2012 Citroen C4 Owner's Manual

9
DRIVING
159














AUTOMATIC GEARBOX

Six speed automatic gearbox which of-
fers a choice between the comfort of
fully automatic operation, enhanced by
sport and snow programmes, or manu-
al gear changing.
Four driving modes are offered:


- automatic
operation for electronic
management of the gears by the
gearbox,

- sport
programme for a more dy-
namic style of driving,

- snow
programme to improve driv-
ing when traction is poor,

- manual
operation for sequential
changing of the gears by the driver.


Gear selection gate



1.
Gear lever.

2.
Button "S"
(sport)
.

3.
Button " 7
" (snow)
.

P.
Park.


- Immobilisation of the vehicle, park-
ing brake on or off.

- Starting the engine.

R.
Reverse.


- Reversing manoeuvres, vehicle sta-
tionary, engine at idle.

N.
Neutral.


- Immobilisation of the vehicle, park-
ing brake on.

- Starting the engine.

D.
Automatic operation.

M +/-
. Manual operation with sequential
changing of the six gears.


)
Press forwards to change up
through the gears.
or


)
Press rearwards to change down
through the gears.



Gear lever

When you move the lever in the gate
to select a position, the corresponding
indicator is displayed in the instrument
panel.

P.
Park

R.
Reverse

N.
Neutral

D.
Drive (Automatic driving)

S.
Sport
programme

7
. Snow
programme

1 to 6.
Gear engaged during manual
operation

-.
Invalid value during manual operation


Displays in the instrument panel

9
DRIVING
160

Moving off



)
With your foot on the brake, select
position P
or N
.

)
Start the engine.
If this procedure is not followed, there
is an audible signal, accompanied by a
message in the multifunction screen.


)
With the engine running, press the
brake pedal.

)
Release the parking brake, unless it
is programmed to automatic mode.

)
Select position R
, D
or M
,

)
Gradually release the brake pedal.
The vehicle moves off immediately.

If position N
is engaged inadver-
tently while driving, allow the en-
gine to return to idle then engage
position D
to accelerate.

When the engine is running at
idle, with the brakes released,
if position R
, D
or M
is selected,
the vehicle moves even without
the accelerator being pressed.
When the engine is running,
never leave children in the ve-
hicle without supervision.
When carrying out maintenance
with the engine running, apply
the parking brake and select po-
sition P
.



Automatic operation



)
Select position D
for automatic

changing of the six gears.
The gearbox then operates in auto-
adaptive mode, without any intervention
on the part of the driver. It continuously
selects the most suitable gear accord-
ing to the style of driving, the profi le of
the road and the load in the vehicle.
For maximum acceleration without
touching the lever, press the accelera-
tor pedal down fully (kick down). The
gearbox changes down automatically
or maintains the gear selected until the
maximum engine speed is reached.
On braking, the gearbox changes down
automatically to provide effi cient engine
braking.
If you release the accelerator sharply,
the gearbox will not change to a higher
gear for safety reasons.

Never select position N
while the
vehicle is moving.
Never select positions P
or R

unless the vehicle is completely
stationary.



Sport and snow programmes

These two special programmes supple-
ment the automatic operation in very
specifi c conditions of use.

Sport programme "S"


)
Press button "S"
, after starting the
engine.
The gearbox automatically favours a
dynamic style of driving.

S
appears in the instrument panel.


Snow programme " 7
"


)
Press button " 7
", after starting the
engine.
The gearbox adapts to driving on slip-
pery roads.
This programme improves starting and
drive when traction is poor.

7
appears in the instrument
panel.



Return to automatic operation



)
At any time, press the button select-
ed again to quit the programme en-
gaged and return to auto-adaptive
mode.

9
DRIVING
161

Manual operation



)
Select position M
for sequential

changing of the six gears.

)
Push the lever towards the +
sign to
change up a gear.

)
Pull the lever towards the -
sign to
change down a gear.
It is only possible to change from one
gear to another if the vehicle speed and
engine speed permit; otherwise, the
gearbox will operate temporarily in au-
tomatic mode.

D
disappears and the gears
engaged appear in succes-
sion in the instrument panel.
If the engine speed is too low
or too high, the gear selected
fl ashes for a few seconds, then the ac-
tual gear engaged is displayed.
It is possible to change from position D

(automatic) to position M
(manual) at
any time.
When the vehicle is stationary or mov-
ing very slowly, the gearbox selects
gear M1
automatically.
The sport and snow programmes do
not operate in manual mode.
Invalid value during manual
operation
This symbol is displayed if a
gear is not engaged correctly
(selector between two posi-
tions).



Stopping the vehicle

Before switching off the engine, you
can engage position P
or N
to place the
gearbox in neutral.
In both cases, apply the parking brake
to immobilise the vehicle, unless it is
programmed to automatic mode.

If the lever is not in position P
,
when the driver's door is opened
or approximately 45 seconds af-
ter the ignition is switched off,
there is an audible signal and a
message appears.


)
Return the lever to position P
;
the audible signal stops and
the message disappears.


You risk damaging the gearbox:


- if you press the accelera-
tor and brake pedals at the
same time,

- if you force the lever from po-
sition P
to another position
when the battery is fl at. When the ignition is on, the
lighting of this warning lamp,
accompanied by an audible
signal and a message in the multifunc-
tion screen, indicates a gearbox mal-
function.
In this case, the gearbox switches to
back-up mode and is locked in 3rd gear.
You may feel a substantial knock when
changing from P
to R
and from N
to R
.
This will not cause any damage to the
gearbox.
Do not exceed 60 mph (100 km/h), lo-
cal speed restrictions permitting.
Have it checked by a CITROËN dealer
or a qualifi ed workshop.
This warning lamp may also come on if
a door is opened.

Operating fault

To reduce fuel consumption
when stationary for long periods
with the engine running (traffi c
jam...), position the gear lever
at N
and apply the parking brake,
unless it is programmed in auto-
matic mode.

9
DRIVING
162





HILL START ASSIST

System which keeps your vehicle im-
mobilised temporarily (approximately
2 seconds) when starting on a gradi-
ent, 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,

- when certain conditions of gradient
are met,

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

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



- if you are in fi rst gear or neutral with
a manual gearbox,

- if you are in position A
or M
with the
electronic gearbox system.

- if you are in position D
or M
with an
automatic gearbox.


Operation


Do not leave the vehicle while it
is being held in the hill start as-
sist phase.
If you need to leave the vehicle
while the engine is running, apply
the parking brake manually then
ensure that the parking brake
warning lamp is on (not fl ashing)
in the instrument panel.

On a descending slope, with the ve-
hicle stationary and reverse gear en-
gaged, the vehicle is held for a brief
moment when you release the brake
pedal.




Operating fault

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

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DRIVING
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STOP & START

The Stop & Start system puts the en-
gine temporarily into standby - STOP
mode - during stops in the traffi c (red
lights, traffi c jams, or other...). The en-
gine 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 automatically:


- with a manual gearbox
, at speeds
below 12 mph (20 km/h), when you
put the gear lever into neutral and
release the clutch pedal, If your vehicle is fi tted with
the system, a time counter
calculates the sum of the
periods in STOP mode dur-
ing a journey. It resets itself to zero ev-
ery time the ignition is switched on with
the key.

- with the 6-speed electronic gear-
box system
, at a speed below
5 mph (8 km/h), when you press the
brake pedal or put the gear lever
into position N
. With the electronic gearbox
system, for your comfort dur-
ing parking maoeuvres, STOP
mode is not available for a few
seconds after coming out of re-
verse gear.
STOP mode does not affect the
functionality of the vehicle, such
as braking, power steering, for
example.
Special cases: STOP mode
unavailable
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 electric parking brake is applied
or being applied,

- 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.
In this case, the "ECO"
warning
lamp fl ashes for a few seconds,
then goes off. Never refuel with the engine in
STOP mode; you must switch off
the ignition with the key.

This operation is perfectly normal.

9
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164

Deactivation

Going into engine START mode
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 the
display of a message.
Special cases: START invoked
automatically
If the system has been deacti-
vated in STOP mode, the engine
restarts immediately. The "ECO"
warning lamp goes
off and the engine starts auto-
matically:


- with a manual gearbox
, when you
fully
depress the clutch pedal,

- with the 6-speed electronic gear-
box 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.

For safety reasons or to ensure smooth
operation, START mode is invoked au-
tomatically when:


- you open the driver's door,

- you unfasten the driver's seat belt,

- the speed of the vehicle exceeds
15 mph (25 km/h) with a manual
gearbox or 7 mph (11 km/h) with the
6-speed electronic gearbox system,

- the electric parking brake is being
applied,

- some special conditions (battery
charge, engine temperature, brak-
ing assistance, ambient tempera-
ture...) where the engine is needed
to assure control of a system.
In this case the "ECO"
warning
lamp fl ashes for few seconds,
then goes off.
With a manual gearbox in STOP
mode, if a gear is engaged with-
out fully depressing the clutch
pedal, a warning lamp comes
on or an alert message is dis-
played asking you to depress
the clutch pedal to restart the
engine.



Reactivation

Press the "ECO OFF"
switch again.
The system is active again; this is con-
fi rmed by the switch warning lamp going
off and the display of a message.
The system is reactivated auto-
matically at every new start using
the key.
This operation is perfectly normal.

9
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165

Maintenance

In the event of a malfunction with the
system, the "ECO OFF"
switch warn-
ing lamp fl ashes, then comes on con-
tinuously.
have it checked by a CITROËN dealer
or a qualifi ed workshop.


Operating fault

Before doing anything under the
bonnet, deactivate the Stop &
Start system to avoid any risk of
injury resulting from automatic
operation of START mode.
This system requires a specifi c battery
with a special specifi cation and technol-
ogy (reference numbers available from
a CITROËN dealer or a qualifi ed work-
shop).
Fitting a battery not listed by
CITROËN introduces the risk of mal-
function of the system.
The Stop & Start system makes
use of advanced technology. All
work on this type of battery must
be done only by a CITROËN
dealer or a qualifi ed workshop.
In the event of a fault in STOP
mode, the vehicle may stall. All
of the instrument panel warning
lamps come on.
Depending on version, an alert
message may also be displayed
asking you to put the gear lever
into position N
and put your foot
on the brake pedal.
It is then necessary to switch off
the ignition, then restart the en-
gine using the key.

9
DRIVING
166





LANE DEPARTURE WARNING
SYSTEM
The lane departure warning sys-
tem cannot, in any circumstances,
replace the need for vigilance and
responsibility on the part of the
driver.

Activation



)
Press this button, the indicator lamp
comes on.



Deactivation



)
Press this button again, the indicator
lamp goes off.
The status of the system remains in the
memory when the ignition is switched
off.


Detection

You are warned by the vibration of the
driver's seat cushion:


- on the right-hand side, if the mark-
ing on the ground has been crossed
on the right,

- on the left-hand side, if the marking
on the ground has been crossed on
the left.
No warning is transmitted while the
direction indicator is active and for
approximately 20 seconds after the di-
rection indicator is switched off.
A warning may be transmitted if a direc-
tion marking (e.g. arrow) or non-standard
marking (e.g. graffi ti) is crossed.


Operating fault


The detection may be impeded:


- if the sensors are dirty (mud,
snow...),

- if the markings on the ground
are worn,

- if there is little contrast be-
tween the markings on the
ground and the road surface.

System which detects the involuntary
crossing of longitudinal traffi c lane mark-
ings on the ground (solid or broken
line).
Sensors, fi tted below the front bumper,
trigger a warning if the vehicle drifts
over a lane marking (speed higher than
50 mph (80 km/h)).
This system is particularly useful on
motorways and main roads. In the event of a malfunction,
the service warning lamp
comes on, accompanied by
an audible signal and a message in the
screen.
Contact a CITROËN dealer or a qualifi ed
workshop.