dobbin

Cheers for your answer Pork Pie, Thats what it says in the manual, but my controls don't have a 6 o'clock position? Its not that I'm desparate for them, but I think if they advertise the car with them, then they should put them on! I expect there is some small print that says they can do what they like and change the spec, and that annoys me. As I have previously had a wing mirror broken off (my Pug 106) by someone and it cost a lot for a new one, it would be nice if they folded away like they are supposed to.

I think my C3 Exclusive is supposed to have electric folding door mirrors that fold in when you switch the car off. It doesn't have them. Does anyone else have these? Have they been taken off the spec? Can I insist that they fit them? Are they any good anyway? Cheers for any advice.

The excuse was that they ordered enough glow-plugs, but that only one was delivered. Apparently they come in packs of ten, so they ordered one (pack), but only one individual plug arrived. I told them I didn't care whose fault it was, it had still happened and simply wasn't good enough. I have now had a personal apology from the Managing Director, and each department manager (parts, service, reception etc) has called me to say they will keep in touch to tell me what they are doing to fix it. I told them that they need to sort this *very* quickly and *very* well or there will be a Court Summons instead of a Christmas Card this year. Incidently, I had a Christmas Card from them yesterday, together with vouchers to use if I want to recommend them to family and friends! Laugh? I almost cried! Perhaps I should make some recommendation vouchers of my own using the photo of my 3 day old C3 on the back on a RAC truck. ( Its not only Citroen who are incompetent though. My Dad's fancy new Clio arrived yesterday after a 8 week wait to have it specially built to order. It had five doors instead of the three that he ordered. Oh dear!)

Just heard that the dealer only ordered one glowplug when they needed four, so its going to be in for at least another day while they order more. You'd have thought that given the fact that I forced them to replace my previous car in the end, that they'd take more care keeping me happy this time. Nope. This one is definitely heading for the local paper I think. Until now I've given the dealer the benefit of the doubt but its about time they had some bad publicity I think. I'm fed up with them :)

That makes more sense - more 'grunt' for the same speed, rather than more revs for the same speed. :)

Surely higher revs for the same speeds would require a mechanical change in the gearbox rather than just a software upgrade? I guess it might be something to do with the amount of fuel being injected per cycle.

I wouldn't contemplate a C4 for that very reason Jenny. It sounds good but like the Pluriel it is unproven. I thought I'd be safe with a C3 but I was wrong. I now feel I cannot recommend Citroen in any way to anyone and I doubt if I will be having another one (if I have a choice). My car is not yet a week old and is awaiting new glow-plugs in the workshop. What a shame. I think it might be nearly time to give my story to the local press and hope they will publish a story to embarrass the dealer. They don't deserve my goodwill anymore.

I picked up my C3 HDI Exclusive on Friday as a replacement to my leaky Pluriel after a year of 'negotiations' with Citroen. I thought it was a great car but a couple of warning lamps have now come on and it had just been taken away by Citroen Assist (RAC) :) Have already spoken to one of the directors at the dealership and told them in no uncertain terms that they need to sort this out pronto or I'll be having another new car off them. Citroen Assist tried to charge me £200 as a deposit for a hire car but that didn't work. They don't know me as well as the dealer who have just dispatched someone to deliver a courtesy car to me. Thank God I've got a good dealer, at least they get things done when I make a fuss.

I'm usually happy help anyone Jenny, but I'm afraid these Citroens seem to be so unreliable that I really don't want to tempt fate by trying to replicate your fault. I hope that this turns out to be a one off and that this does not happen to you again.

Well, it looks like another pluriel has bitten the dust. After just over a year, and on the *fifth* official request from my dealer, Citroen have agreed to replace my leaky pluriel. I am having to pay a small amount towards the new car (C3 Hdi 16V exclusive) but this is the best deal I could get without going to Court. I think I've done pretty well out of the deal. I want to say thanks to all the people on this forum. The support of coming here and reading of other people's success has kept me going through thick and thin. I will post full details in a few days when I definitely have the keys to my new car in my hand! I have 15 pages (small type) of diary of my story and I hope this may encourage others to keep trying for a replacement. Don't ever give up if you have a leaky car - you WILL get a new one eventually. :) :D :( :D :D :D :D :D :D :D :D :D :D :D :D

I still like my pluriel, despite the fact that I have spent 10 months trying to get it fixed and I am currently trying to get a refund/replacement. It is a great little car when the sun shines, (and sometimes when it rains if you're lucky). My main piece of advice would be to GET EVERYTHING IN WRITING as this will help you in the future if things go wrong. With my next car, I will follow up every phone call/service/repair/recall/fix/warranty work etc with a letter asking for documentation of what has been done to my car. This is so that I have a confirmed record of what has happened rather than verbal promises from a service technician that "the seals have been fixed" when they have not. Good luck, I hope your Pluriel is better than mine.

Glad to hear you are having some success Gar. Do you mind me asking how you went about consulting a solicitor and how much it cost you? I have been reluctant to go down that route until all other methods have failed. I think I am close to issuing Citroen an ultimatum of sort it out, or I will take the matter to a court. Of course, I'd need a Solicitor for that. Did you get your solicitor to write to them, or did you just use the solicitors advice to draft your own letter? Did you tell Citroen that you were involving a solicitor? Cheers for any more info you are prepared to share. Have a good weekend - it might be your last opportunity to get the roof off and enjoy your Pluriel. Not sure if that is good or bad news!

If its the same as my C3 Pluriel, once you have turned the engine off and removed your keys, you simply pull the light stalk switch - as if you were flashing your main beam while driving. The headlights will then come on for about a minute. To start with I used to wait by my front door for them to go off as I worried they would stay on my battery would go flat. They always do go off though...

Mine is still leaking despite repeated attempts at repair. I’m currently trying to get a replacement but sadly I will not be getting another Pluriel if I can help it. I’m going to have to downgrade to a standard C3. I still love the Pluriel, but I’m fed up with the hassle of constantly chasing the dealer with problems, taking it in for repair work, driving round sitting on a towel etc etc. My dealer claims that they have successfully fixed several leaky Pluriels and that mine is the only one that still leaks. I have no way of knowing if this is really the case though. They’ve been saying that since last Christmas so I have my doubts!

I understand that it is possible that some cars come off the production line slightly "skew". By this I mean that some of the panels, windscreen pillars, doors, roof arches, etc are not in the perfect alignment that the design requires. This is very common on most cars, particularly soft tops and early production runs of a new model. A fault of maybe 2-3mm (very possible on some cars) could make a huge difference in the fitting of the roof seals. If this is the problem, it is unlikely that it will ever be solved by technicians refitting new seals or "refitting the arches correctly" which seem to be Citroen's solutions to this.

Actually, I do think its been completely full when the light has not worked. I always fill it right up, and let it cut out a couple of times and then still keep going to the next full litre to get an extra Morrisons Miles point! :-) As for the other end when its empty, they are definitely cautious with the gauge. Whenever I borrow a car from the dealer (quite often as my car is always with them) I always make sure I take it back as empty as possible. Each time I try to be a bit more daring. I once did 35 miles after the "15 miles left" had disappeared. Hence I was 20 miles over the range. That was on a standard C3 though, not a Pluriel. Apologies if any of you borrowed that car after me!!!

Never been a problem for me, although the top bar of the petrol gauge sometimes doesn't light. Not sure if this is a sensor fault or a light fault. As its only the top bar it doesn't really bother me at all.

When my pluriel 1.4 was new I used to average about 38mpg. Its now done nearly 10000 miles and it averages about 44mpg. I think this is the same for most new cars.

I would recommend calling your dealer. I think when they plug their computer into the Pluriels computer at the next service, they can download a list of all the warnings that have been displayed. In the worst case scenario they could accuse you of ignoring a warning, which may invalid the warranty. Its got to be worth a call at least.

They cleverly never said waterproof. I have checked in the original brochure that I have, and it says this: "Sometimes it the little details that really count. Whether you choose the C3 Pluriel 1.4i model with 'Geo' or the 1.6i model featuring '3d Apiculla', the upholstery has been especially developed to be weather proof". Actually, I think its the big details that *REALLY* count, like having a roof that doesn't leak.

gar200 - do you think it is probably coincidence that your arches didn’t leak when the dealer fitted them rather than anything special about how they did it? I don't know the details of course, but thats what I would guess. In any case, it shouldn’t be a difficult procedure or the whole point of the car is lost. However, I have noticed that the latest seals make the arches harder to fit as there seem to be more rubber flappy bits that seem to make a tighter seal. However mine still leaks as badly as ever! As for the price that Citroen will refund/exchange, I don’t know what to say! ClareB - have you been told that you will have to "pay" the RRP for the replacement? I paid £10,695 for my Pluriel and therefore if my exchange request is granted then I will expect to have £10,695 to put towards whatever replacement I choose, and I expect to get a good deal at whatever the going rate is today. Anything less that this and I will insist on a full refund. After all, I am the one who has been severely disadvantaged by having a faulty product for 8 months! Its not like they are doing me a favour by replacing the car – its my basic legal right to receive what I paid for (in 100% working order) or have my money returned to me in full. In actual fact, I don’t expect my dealer to try to pull a fast one as they have been very good about the whole process so far. Citroen UK might try something (via the dealer) but they will get a very short answer from me if they do. If that happens then I will be forced to go down the legal route, but I am very much hoping to avoid that. I don’t think Citroen want to go down that route either as they don’t have a leg to stand on.

Sorry to hear this Gar200. That must be REALLY annoying. My dealer is very confident that the new pluriels do not leak, but I did not 100% believe them, and now I am even more skeptical. I guess they have to say that, as they couldn't ever publicly admit they cannot solve the problem. If my exchange request is successful (there'll be serious trouble if it isn't!!) then I think I am going to ask for a standard C3 instead. Its a shame, but I don't want to go down the same route again of spending more time at the dealership than at home (thats me, not just the car!). Good luck with whatever you decide to do next.

The best way to stop mine leaking is to take the roof and arches off and use the rain cover tonneau. Ironic that its more watertight without the roof than with it! This is no good for driving of course......

Glad to hear that some of you have been successful with exchanges and are now happy with your new pluriels. I'm currently going down this route but cannot decide if to risk another pluriel or go for a standard C3 instead. Do you really believe the water leaks are fixed? I recently had the new chunkier seals with the extra channels fitted on my Pluriel, and it leaked the very next day. The technicians checked the fitting for me and it leaked again the day after that. Hence the dealer has applied to Citroen on my behalf for an exchange . PS. Ian - I don' think its quite fair to say the value halves as it looks like you can now get a deal on a new Pluriel for about £2K less than the list price. So if you can buy a 1.4 for ~£10K and its *guaranteed* value in 2 years is ~£6.5K then I don't think that is too bad.