Igloo_Vindaloo

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Hi Peter, Welcome to the forums. I just read your webpage - it's shocking service from a main dealer. My advise would be to try to get your money back if you're not satisfied with the car. If you can put up with it, take it do a local independent Citroen specialist. They're usually better than the main dealers, always cheaper and don't invalidate your warranty (whatever some people may tell you). There are loads of them around - which says something of the standards of service you can expect from Citroen main dealers. Where are you? Maybe someone here can recommend an independent.

I don't have a Pluriel, but I do wonder whether there is any point in carrying a spare wheel these days. I bet most people* can't/don't/wont change them at the roadside, and will just call out a rescue organisation. Let them carry them and save our valuable boot space and fuel. *Not the members of this forum, I'm sure! Tim

Well, I was afraid it might be like the Citroen manual, which basically puts a seal over the bonnet release switch which says: No User Serviceable Parts Inside Or Warranty Void if Seal Broken :D Tim

That's right. You can even do it on the fly, and don't have to reboot the car. But you have to remember not to try this when viewing the trip mileage, as this will just reset it. Very handy for driving on the continent, so thanks for the tip. Cheers

Thanks organist, I tried sticking some old deflectors on with PVA, but they didn't survive the 1st rain storm. So I tried masking off the lower drivers' side of the headlamps. Judging by the retaliatory flashes I received when driving at night I didn't do a very good job, though. Someone told me there was a switch under the bonnet on some Citroen's to switch over automatically, but I didn't spot anything of the sort when perusing the manual. Cheers

Hi I'm off to France tomorrow and want to stick some old beam benders (headlamp deflectors) on the headlamps. Anyone have a picture/guidance to where to stick them? Cheers Tim

:o Maybe it's a "safety" feature? Does applying the handbrake keep the engine off?

Amazon are now taking pre-orders of the Citroen C3 Haynes manual with a publication date of 15 August. Shame - that is when we're on holiday - hope the car doesn't break down then! :o

Is it just a drawer for storing CDs, then?

Yes - I just press TA to go back to what I was listening to. However, it is still annoying to be continually switched over the a "Traffic Announcement" for only a second or two. These just seem to be false triggers that I would like to reduce. Thanks also for the useful links, Ian. My symptoms sound like the ones decribed below: However, I get these brief interruptions even when listening to CDs or tapes. Could be I just need to fiddle with the radio's settings. But I don't like to do this while driving...

What is a CD Draw? I put a CD changer (from eBay) in the 2nd DIN slot below the radio/cassette. The C3 had to be reprogrammed by a main dealer (£25) to recognise it. But now I'm very pleased with it - although the CD's keep being interupted by "Traffic Announcements" which are only a few seconds long and nothing to do with traffic. This goes away if I turn off TA, but so do the real announcements. Is there a way to set the sensitivity of the TA switch?

I got a C3 1.4HDi (8v) in January, having done 68kmiles - at first the clutch seemed a little abrupt giving jerky take-offs and many stalls. I put it down to being an HDi engine with less torque at the bottom end than I'm used to. Previously I ran older Peugeot non-HDi diesel engined cars, which hardly ever stalled and needed no 'throttle' to go. Then again, they didn't exactly go! 3000 miles and 6 months later, it's still like that and I haven't adjusted my driving style - so I still stall it. Maybe the clutch is on it's way out? <_< Cheers Tim

That's so funny :lol: Looks like it happens automatically when you type Renault (Rubbish). Let's try a few typos: Renualt Rennault Renno They get through OK, so all you have to do is deliberately mispell it (unless you think they are rubbish!)

Only the L version of the C3 meets Euro IV with the 1.4HDi engine. All the other HDi engined ones are Euro III. (Source: http://www.vcacarfueldata.org.uk/downloads/latest.asp, but they don't have the 1.6HDi listed yet. Although Citroen.co.uk say the 1.4HDi 70bhp Sensodrive is also Euro IV. Any idea what they did to the L version to get it through Euro IV? Cheers,

I hadn't seen that - it's not on Citroen's website yet. I guess it's the same engine they now put in the Picasso, but it still begs the question of WHY? Why put in a bigger, heavier engine in a C3 when the current ones have more than enough power (at least for a tepid hatch).

Here are my averages miles per gallon from my wifes and my previous cars, typically used for a mix of long distance driving and commuting 10-40 miles in the SE. 1986 Austin Metro 1.0L manual petrol: 45mpg (from memory) 1986 Rover Mini 1.0 manual petrol: 44mpg (from memory) 1989 Peugeot 205 GLD manual diesel: 55mpg (a good one) 1993 Ford Fiesta 1.0 manual petrol: 49mpg (suprisingly good) 1994 Peugeot 306 XLd manual diesel: 50mpg (a pig of a Pug) 1993 Rover Mini Sprite 1275 manual petrol: 40mpg (but fun!) 2003 Ciroen C3 LX 1.4 HDi 8v manual diesel: 64mpg (nice!) I have pledged never to buy a car that is less economical than the one it replaces*. And I would encourage everyone to do the same. (But some of these were exempt, as they were given to me - so I didn't buy them! ) *I have since revised this to always buy a car with lower CO2 emissions than the one it replaces. Cheers, Tim

jazzster, I'm suprised the manual C3 came out lower than the Honda Jazz. But not suprised the Rover 25 did poorly - they are renowned as gas-guzzlers (though the diesels weren't so bad). How do you figures compare with the official (urban/extra-urban/combined) figures? They all seem a bit low to me - perhaps you should get your right foot adjusted :angry: .

I can also vouch for the C3's crash rating, if not the quality of it's head restraints. Some silly cow went into the back of us, while waiting at a roundabout. "My foot slipped off the brake" :angry: Although the impact shunted us forward a few feet, the rear bumper did it's job. It only looked like a couple of cracks on the outside, but the garage said it had to be replaced as the impact had weakened its honeycomb structure. Easy insurace job (once DVLA told traced the driver of the other vehicle, after I lost her details :blink: ). You should have seen her (1994?) Toyota Corolla though - bumper bent, bonnet crumpled, etc. Not sure about the head restraints though. I was the passenger and got a stiff neck and bad headaches for a few days. My wife was driving, and she's still suffering 2 months later. They say those with more slender necks are more vulnerable. But I say it was because she was leaning forward to peer around the dangerously obstructive door pillars. (All in the name of "safety"!). Cheers, Tim

Jon, You could try removing the filler cap before trying to start it. Some vehicle seal this too tightly, causing a partial vacuum to build up in the tank, apparently. Or it could just be the sludge/vegetable oil settling to the bottom of the tank making it harder to start :blink: Cheers, Tim

Hi Has anyone actually got a Stop & Start C3? Or even driven one? I'm just curious.

Have you ever checked them? The only check I've made is ever time I pass a speed camera ;) But I have noticed that other cars seem to slow down more for them... :blink:

Thanks for your suggestion, Lee. Andy was indeed most helpful: Cheers, Tim

Hi I'm considering getting a CD changer (Part No 9473SS) to add to my lowly radio/cassette. Anyone know whether it's a simple DIY job to install? Or do I need to pay a Citroen main dealer through the nose to 'enable the software'? Cheers, Tim

Personally, I find these bright bluish lights very distracting (on other peoples' cars!). Not only when they hit you square on and dazzle you (which fortunately doesn't happen very often), but even when viewed from oblique angles. I've no idea why that should be, other than the fact that they're just brighter. I find the standard lamps on the C3 to be quite powerful enough for me (albeit inefficient). But, then again, I don't mind driving at night. Maybe brighter lights would help some people who find it a problem...? Tim