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A few driving recommendations
Observe the driving regulations at all times and remain vigilant whatever the traffic conditions.
Pay
close attention to the traffic and keep your
h
ands on the wheel so that you are ready to
react
at any time to any eventuality.
On
a long journey, a break every two hours is
s
trongly
re
commended.
In
difficult weather, drive smoothly, anticipate
t
he need to brake and increase the distance
f
rom other vehicles.
Driving on flooded
roads
We strongly advise against driving on flooded roads, as this could cause serious damage
t
o the engine or gearbox, as well as to the
e
lectrical systems of your vehicle.If
you are obliged to drive through water:
-
c
heck that the depth of water does not
e
xceed 15 cm, taking account of waves
t
hat might be generated by other users,
-
d
eactivate the Stop & Start system,
-
d
rive as slowly as possible without
stalling. In all cases, do not exceed 6 mph
(
10 km/h),
- d o not stop and do not switch off the
engine.
On
leaving the flooded road, as soon as
c
ircumstances allow, make several light brake
a
pplications to dry the brake discs and pads.
If in doubt on the state of your vehicle, contact
a
CITROËN dealer or a qualified workshop.
Important!
Never drive with the parking brake applied - Risk of overheating and
d
amage to the braking system!
Do
not park or run the engine when
s
tationary in areas where inflammable
s
ubstances and materials (dry grass,
d
ead leaves...) might come into
c
ontact with the hot exhaust system -
R
isk of fire!
Never leave a vehicle unsupervised
with
the engine running. If you have
t
o leave your vehicle with the engine
r
unning, apply the parking brake
a
nd put the gearbox into neutral or
p
osition
N or P,
depending on the type
o
f gearbox.
6
Driving
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When towing
Distribution of loads
F Distribute the load in the trailer so that the heaviest items are as close as possible to
t
he axle and the nose weight approaches
t
he maximum permitted without
e
xceeding it.
Air density decreases with altitude, thus
reducing
engine per formance. Above
1 0
00 metres, the maximum towed load must
b
e reduced by 10 % for every 1 000 metres of
al
titude.
For
more information on weights (and the
t
owed loads which apply to your vehicle) refer
to
the corresponding section.
Side wind
F Take into account the increased sensitivity t
o side wind.
Cooling
Towing a trailer on a slope increases the temperature of the coolant.
As
the fan is electrically controlled, its cooling
c
apacity is not dependent on the engine speed.
F
T
o lower the engine speed, reduce your
s
peed.
The
maximum towed load on a long incline
d
epends on the gradient and the ambient
t
emperature.
In
all cases, keep a check on the coolant
t
emperature. F
I
f the warning lamp and the
S
TOP
warning lamp come on,
s
top the vehicle and switch off
the
engine as soon as possible.
Braking
Towing a trailer increases the braking distance.
T o avoid overheating of the brakes, the use of
e
ngine braking is recommended.
Ty r e s
F Check the tyre pressures of the towing v
ehicle and of the trailer, observing the
re
commended
p
ressures.
Lighting
F Check the electrical lighting and signalling o
n the trailer and the hadlamp beam height
o
f your vehicle.
For
more information on adjusting the
h
eadlamp beam height, refer to the
c
orresponding
s
ection.
The
rear parking sensors will be
d
eactivated automatically if a genuine
C
ITROËN towbar is used.
Driving
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Starting
The parking brake must be applied.
F
W
ith
a manual gearbox, place the gear
l
ever in neutral then depress the clutch
pedal
f
ully.
F
W
ith
an electronic gearbox, place the
c
ontrol at N then press the brake pedal
f
i r m l y.
F
I
nsert
the key into the ignition switch; the
s
ystem recognises the code.
F
U
nlock the steering column by simultaneously
t
urning the steering and the key.
In
certain cases, you may have to apply
m
ore force to the steering (wheels on
f
ull
lock, for example).
F
W
ith
a petrol engine, operate the starter
m
otor
by turning the key to position 3
without
pressing the accelerator pedal,
u
ntil
the engine starts. Once the engine is
r
unning, release the key.
Starting-switching off the engine
It has 3 positions:
- position 1 (Stop):
insert and removing
the
key,
-
position 2 (Ignition on) :
steering column
u
nlocked, ignition on, Diesel preheating,
e
ngine
r
unning,
-
position 3 (Starting) .
Ignition switch
Switching off the engine leads to a loss o
f braking assistance.
Ignition on position (2)
It allows the use of the vehicle's electric equipment or portable devices to be charged.
Once
the state of charge of the battery drops
t
o the reserve level, the system switches to
e
nergy economy mode: the power supply is
c
ut off automatically to preserve the remaining
b
attery charge.
Avoid
attaching heavy objects to the
k
ey, which would weigh down on its
b
lade in the ignition switch and could
c
ause a malfunction.
It
could adversely affect the deployment
o
f the front airbag.
6
Driving
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122
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F With a Diesel engine, turn the key to p
osition 2 ,
ignition on, to operate the
eng
ine
p
re-heating
s
ystem.
Wait until this warning lamp goes off in the instrument panel then operate the starter m
otor by turning the key to position 3
without
pressing the accelerator pedal,
u
ntil the engine starts. Once the engine is
r
unning, release the key.
In wintry conditions, the warning lamp can stay on for a longer period. When
t
he engine is hot, the warning lamp
d
oes not come on. In
temperate conditions, do not leave
t
he engine at idle to warm up but move
o
ff straight away and drive at moderate
s
peed.
Never leave the engine running in
a
n enclosed area without adequate
v
entilation:
in
ternal
c
ombustion
e
ngines emit toxic exhaust gases,
s
uch as carbon monoxide. Danger of i
ntoxication and death.
In very severe wintry conditions
(temperatures
below -23°C), to ensure
t
he correct operation and durability of
the
mechanical components of your
v
ehicle, engine and gearbox, it is
n
ecessary to leave the engine running
f
or 4 minutes before moving off.
If
the engine does not start straight
a
way, switch off the ignition. Wait a few
m
oments before operating the starter
m
otor again. If the engine does not
s
tart after several attempts, do not keep
t
rying: you risk damaging the starter
m
otor or the engine.
Contact a CITROËN dealer or a
qualified
w
orkshop.
Driving
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Key left in the "Ignition on" position
If the key has been left in the ignition switch at position 2 (Ignition on) ,
the
ignition will be switched off
a
utomatically after one hour.
To
switch the ignition back on, turn the
k
ey to position 1 (Stop),
then back to
p
osition 2 (Ignition on) .
Never
switch
off
the
ignition
before
the
v
ehicle
is
at
a
complete
stop.
With
the
engine
off,
the
braking
and
s
teering
assistance
systems
are
also
c
ut
off:
risk
of
loss
of
control
of
the
v
ehicle.
When
you
leave
the
vehicle,
keep
the
k
ey
with
you
and
lock
the
vehicle.
To
facilitate
unlocking
of
the
steering
c
olumn,
it
is
recommended
that
the
w
heels
be
returned
to
the
straight
ahead
p
osition
before
switching
off
the
engine.
Switching off
F Stop
the vehicle.
F W ith the engine running at idle, turn the key
t
o position 1 .
F
R
emove the key from the ignition switch.
F
T
o lock the steering column, turn the
s
teering until it locks.
F
C
heck that the parking brake is correctly
a
pplied, particularly on sloping ground.For
more information, refer to the
"
Energy economy mode" section.Energy economy mode
After switching off the engine (position 1- Stop),
for a maximum of 30 minutes you can still use
f
unctions such as the audio and telematic
s
ystem, the wipers, dipped beam headlamps,
c
ourtesy lamps, ...
6
Driving
Page 126 of 317
124
C4-cactus_en_Chap06_conduite_ed01-2016
Parking brake
ApplicationRelease
When parking on a slope, direct your w
heels against the kerb, apply the
p
arking brake, engage a gear and
s
witch off the ignition.
When the vehicle is being driven, if this warning lamp and the STOP w arning lam p c
ome on, accompanied by an audible
s
ignal and a message in the screen, this
i
ndicates that the parking brake is still on or
h
as not been fully released.
F Pull the parking brake lever up to i
mmobilise your vehicle. F
P ull the parking brake lever up slightly, p
ress the release button, then lower the
lever
f
ully.
Driving
Page 127 of 317
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C4-cactus_en_Chap06_conduite_ed01-2016
5-speed manual gearbox
Engaging reverse
gear
F Press the clutch pedal fully down.
F P ush the gear lever fully to the right then
ba
ckwards.
Only
engage reverse gear when the
v
ehicle is stationary with the engine at idle.
As a safety precaution and to facilitate
starting
of the engine:
-
a
lways select neutral,
-
p
ress the clutch pedal.
6
Driving
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Operation
Gear shift indicator
System which reduces fuel consumption by advising the driver to change up, on vehicles fitted with a manual gearbox.T he system adapts its gear change
r
ecommendation according to the
d
riving conditions (slope, load, ...) and
t
he demands of the driver (power,
a
cceleration, braking, ...).
The
system never suggests:
-
e
ngaging first gear,
-
enga
ging
r
everse
g
ear,
-
e
ngaging a lower gear.
Example:
-
Y
ou are in third gear.
Depending
on the driving situation and your
v
ehicle's equipment, the system may advise
y
ou to skip one (or more) gear(s). You can
f
ollow this instruction without engaging the
i
ntermediate
g
ears.
-
Y
ou press the accelerator pedal.
-
T
he system may suggest that you engage
a
higher gear.
The
information appears in the instrument
p
anel in the form of an arrow, accompanied by
t
he recommended gear.
On
certain Diesel versions with manual
g
earbox, the system may suggest
c
hanging into neutral (N is displayed in
the
instrument panel) so that the engine
c
an go into standby (STOP mode
w
ith Stop & Start), in certain driving
c
onditions.
The
gear engagement recommendations must
n
ot be considered compulsory. In fact, the
c
onfiguration of the road, the amount of traffic
a
nd safety remain determining factors when
c
hoosing the best gear. Therefore, the driver
r
emains responsible for deciding whether or not
t
o follow the advice given by the system.
This
system cannot be deactivated.
Driving