Peugeot

PSA Peugeot Citroën’s Stop & Start System

Fuel savings of 10 to 15% in cities with PSA Peugeot Citroën’s Stop & Start System

Jean-Martin Folz, CEO of PSA Peugeot Citroën, today unveiled the Group’s new Stop & Start system at a ceremony in Paris attended by Serge Lepeltier, French Minister of Ecology and Sustainable Development, and Patrick Devedjian, French Minister of Industry.

With the Stop & Start system, the engine is automatically turned off and is in standby mode, when the vehicle stops at traffic lights and traffic jams. The engine instantly starts up again when the brake pedal is released, with the vehicle pulling away once the accelerator is pressed. The Citroën C3 1.4i 16V Stop & Start, which will be rolled out in early November, will be the first mass-produced car equipped with this innovative system. It will be combined with another leading-edge technology already commercially available on the C3, the SensoDrive electronically controlled manual gearbox. The new system will gradually be extended to other Citroën and Peugeot vehicles.

Rather than causing excessive fuel consumption, in fact repeated stopping and starting of the engine reduces consumption and enhances driving pleasure. The Stop & Start system has reduced fuel consumption by 10% for city driving, 6% in a standard combined cycle and up to 15% in heavy traffic. CO2 emissions are reduced by a similar proportion - PSA Peugeot Citroën considers greenhouse gas emissions to be the greatest threat to the environment.

The Stop & Start system also helps to improve the quality of life in cities, since drivers and the urban environment benefit from total silence during the many times the vehicles are stopped.

PSA Peugeot Citroën produced the Stop & Start system as part of its strategy of developing new technologies to combat the greenhouse effect by reducing fuel consumption and CO2 emissions while enhancing drivability. More than 500,000 vehicles that emit less than 120 grams of CO2 per kilometre have already been sold by the Group, with a target of 1.7 million by 2006. This performance results from the assertive policy deployed to further develop HDi diesel engines and introduce innovations such as electronically controlled gearboxes.

This latest development reinforces PSA Peugeot Citroën’s strategic focus on "useful technology for everyone," delivering benefits for both customers and society as a whole. This pragmatic approach systematically produces quick-to-the-market, cost-effective solutions.