New Citroen Berlingo and Peugeot Partner unveiled in Vigo, Spain
PSA Peugeot Citroen has unveiled the new Citroen Berlingo and Peugeot Partner vans at its Vigo plant in Spain, where the two vehicles are produced.
Manufactured on the Group’s Platform 2, the new 2008 Citroen Berlingo and Peugeot Partner models are completely revised versions of the original vehicles. They build on earlier strengths - versatility, robustness and ease-of-use - with greater comfort, spaciousness and equipment levels that match the latest mid-range family cars. Comfort features include dual zone air-conditioning, automatic headlight activation and rain activated windscreen wipers, while safety features include ABS and front airbags as standard equipment and side/curtain airbags, ESP and cruise control as options. The new Berlingo and Partner are also the first vehicles in their category to offer a tyre-pressure monitoring system.
Blending the attractive with the pragmatic, the two vehicles have a more contemporary, dynamic exterior, with more distinctive styling that clearly differentiates the vehicles and aligns them with each brand’s model range.
For the interior, innovative solutions have been integrated into both the light commercial and leisure-activity versions to enhance their utility and adaptability:
The vans are equipped with a multifunctional third passenger front seat that can be transformed into a mobile desk. The main passenger seat can also be folded to significantly increase the load volume and usable length.
The leisure-activity vehicle, in addition to featuring a completely redesigned multi-purpose roof, delivers MPV-like modularity, with individual rear seats and an opening tailgate window.
Another innovation is the introduction of a remote fleet management system in certain countries - a Group first. Using an aftermarket on-board telematic device, fleet managers will be able to periodically check mileage, scheduled service dates and average fuel consumption, whilst safety critical information such as brake pad wear and oil levels are reported by e-mail in real time. This information will help fleet managers reduce paperwork and effectively manage additional expenditure.
Available with petrol and diesel engines, the new vehicles will also offer a 1.6 HDi engine with a Diesel Particulate Filter System (DPFS/FAP®) with CO2 emissions of 147g/km for the leisure-activity vehicle and 153g/km for the van.
Available from May 2008, the new vehicles will complement the previous generation models, which will remain in an extended vehicle line-up as the Citroen Berlingo First and the Peugeot Partner Origin.
The new vehicles were presented at PSA Peugeot Citroen’s manufacturing plant in Vigo, northern Spain, by Christian Streiff, CEO, PSA Peugeot Citroen, Gilles Michel, Managing Director, Automobiles Citroen, and Jean-Philippe Collin, Managing Director, Automobiles Peugeot.
The Vigo plant, which also assembles the Citroen C4 Picasso family of MPVs, has capacity to build 300,000 units a year of the new Citroen Berlingo and Peugeot Partner. The two vehicles represent a total investment of €660 million, of which €334 million was for research and development.
As part of the CAP 2010 initiative, the day-one quality enhancement programme has been integrated into this project. Like the Peugeot 308 and the new Citroen C5, the new Citroen Berlingo and Peugeot Partner benefit from the most recent validation and reliability standards, including a doubling of pre-launch road testing to 3 million kilometres.
Launched in 1996, the Citroen Berlingo and Peugeot Partner vans have been remarkably successful, with nearly 3.2 million vehicles produced. In Europe, they were an immediate success with professional users who appreciated their multifunctionality. In 2007, eleven years after the launch, the Citroen Berlingo and Peugeot Partner enjoyed their best sales ever with 348,000 units sold worldwide. In Europe, 128,000 units were sold, representing more than 29% of the small van (F1) segment.
The leisure-activity version also created a new market segment for consumers – vehicles that are economical, roomy, convenient and fun. PSA Peugeot Citroen is the overall European leader in this segment, with 126,200 vehicles sold in 2007 for a market share of nearly 44%.
PSA Peugeot Citroen now boasts the youngest and most extensive line-up of light commercial vehicles ever offered by a European automotive manufacturer. The two vehicle ranges have been entirely renewed and expanded in less than two years. Each brand will offer five van families this year: The Citroen Nemo and Peugeot Bipper urban vans; the original Citroen Berlingo First and Peugeot Partner Origin small vans; the new Citroen Berlingo and Peugeot Partner small vans; the Citroen Dispatch and Peugeot Expert compact vans (named 2008 Van of the Year) and the Citroen Relay and Peugeot Boxer panel vans.
Thanks to this broad range of vans covering a wide array of volumes and payloads, PSA Peugeot Citroen offers solutions that satisfy the most diverse user requirements. This versatility further strengthens the Group’s No.1 position in the European light commercial vehicle market, in which it accounted for nearly 19% of sales in 2007.
