C3 Pluriel

Citroën C3 Pluriel
This what the final Pluriel, which will be revealed to the public on the Paris motor show in september this year (2002), will look like according to l'auto-journal. However, according to normally well informed sources, these pictures are not correct ! It is said that the front, i.e. the bumper, the bonnet and front light units, will look much more like those of the 1999 Pluriel concept car. The A-pillars in the l'auto-journal pictures are said to be correct, they extend a bit lower then those of the concept car.
Although the C3 Pluriel has many similarities to the four door C3 berline, all exterior panels are completely different. The dashboard will be identical to that of the C3 (the C2 will also have this dashboard), but the rest of the interior will be different, more "fun" like.
Just like on the Pluriel concept the car, the A-pillars and the removable roof arches will have a grey-metal colour. The rear light units are also different from those of the C3. It's expected that the Pluriel can be equipped with the 110 HP 1.6l 16V engine, as well as with the 75 HP 1.4l and the 92 HP 1.4l HDI engines. The new C3 Pluriel is based on the PSA platform 1 (PF1), which will be
be shared between the Citroën C3, C3 Pluriel and the future C2 as well the Peugeot 107 and 207 in its various versions. In the Pluriel this platform has a very hard job: with the roof arches removed and no reinforcing wall between the rear seats and trunk (which plays an important role in the stiffness of any "normal" cabriolet, like the PSA Peugeot 206 CC) the neccessary stiffness of the Pluriel has to come from the bottom structure of the car only. A tough job ... Let's hope that the Citroën designers find an acceptable solution for this, and that they also will be able to solve the watertightness problems of the ingenious roof construction that are still troubling them.
Pluriel transformation

	A closed 4 seater (coach) with sliding roof The roof, consisting of flexible cloth with a stiffer internal lamella structure, is folded backwards by means of an electrical motor, just like in an normal car with a sun roof. The four side windows are also operated electrically.
	An open 4 seater The car can be opened further by folding the roof over the rear window. The rear window and the folded roof are then forming sort of a "cassette" which is hold by two pivoting arms. This complete rear-window + folded-roof assembly can now be rotated downwards and dissapears under a lid in the trunk, in the space where on a C3 the spare wheel is stored ... As a consequence the Pluriel is not equipped with a spare wheel !
	A real 4 seater cabriolet The next step is removing the two roof arches, these are fixed which levers at both ends of each arch. There is no space in the car for stowing the two arches so they'll need some free space in the garage ! The pluriel is now a real cabriolet with four seats.
	A two seater pickup By folding down the rear seats and the trunk lid (which is hinged on the lower edge) a pretty long totally flat surface is created behind the front seats, very much like a pickup truck !

Most of the information and all pictures are taken and scanned from auto journal issue 595, dated 30-05-2002.

Last updated on : 13.06.2002, by Jint Nijman