THE CITROËN BERLINGO IN DETAIL

The Berlingo offers a usable load capacity of 3 cubic metres with a payload of 800 kg, but the innovative styling and comfort features make it more like a saloon or people-carrier than a van.

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Citroën’s aim is to offer a range of vehicles that meet all customer requirements and expectations. With the Berlingo, the C15, the Jumpy and the Jumper, Citroën’s offering in light utility vehicles is the most recent, most modern and most complete in Europe.

The Berlingo is a true multi-purpose vehicle. It's a utility vehicle, because it's robust, functional and practical - with generous access to loading area, and numerous storage areas - and safe, having powerful brakes, reinforcing bars in the doors, driver's airbag, height-adjustable safety belts, pyrotechnic pretensioners and grabbers.

The Berlingo also matches passenger cars in real driving pleasure and a level of comfort, silence and ergonomics, as well as a full range of standard and optional equipment.

The Citroën Berlingo embodies the unique points of several market segments. While being externally no bigger than a small hatchback, it offers a vast loading area. It’s compact and original lines and rounded nose demonstrates it’s natural style. The high driving position and large windscreen afford an excellent view over the road, enhancing the comfort of the driver and passengers. The vehicle is sufficiently robust to be used in the most difficult conditions. The light and spacious interior provides exceptional visibility. Its towing capacities are the best in the segment, with a rating of up to 900kg.

A 1.4 Iitre engine developing 57 kW powers the Citroën Berlingo for the Australian market.

INNOVATIVE STYLING

The styling is homogenous, modern and innovative with fluid and aerodynamic lines sweeping from the driver’s position to the loading area in unbroken continuity.

The exterior styling of the Berlingo is unique because, unlike all the other vehicles in this segment, it was not based on a saloon. Its body is integral with no interruptions, no “bubble”.

The Berlingo is immediately identifiable as a member of the Citroën family, with the chevrons in the middle of the radiator grille, the Citroën and Berlingo name plates on the rear door, the Citroën marking on the wide side protection bands and a double chevron in the centre of the wheels.

The Citroën Berlingo satisfies the expectations of people using small utility vehicles, with its high-quality robust looks and rounded forms, stressing the care and attention given to body assembly.

The wide front and rear bumpers in recyclable thermoplastic and the wrap-around side protections offer excellent protection against impact in the city.

A COMFORTABLE AND FUNCTIONAL CABIN

The finish of the passenger compartment, the equipment and the acoustic comfort are worthy of a saloon. Using the experience gained with the Citroën Xsara, the floors were stiffened and stamped into a dish form in order to filter vibrations more effectively, a design known as an acoustic floor pan. The cab is fully trimmed with no painted metal visible.

To satisfy the needs of professional van users, the Berlingo offers the largest number of storage spaces in its category. The vehicle is equipped with a number of storage areas cleverly designed to use space wasted in other vehicles. These include two large gloveboxes, one of which is lockable and fitted with a recess for drink cans; two large partitioned cubbies in the doors, with a built-in bottle-holder; two spaces for audio equipment on the dashboard; partitioned cubby in front of the gear lever to store cassettes and a smaller cubby behind the hand brake.

The passenger compartment is the largest and most spacious in the segment, with an elbow width of 1.408 mm and a body eight of 1,070 mm. The vast, high windscreen and large windows in the doors let in the light and aid visibility, giving an airy open feeling to the cabin.

The large doors and slightly raised position of the seats facilitates accessibility and lessens the fatigue of professional users making frequent stops. The seats are comfortable and offer efficient lumbar support. The driving pleasure offered by a raised position and comfortable seats is optimized by a height-adjustable three-spoke steering wheel similar to the Citroen Xsara.

The multi-function passenger seat is unique. As comfortable as a conventional seat, it is turned into a working tool by folding down the back of the seat to make a flat surface. A document holder, drink recesses and a pencil case are provided for added convenience. Tipping the entire seat forwards reveals a vast storage area. Deep, broad and high, the storage box offers a capacity of some one hundred litres. It is designed to store fragile or valuable objects, protecting them from prying eyes or from contact with the loading area.

FUNCTIONAL AND CONVENIENT

With a useful capacity of three cubic metres, the Citroën Berlingo offers a high competitive load area that puts most of its direct competitors in the shade. The many stamped sections of the load floor reduce vibrations. A thick rubber carpet, raised on the sides and at the front, makes the loading area easy to clean while helping to prevent road noise or acoustic radiation from the exhaust penetrating the vehicle.

The Berlingo is a van for professional users. Its loading area was designed to maximize convenience and functionality for the user. The Berlingo has a bigger loading area than “bubble” vans, both in terms of the distance between rear wheel arches (1.19m) and the maximum width of the floor (1.60m). When the multi-function passenger seat is folded down, the maximum loading length increased from 1.70 m to 2.10 m. The loading area is well-defined and easy to load. Designed with a simple shape to enable maximum use of the space available, it is big enough to accommodate European standard one metre square pallets.

Access to the loading area is facilitated by the rear doors, which open to 90º and 180º with an entrance 1.15 m in height with a minimum width of 1.9 m and, at the front, via the multi-function seat. Sized to be used as a step, the rear bumper resists a vertical load of 150 kg, making it possible to load heavy objects.

Three types of load stop satisfy the specific needs of all types of professional activity. Six tie down hooks – located on the sides of the vehicle so as not to hinder loading – enable the user to secure the load.

The Berlingo can be fitted out to meet specific requirements. Horizontal and vertical stiffeners make it possible to create or fix new storage containers. A hinged rear roof flap is available as an option to transport long loads such as ladders or surfboards.

GLOBAL SAFETY

Designed with the same rigour as the marque’s saloons, the Berlingo offers the highest levels of safety and passenger protection.

Illustrating Citroen’s traditional strong points, the Berlingo is equipped with a MacPherson type front axle like the Xsara, independent rear wheels, front and rear anti-roll bars to optimize roadholding and powerful brakes with discs at the front and drums at the rear.

To protect its occupants, the Berlingo is designed to meet the most stringent European standards on front and rear impact. The structure was developed to avoid or reduce injury. The passenger compartment is a rigid survival cell; the structure is reinforced by a stiffening roll bar around the passenger compartment. The roll bar is formed by the two central reinforced pillars, which rest on the lower side members. The pillars are linked at the top by stiffening cross-member.

To complement the safety roll bar, the doors are fitted with reinforcing steel bars.

The Berlingo is equipped with driver's airbag, height-adjustable front safety belts with reels, pyrotechnic pretensioners and grabbers, anti-submarining seats, headrests, a foam-covered steering wheel to absorb energy, load tie-down hooks, a fuel cut-off system activated in the event of impact and an anti-leak valve in the event of rollover.

Security in the Berlingo is supplied by a sophisticated engine immobiliser, shielded door locks and a number of out-of-sight storage areas including the 100 litre space under the front passenger seat and the large glove box.

GLOBAL COMFORT

With the Citroen Berlingo, the marque’s traditional approach to comfort has been extended through a high level of acoustic comfort and equipment offering that is worthy of a saloon.

The Berlingo is equipped with driving mirrors that are adjustable from inside the passenger compartment and a concealing flap for the radio on all versions (an item that is usually only found in saloons, which traditionally enjoy higher levels of protection). The Berlingo also offers power steering.

In addition to the usual options, the Berlingo offers air conditioning with a pollen filter, as well as a comfort pack comprising remote central locking, an electric passenger rearview mirror and heated rearview mirrors.

Moreover, security has been optimized with declutching locks and a lockable fuel cap as standard.

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