2011 CITROEN C3 PICASSO Owners Manual

9
111
DRIVING
GEAR EFFICIENCY INDICATOR *

System which reduces fuel consumption by advising the driver to change up on
vehicles fi tted with a manual gearbox.


Operation

The system intervenes only when driving
economically.
Depending on the driving situation and
your vehicle's equipment, the system
may advise you to skip one or more
gears. You can follow this instruc-
tion without engaging the intermediate
gears.
The gear engagement recommenda-
tions must not be considered compulsory.
In fact, the confi guration of the road, the
amount of traffi c and safety remain de-
termining factors when choosing the best
gear. Therefore, the driver remains re-
sponsible for deciding whether or not to
follow the advice given by the system.
This function cannot be deactivated.
Example:


- You are in third gear.
The information appears in the instrument
panel in the form of an arrow accompa-
nied by the suggested gear.

In the case of driving which
makes particular demands on
the performance of the engine
(fi rm pressure on the accelerator
pedal, for example, when over-
taking...), the system will not
recommend a gear change.
The system never suggests:


- engaging fi rst gear,

- engaging reverse gear,

- engaging a lower gear.



* According to engine.
- You press the accelerator pedal
moderately.

- The system may suggest that you
engage a higher gear, if appropriate.

9
11 2
DRIVING
6-SPEED ELECTRONIC GEARBOX SYSTEM

Six-speed electronic gearbox system
which offers a choice between the comfort
of fully automatic operation or the pleasure
of manual gear changing.
There are two driving modes:


- automated
mode for automatic
control of the gears by the gearbox,
without any action on the part of the
driver

- manual
mode for sequential gear
changing by the driver using the
gear lever or the steering mounted
paddles.
In automated mode, you can temporarily
take over control of gear changing.


R.
Reverse


)
With your foot on the brake, move
the gear lever forwards to select this
position.

N.
Neutral.


)
With your foot on the brake, select
this position to start.

A.
Automated mode.


)
Move the lever backwards to select
this mode.

M +/-.
Manual mode with sequential
gear changing.


)
Move the lever backwards then to
the left to select this mode, then:


●
give a push forwards to change up,

●
or give a push rearwards to change
down.


+.
Paddle to the right of the steering
wheel for changing up.


)
Press the back of the "+"
steering
mounted paddle to change up a gear.

-.
Paddle to the left of the steering
wheel for changing down.


)
Press the back of the "-"
steering
mounted paddle to change down a
gear.


Steering mounted control paddles


The steering mounted paddles
cannot be used to select neutral
or to engage or disengage re-
verse gear.

9
113
DRIVING

Display in the instrument panel


Gear lever positions

N.
Neutral

R.
Reverse

1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6.
Gears in manual mode.

AUTO.

This comes on when the automated
mode is selected. It switches off on
changing to manual mode.

Moving off



)
Select position N
.

)
Press the brake pedal down fully.

)
Start the engine.

N
appears in the instrument
panel screen.


N
fl ashes in the instrument
panel, accompanied by an au-
dible signal and a message in
the multifunction screen, if the
gear lever is not in position N

on starting.
A message is displayed in the
screen, if the brake pedal is not
pressed on starting the engine.


)
Select automated mode (position A
)
or manual mode (position M
) or re-
verse (position R
).

)
Release the parking brake.

)
Progressively take your foot off the
brake pedal.

)
Accelerate away.

You must press the brake pedal
when starting the engine.

AUTO
and 1
, 1
or R
appear in the in-
strument panel screen.

)
Select position A
.

AUTO
and the gear engaged
appear in the instrument panel
screen.
The gearbox operates in auto-active
mode, without any action on the part
of the driver. It continuously selects the
most suitable gear for:


- optimisation of fuel consumption,

- the style of driving,

- the profi le of the road,

- the vehicle load.

For optimum acceleration, for example
when overtaking another vehicle, press
the accelerator pedal fi rmly past the
point of resistance.

Never select neutral N
when
driving.
You can change mode at any
time by moving the gear lever
from A
to M
or the other way
round.

9
11 4
DRIVING

Manual mode



)
Select position M
.
You can change mode at any
time, be moving the gear lever
from M
to A
or the other way
round.
Reverse

To engage reverse gear R
, the vehicle
must be immobilised with your foot on
the brake pedal.


)
Select position R
.

At very low speed, if reverse gear is re-
quested, this will only be acted on when
the vehicle is immobilised.
At high speed, if reverse gear is re-
quested, the N
indicator fl ashes and the
gearbox goes into neutral. To engage a
gear again, put the gear lever in posi-
tion A
or M
.



Stopping the vehicle

Before switching off the engine, you can:


- move to position N
to engage neutral,
or

- leave the gear engaged; in this
case, it will not be possible to move
the vehicle.
In all cases when parking, you
must apply the parking brake

to immobilise the vehicle.

When immobilising the vehicle,
with the engine running, you
must place the gear lever in
neutral N
.
Temporary control of gear changing
You can temporarily take over control
of gear changing using the "+"
and "-"

steering mounted paddles: if the engine
speed allows, the request to change
gear is acted on.
This function allows you to anticipate
certain situations such as overtaking a
vehicle or the approach to a corner.
After a few moments without any ac-
tion on the control paddles, the gear-
box resumes automatic control of the
gears.

The gears engaged appear in
succession in the instrument
panel screen.
The gear change requests are only acted
on if the engine speed permits.
It is not necessary to release the accelera-
tor during gear changes.
When braking or slowing down, the
gearbox changes down automatically
to allow the vehicle to accelerate in the
correct gear.
On sharp acceleration, the gearbox will
not change up unless the driver acts on
the gear lever or the steering mounted
paddles.

Operating fault

With the ignition on, the fl ashing of AUTO
,
accompanied by an audible signal and a
message in the screen, indicates a mal-
function of the gearbox.
Have it checked by a CITROËN dealer
or a qualifi ed workshop.
Never select neutral N
while the
vehicle is moving.

Engagement of reverse gear is ac-
companied by an audible signal.

Before carrying out any work in
the engine compartment, ensure
that the gear lever is in neutral N

and that the parking brake is ap-
plied.

9
115
DRIVING
HILL START ASSIST (WITH THE 6-SPEED ELECTRONIC GEARBOX SYSTEM)
System which holds your vehicle tempo-
rarily (approximately 2 seconds) when
starting on a slope, the time it takes to
move your foot from the brake pedal to
the accelerator pedal.
This function is only active when:


- the vehicle is completely stationary,
with your foot on the brake pedal,

- certain conditions on a slope are
met,

- with the driver’s door closed.
The hill start assist function cannot be
deactivated.
Operation

On an ascending slope, with the ve-
hicle stationary, the vehicle is held
momentarily when you release the
brake pedal:



- provided you are in automated mode
(position A
) or in manual mode
(position M
) on an electronic gearbox.

Do not leave the vehicle while it
is being held in the hill start as-
sist phase.
If you need to leave the vehicle
with the engine running, manu-
ally apply the parking brake then
ensure that the parking brake
warning lamp is on (not fl ashing)
in the instrument panel.
On a descending slope, with the vehicle
stationary and reverse gear engaged,
the vehicle is held momentarily when
you release the brake pedal.



Operating fault

If a malfunction of the system occurs,
these warning lamps come on. Contact
a CITROËN dealer or a qualifi ed work-
shop to have the system checked.

9
116
DRIVING
STOP & START
The Stop & Start system puts the engine
temporarily into standby - STOP mode -
during stops in the traffi c (red lights, traf-
fi c jams, or other...). The engine restarts
automatically - START mode - as soon as
you want to move off. The restart takes
place instantly, quickly and silently.
Perfect for urban use, the Stop & Start
system reduces fuel consumption and
exhaust emissions as well as the noise
level when stationary.

Operation


Going into engine STOP mode
The "ECO"
warning lamp comes
on in the instrument panel and
the engine goes into standby:


- with the 6-speed electronic gear-
box system
, at speeds below 5 mph
(8 km/h), when you press the brake
pedal or put the gear lever in position N
.


For your comfort, during parking
manoeuvres, STOP mode is not
available for a few seconds after
coming out of reverse gear.
STOP mode does not affect the
functionality of the vehicle, such
as for example, braking, power
steering...

A time counter calculates the sum of the periods in STOP
mode during a journey. It
rests itself to zero every
time the ignition is switched
on with the key.

Never refuel with the engine in
STOP mode; you must switch
off the ignition with the key.
Special cases: STOP mode not
available
STOP mode is not invoked when:


- the driver's door is open,

- the driver's seat belt is not fas-
tened,

- the vehicle has not exceeded 6 mph
(10 km/h) since the last engine start
using the key,

- the engine is needed to maintain a
comfortable temperature in the pas-
senger compartment,

- demisting is active,

- some special conditions (battery
charge, engine temperature, brak-
ing assistance, ambient tempera-
ture...) where the engine is needed
to assure control of a system.
The "ECO"
warning lamp fl ashes
for a few seconds then goes off.

This operation is perfectly normal.

9
DRIVING

Going into engine START mode
The "ECO"
warning lamp goes
off and the engine starts with the
electronic gearbox
system
:


- gear lever in position A
or M
, when
you release the brake pedal,

-
or gear lever in position N
and the
brake pedal released, when you move
the gear lever to position A
or M
,


- or when you engage reverse gear.

Special cases: START invoked
automatically
For reasons of safety and for your
comfort, START mode is invoked auto-
matically when:


- you open the driver's door,

- you unfasten the driver's seat belt,

- the speed of the vehicle exceeds
7 mph (11 km/h) with the electronic
gearbox system,

- some special conditions (battery
charge, engine temperature, braking
assistance, ambient temperature...)
where the engine is needed for
control of a system.
The "ECO"
warning lamp fl ashes
for a few seconds, then goes off.

This operation is perfectly normal.





Deactivation

At any time, press the "ECO OFF"
switch
to deactivate the system.
This is confi rmed by the switch warning
lamp coming on accompanied by a mes-
sage in the screen.

If the system has been deacti-
vated in STOP mode, the engine
restarts immediately.



Reactivation

Press the "ECO OFF"
switch again.

The system is active again; this is confi rmed
by the switch warning lamp going off, accom-
panied by a message in the screen.

The system is reactivated auto-
matically at every new start using
the key.

9
118
DRIVING

Operating fault

In the event of a fault with the system,
the "ECO OFF"
switch warning lamp
fl ashes then comes on continuously.
Have it checked by a CITROËN dealer
or a qualifi ed workshop.
In the event of a fault in STOP mode,
the vehicle may stall. It is then neces-
sary to switch off the ignition and start
the engine again using the key.
Before doing anything under the
bonnet, deactivate the Stop &
Start system to avoid any risk of
injury resulting from automatic
operation of START mode.
Maintenance

This system requires a battery with a
special specifi cation and technology
(reference numbers available from a
CITROËN dealer or a qualifi ed work-
shop).
Fitting a battery not listed by CITROËN
introduces the risk of malfunction of the
system.

The Stop & Start system makes
use of advanced technology. All
work on this type of battery must
be done by a CITROËN dealer
or a qualifi ed workshop.