History Of The Berlingo

[northman]

I gather that the Berlingo first appeared in 1996.

 

I also gather that the Berlingo (Multispace) went on sale in the UK in 1998.

 

 

So - my questions

 

1) When did the Berlingo first go on sale in France?

 

2) Did the van and the Multispace come out at the same time there?

 

3) Did the van and the Multispace come out at the same time in the UK?

 

4) Any idea which month in 1998 the Multispace went on sale in the UK?

[tronboy]

 

1) When did the Berlingo first go on sale in France? 

 

2) Did the van and the Multispace come out at the same time there?

 

3) Did the van and the Multispace come out at the same time in the UK?

 

4) Any idea which month in 1998 the Multispace went on sale in the UK?

Answers:

1) July/August 1996

 

2) No

 

3) No

 

4) June 1998 as a limited edition. It was available only as a 3-door 1.8i and came with colour coded bumpers and fittings, electric windows, stereo radio/cassette with security code, central locking, colour co-ordinated seats, carpets and seatbelts, full-length electric sunroof designed and made by Webasto (the largest they ever made) and a price tag of £12,999. All sold with no discounts. (interestingly an AA road test on my old car, S197 TYC, proclaimed £12,999 to be good value!) It was available in blue, green or red, all metallic colours. It was originally to be called the 'Fun Wagon' in the UK, but wisely adopted the French 'Multispace' moniker.

 

After a short pause in production, the car was adopted into the mainstream range with a drop in price, a greater colour choice, grey bumpers and basic kit: No electrics, wind-up windows and a choice of petrol or 1.9D engines. All luxury equipment previously fitted became extra cost options, and ABS and air-con became available. In France a nearside rear sliding door became available, but this was never offered in the UK. The last 3-door UK cars were issued in 1999-W.

 

TronX

[northman]

Thanks for that. Much appreciated.

 

One suspects that as it is basically a 10 year old design, an all new model must not be too far away.

[tronboy]

It's in the pipeline.

 

The Dispatch/Scudo/Expert vans which debuted about the same time as the 'Lingo have just been replaced. We get them early next year. There will be very little fuss made over the launch of the new Berlingo, since it's a commercial vehicle. Multispace versions will probably follow the van rather than be released at the same time.

[Oxymoron]

Hi,

The new C4 Picasso looks like a nice car, so hopefully the new Berlingo will be a good'un too!

Commercial vehicles seem to have a longer shelf life than family saloons though....And the replacements seem to take longer to emerge.

Cheerz. :blink:

[tronboy]

Commercial vehicles seem to have a longer shelf life than family saloons though....And the replacements seem to take longer to emerge.

Cheerz. :blink:

You're not wrong there!

 

Witness the C15

http://www.2cauto.hu/images/modell/c15/main.jpg

which started life in 1978 as the Visa!

http://www.citroencarclub.org.uk/PostNuke/modules/ContentExpress/img_repository/visa-pig-340.jpg

 

It's not only Citroen.... Remember the Austin Cambridge?

http://www.co-oc.org/Green%20A55.gif

 

....which soldiered on in van form until 1971, until the replacement saloon ended its production run!

[Oxymoron]

Hi,

Hopefully the Berlingo wont soldier on as long as the Visa/C15 :blink: !

I don't know what to replace our Berlingo with and was hoping that a new model would arrive before we decide to change!

All the latest mpv type cars are too expensive and the van derived cars such as the Diabolical and Renault (Rubbish) (Rubbish) Renault (Rubbish) (Rubbish) Renault (Rubbish) (Rubbish) Kang(ar)oo are horrible!!

Now if the new C4 Picasso was going to be cheaper.....!

 

http://www.theautochannel.com/news/2006/08/03/017049.2-lg.jpg

The older Xsara Picasso is still being made and is quite cheap, but it doesn't have the charm of the Berlingo !

[DickieG]

Oi, don't have a go at the C15, I had two of them and would still have one if it had seats in the back (for the missus :blink: as the dog sits in the front :P)

 

By the way the missus doesn't look like the picture :D

[tronboy]

I love C15s!!

 

Here's an article about the new Pug Expert and pic of the MPV version. Citroen Dispatch and Fiat Scudo versions also expected.