I\'m thinking of buying a C3 1.4 Hdi 16v diesel but I\'m getting increasingly jittery by the amount of bad experiences people are having not just with them but with Citroen (French for lemon!). Take a look at this website, freespace.virgin.net/citroen.c3 Spooky stuff eh?
HJ tested one and sang its praises, but I think his was the 1.4Hdi 8v 70 Bhp jobber.
Can anyone restore my confidence? Thank goodness that the new \'Sale and Supply of Goods to Consumers Regulations 2002\' came into force on 31 Mar 03. Doesn\'t help the poor chap at the above website though.
Regards,
Alf
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I've had my C3 HDI 16v for six weeks and 1,200 miles. No problems at all, not even an annoying squeak! The only dissapointment is it's only doing 57mpg up to now. I'm hoping that this is due to a tight engine.
Reggie
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I bought mine end of July last year, one of the 1st 16v in the country, now after 21,000 miles I can honestly say that it is one of the best small performance cars on the market.
Fuel consumption started at about 65 ish but is now up to 72 to 73. I am canstantly amazed by the performance and roadholding that I experience when thrashing around the country. There are many bigger petrol cars that are surprised when they try to overtake the "little" car ahead!
Would buy another tomorrow and an trying to persuade the girlfriend to swap her BMW 325 TDS SE for one.
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My wife bought one about three weeks back.
No initial problems whatsoever, now clocked about 1700 miles and it seems great.
Moduboard is worth the 50 quid they charge you if it is not the Exclusive which has it as standard equipment.
Rumour has it there is about to be an interior revamp plus a computer. (Can hardly wait! - Irony mode off)
One guy on a Citroen Forum somewhere does seem to have had a very bad time with his, but he looks like an isolated case.
Buy it with confidence I say
Rob
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Madman, are you sure you are getting 71/73 mpg, because I've just filled up again and it has done 56.6mpg, that being alot of town work but with 100 miles of "A" road and 70 miles of motorway. Have I bought a heavy oil guzzling pup or do you think that I have not thrashed it, sorry, run it in properly yet? Shortwing Rob, do you know what MPG you are getting?
Without wishing to divert this thread, can any other C3 16v HDI owners let me know their MPG, as mine is going for service next week and if it is poor by other peoples standards, I'll bring it up with the Service Dept.
Reggie
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Certain about the economy. I ran it in by keeping 2500 rpm for the 1st 500 miles, 3000 rpm to a 1000 miles and 3500 rpm to 1500 miles. I take my own Total Quartz 9000 fully synthetic diesel oil along for services.
Most of my driving is 230 miles on Monday morning, a couple of miles back & forth to hotel in the week and then 230 miles back on Friday.
The car is always driven at 75 to 95 mph on motorways and I enjoy the performance over the weekend.
I refuel once a week (500 to 600 miles) and always measure the consumption.
I do however realise that some cars that apear the same can give different economy figures and I know that speedo/trip meters are not accurate. I have checked the distances and speeds against my GPS (Garmin GPS III Pilot). While the distances are within 3 or 4 percent the speedo reads 119 when the GPS says 114 ish.
There is a German website for the C3 and people there also get various economy figures but there are a few who claim better than me!
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Do you think the Quartz 9000 5W40 gives better economy compared to the 7000 10W40?
I have used both in my 1.4 Xsara, the 9000 5W40 takes longer to warm up (coolant temp), but the car feels more energetic and smoother at low speeds, say 30 in 5th.
With the Quartz 7000 10W40, the engine warms faster, but takes more of the right foot to keep at an even speed on a road 7 miles from home.
I suspect the coolant is at full temperature, but the oil may take a bit longer still.
I would change from semi to fully synthetic as it gave better economy. Is this what you found with your C3 Madman?
Ben
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Not a chance!!
A colleague has had one since January. Although very coy about the problems she has experienced, it has been in the "shop" a fair few times.
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Close but no cigar. Citron is a lemon, Citroën is the car.
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Madman. I can't argue with that.
Reggie
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>>Citron is a lemon, Citroën is the car.>>
True, but according to Citroën's biographer John Reynolds, Citroën's name originated from his Dutch great-grandfather Roelof who sold citrus fruits from a barrow in Amsterdam and was known by the nickname of Limoenman, i.e. 'lemon man'.
Roelof's son Barend took the surname 'Limoenman' and added the Flemish word for lemon, 'Citron', so as to give himself the surname 'Limoenman-Citron'. Later in life Barend Limoenman-Citron changed his name again, to 'Bernard Citroen'. His grandson, the car maker, made the slight further change to 'Citroën'.
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We've had ours since July 2002. It's done 7000 miles at about 62 mpg. As others have said there's plenty of performance to be had. It was recalled for an engine management dowload in February and the draw under the radio was replaced a couple of weeks ago. Madame, whose car it is, loves it. I like it too but I find the suspension a bit hard. It's comfortable, roomy, well appointed (LX), chic and goes well if you want it to. 9 out of 10.
Darcy.
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At the moment it is hovering either side of the 60 mpg mark depending on the sort of usage. Lowest was about 58, highest 61, and it seems to be improving as I would expect with a new car.
I'll keep you updated.
Rob P
Madman - A pilot huh? What do you fly?
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Anything with wings - on the GA side. Like microlights best.
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Thanks for your comments guys. I've decided to go for it on balance, coupled with the added protection with the recent change in the Sales of Goods Act. If it starts messing me about then its a case of 3 strikes then out!
Regards,
Alf
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Well, its sitting out there on the drive, C3 HDi 16v SX in Black. (£8,995 OTR).
I must say it looks the biz, Hauls like a train (92Bhp), and if it gets anywhere near the quoted mpg that would make for a neat package. Ride ain't too bad either (15" wheels).
After 50 miles on the clock I stalled it at the lights and on restarting the power steering was lost. Pulled in just up the road, turned engine off for a few minutes, restarted it and power steering was restored!!?
It's actually great fun to drive, can't wait 'till it's run in, but maybe the novelty will wear off by then?
Regards,
Alf
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"..but maybe the novelty will wear off by then?"
Possibly not.
Ours is now well into its 3,000s (miles) and it has become the car of choice. The Puma is great for a quick thrash through the twisty bits, but give us a short shopping trip or a long drag across to Wales (From here in Norfolk) and it's the Citroen that we take.
Economy still seems to be hovering around the 58-62 mpg mark. Much delayed first service this week.
It seems to me there are a couple of irretrievably bad C3s out there that their owners are making a lot of fuss about (quite rightly) but ours just keeps running like a metronome.
Rob
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Mine is just touching 2,000 miles, and I must say, this car is growing on me. It's so easy to drive, and I just got an average 60mpg out of a tank (although I should have done as it was mostly motorway / dual carriageway driving). My other vehicle (apart from my motorcycle) is a 406 2.1td, and like Shortwing Rob, today when we travel from Leeds to London, it will be the C3 that we are going to take, O.K. O.K. so I'm a Yorkshireman and it's more economical than the 406, but it is also nice to drive.
Reggie
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