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Just try having conversations about the Citroën 3DS and the Nintendo DS3 in a short space of time. I still can't remember which one's which.

Ah sorry, I did notice the guy saying something about one american car being good, but remembered it as the Z06 rather than the C6 (didn't know the Z06 was a type of C6, but I remember reading the Z06 was the first decent handling car to come out of the US). Since he is french I ended up thinking of the Citroen C6. My bad :p

It was probably top gear who once tested the difference in drunk and tired driving on an oval test track. In that case, driving drunk still managed to keep lanes, but driving tired really had the guy swoop around lanes. This doesn't mean that drunk driving is better, being drunk you can concentrate on slow changes, and therefore drive straight and easy curves quite well, but as soon as something unexpected shows up (you're not alone on the street, you know), you don't have the reaction speed required to avoid an accident. But still it showed very well how dangerous tired driving is, many bus and truck accidents by drivers who didn't take enough stops will tell you the same. This week, here in Germany a 20-something couple was found in the bushes at the side of the autobahn after they had lost track on the completely empty road, driving a 4 hour distance after a party at 3 am. Because of the bushes, it took a week to find them, and since it happened in the early morning no-one saw it happening. I think everyone has drowsed away at the steering wheel at some point, me included, and everyone realizes the dangers.

As for the alcohol measurement (we had an article on exactly the same subject a few months ago, but it was Toyota then if I remember correctly), it might be indeed problematic and too invasive, difficult to accept socially. I guess lease and rental cars might get it, but they have the support infrastructure to cope with unwanted motor-locking caused by this system in special occasions.

It was probably top gear who once tested the difference in drunk and tired driving on an oval test track. In that case, driving drunk still managed to keep lanes, but driving tired really had the guy swoop around lanes. This doesn't mean that drunk driving is better, being drunk you can concentrate on slow changes, and therefore drive straight and easy curves quite well, but as soon as something unexpected shows up (you're not alone on the street, you know), you don't have the reaction speed required to avoid an accident. But still it showed very well how dangerous tired driving is, many bus and truck accidents by drivers who didn't take enough stops will tell you the same. This week, here in Germany a 20-something couple was found in the bushes at the side of the autobahn after they had lost track on the completely empty road, driving a 4 hour distance after a party at 3 am. Because of the bushes, it took a week to find them, and since it happened in the early morning no-one saw it happening. I think everyone has drowsed away at the steering wheel at some point, me included, and everyone realizes the dangers.

As for the alcohol measurement (we had an article on exactly the same subject a few months ago, but it was Toyota then if I remember correctly), it might be indeed problematic and too invasive, difficult to accept socially. I guess lease and rental cars might get it, but they have the support infrastructure to cope with unwanted motor-locking caused by this system in special occasions.

The newest european cars nowadays come with an extra protection agains collisions with pedestrians: The hood in front of the car is lifted a few inches after 40 or so milliseconds so the pedestrian gets lifted as well and won't get run over by the car but lands on the softer hood and might hit the car glass.

The powertrain generally takes up considerable space in the engine compartment, leaving little room between the engine and the bonnet.
To remedy this, the C6 comes with an active bonnet system as standard that automatically raises the bonnet in the event of pedestrian impact. Thanks to an impact sensor and pyrotechnic mechanism, the bonnet rises 65 mm in 40 milliseconds. A second mechanism maintains the bonnet in its raised position despite the impact and thus absorbs the deformation energy.

Example from Citroen.

And the worse is that they don't make station-wagons anymore

Well, there's the Malibu Maxx, but they call that a "5-Door Extended Sedan", and I don't know whether it'd qualify as a station wagon or not.

There's also the Dodge Magnum, but if by "they" you're referring to US companies, that doesn't really count. (If you're not referring to US companies, the same corporation that makes the Dodge Magnum also makes other wagons. Here's another wagon from a non-US company, but those aren't sold in North America, except perhaps through the gray market.)

hmm, I guess a penance for not spelling it Citroën is in order

ok here's a picture

and Citroën Sport's homepage

Driver / Champions Elect 2005
Driver / Constructors Champions 2004
Constructors Champions 2003

PSA who own Citroën & Peugeot have won the constructors championship every year this century

So yes, let's hope it is better than the current crop of French engineering !!

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/World_Rally_Champions hip

Yep, you're rigth. In fact, the new C5 from Citroen already offers the option of a lane-departure system that will warn the driver if the car crosses the line unintentiously. http://www.citroen.com/CWW/en-US/TECHNOLOGIES/SECU RITY/AFIL/ P.S. I'm not French neither :p

In my day, these things were going to be the next big thing. They were so ahead of their time, that French car maker Citroen saw fit to name one of their newer models after it.

Well my company only has a single smart car but I can tell you they are not a lot better in doing personaly maintaning them. Most parts are closed, you can't really do anything on the car yourself that gets your hands greasy. It even has not got a spare tire (that's optional and there's not too much space for it). It does save a bundle on road taxes though. (In my country we have road taxes based on the weight, age and fuell type of your car)

Same sort of recurring problem we had with a diesel Citroen Berlingo car. Engine light kept comming back up, but the place we bought it checked it out a couple of times for free, and the last time they replaced some coil or something not sure, was a two digit price.

Another option would be to stay away from those new type of cars with all the problems you have, and be quite independant of where you get it fixed. Before the berlingo we had a C15 and for instance now I drive a 1967 Citroen DS Pallas, and sure, it does have it's own sort of problems, I have plenty of choice where to get those fixed. (Even so, the Citroen dealerships/stealerships do not know anything about those anymore)

Well my company only has a single smart car but I can tell you they are not a lot better in doing personaly maintaning them. Most parts are closed, you can't really do anything on the car yourself that gets your hands greasy. It even has not got a spare tire (that's optional and there's not too much space for it). It does save a bundle on road taxes though. (In my country we have road taxes based on the weight, age and fuell type of your car)

Same sort of recurring problem we had with a diesel Citroen Berlingo car. Engine light kept comming back up, but the place we bought it checked it out a couple of times for free, and the last time they replaced some coil or something not sure, was a two digit price.

Another option would be to stay away from those new type of cars with all the problems you have, and be quite independant of where you get it fixed. Before the berlingo we had a C15 and for instance now I drive a 1967 Citroen DS Pallas, and sure, it does have it's own sort of problems, I have plenty of choice where to get those fixed. (Even so, the Citroen dealerships/stealerships do not know anything about those anymore)

I believe that's Citroen . Slight difference.

EPA ratings, much like ISO ratings, reflect close-to-perfect usage conditions (flat roads, constant speed etc). They are far from reflecting everyday use where you have to slow down/accelerate/etc constantly. And then again there are curves/uphills/etc. I doubt any of the cars you have listed actually score their listed mileages in everyday use. As a matter of fact, most reviews of the Prius (sold here in Europe, unlike the Insight) score it at 35-40mpg rather than the listed 48mpg EPA rating.

Which is where modern Diesel engines take a clear lead: accelerations don't require as much energy as gas engines require. The reason is that Diesel engines spot a much higher torque. Provided that you don't drive hard, you can be sure that VW's TDIs announced mileages WILL be what you actually consume. And if you drive hard, the mileage of a Diesel engine will decrease far less steadily than with a gas engine as well, always because of superior torque. The same goes on if you carry more passengers than yourself alone.

Just for information, I'm the (very) lucky owner of a BMW 330d (WARNING - UK gallons! Following figures are calculated using US gallons though). Cruising at 60mph, mileage is 41mpg, whether the road be flat or not. Cruising at 75mph, mileage "drops" to 35mpg - and this is not surprising if you consider that at both of these speeds, the engine provides its full torque of 288(!) lbft (~1800rpm at 60mph, ~2100rpm at 75mph), and full torque means best fuel efficiency. Not bad for an engine which spots 183hp and has a 3l displacement, eh? (and the car weighs 1.6 ton!)

Another example: a friend of mine owns a Skoda Fabia TDI 100 (a VW TDI, since Skoda is owned by VW - 100hp, 180 lbft torque, 1.9l displacement, 1 ton) (sorry, couldn't find an online review). We swapped cars on a WE just for fun and I wanted to see how well the TDI performed... 46mpg at 60mph and 39mpg at 75mph (yes, greater gap here, but unlike the BMW 3l engine, the TDI isn't on its max torque curve at 75mph).

And as an added bonus, both of these cars are enjoyable to drive. This is not so the case with, say, the Prius (which is available in EU, unlike the Insight). Again, thanks to the torque.

There are still two weak points with the Diesel engines, though, but these are being addressed. Technologies exist and will make inroads into the EU market in the next 3 years:

• town mileage is fatally higher right now. Solution: the starter-alternator (unfortunately, scarce documentation on this thing on the net - it's dubbed STARTS by Valeo, and Energen by Delphi), which provides stop features: engine is off when you're idle at, say, a traffic light, then starter-alternator restarts it nearly instantly (less than 100ms) when needed. Added bonus, it removes the alternator from the picture (and therefore removes a strap belt from engine design, therefore lowering friction and increasing efficiency) and allows for 110/220V electrical plugs to make it into cars! The first car equipped with this in EU will be the Citroën C4, programmed for late 2003;
• particles (which is why Diesel scores so poor at emissions rating right now - this is not because of greenhouse gas emissions, which is considerably lower with Diesel engines due to their greater efficiency). The solution already exists: the particle filter, which has first equipped the Peugeot 607 back in 2000 and now equips several models from the PSA group. This filter will be compulsory on all new Diesel engines by 2003, Jan 1st. Combine this with the requirements for petrol makers to reduce the quota of sulfur in Diesel fuel (which IS the cause for particles) by 2005.

Of course, ultimately, fuel cells will replace Diesel and gas engines altogether, but it will be a good 10+ years before it gets viable (both cost-wise and reliability-wise). Both of the technologies above exist today and are [already on/close to make inroads into] the consumer market. Also consider that car manufacturers, by 2005, will have to obey "depollution" norms in EU which basically require engines to have a global mileage equal or better than 45mpg. Whatever the technology employed.

Try the new Renault Laguna or Citroën C5. After all it's not a coincidence that limousine and comfort are French words :)

Hmm, I didn't know about the options on the XM. I do know the Xantia Activa, based on the prototype Activa II, which was both revolutionary and beautiful. I drove the new C5 a few weeks ago, AFAIK it's got (almost) the same suspension as the Xantia Activa and yes, it drives great!

Hmm, I didn't know about the options on the XM. I do know the Xantia Activa, based on the prototype Activa II, which was both revolutionary and beautiful. I drove the new C5 a few weeks ago, AFAIK it's got (almost) the same suspension as the Xantia Activa and yes, it drives great!

This is not the first car with this kind of features. Citroën has the Xsara Windows CE, which is already featured in the commercials as being almost shipping.

This is not the first car with this kind of features. Citroën has the Xsara Windows CE, which is already featured in the commercials as being almost shipping.

The industry is working on this problem. Citroën for example uses a special Partical Filter on their latest models.