking-in" which they wouldn't do anything about until I brought it in in a "locked-in" state during normal servicing hours and I ended up demostrating it in a "locked-in" state on Westcountry News, the main news program for the south-west, that maybe they would believe me.......but no, I'm still a liar! Like yours mine is a 1.6 sensodrive with the air-conditioning Any others? Most apparent in mine at speed on the motorway (50 mph +) but can be at any speed, any time.

Mine has X11 for the sensodrive but I know the main software was updated to stop the "locking-in" . It's going in on Friday as they have finally got the boot-switch for the boot not locking problem I told them about in March so I'll ask them about the codes written on the fuse-box. No one has yet to give me a satisfactory answer as to why my car locked me in over 20 times and other people had no problem. I've also been contacted by people locked in C3s and C5s.

It is a pity they removed my claim to fame! I'll see if I can get it re-instated as Yeomans, Exeter still haven't resolved the problems (awaiting parts!!!!) It did however speed up the new software so the car hasn't locked me in since (the mechanic told me that the problem was in C3s and C5s as well as pluriels) With the recent rain my roof leaked, it didn't before. I haven't been able to remove the roof (dealer awaiting parts.....), and I supposedly had the seals replaced. It is dripping at the join with the front section to the roof bars and I notice the newer cars have an extra lip there. Had Citroen replaced the car when I requested a replacement in November, 2 days after I bought it, they would have saved themselves thousands of pounds in repairs and not had 2 newspaper articles, top news item on Westcountry news, articles on top gear and honest john's websites etc............

The Pluriel aluminium gearstick doesn't fit properly. It sits about 1 cm above the console (sufficient to get your fingers underneath). When you compare the length with the normal gearstick it is indeed about 1 cm shorter. If Citroen can't make a simple gearstick that fits you can see why they have such problems making a whole car.... If anyone knows how to add a photo I will.