Citroën CMétisse
On the occasion of the 2006 Paris Motor Show, Citroën unveils CMétisse.
With this concept car made of passion and reason, the Brand is drawing a new path dedicated to pure automobile pleasure by offering a coupe with character endowed with a high level of quality of life on board and offering both remarkable and respectful performance. of the environment.
With its slender proportions, its flamboyant red body color, its spectacular openings and its omnipresent chrome, this racy coupé with 4 seats and 4 doors rekindles the automotive passion for the most prestigious grand touring coupes.
The emotion that CMétisse arouses at first glance is relayed by the real driving sensations offered, thanks to the cockpit equipped with the latest technological advances, and the performance provided by a diesel hybrid powertrain with a particular architecture.
Benefiting from the same solution for the future as the C4 Hybrid HDi demonstrator, presented by Citroën at the start of the year, CMétisse is distinguished by the installation of its electric motors in the rear wheels.
This configuration is consistent with the performance of the vehicle and optimizes its traction. Perfectly suited to the character of CMétisse, this achievement demonstrates Citroën's great mastery of the various hybrid architectures and its commitment to reducing consumption and C02 emissions.
A top-of-the-range vehicle, CMétisse also gives pride of place to passengers by dedicating a large space to them with three seats upholstered in white leather and providing exemplary comfort.
c-metisse, creator of automotive emotions and sensations
Everything in CMétisse suggests a grip of rare emotion.
Its slender proportions and the fluidity of its lines create a harmony imbued with power. Its openings with particular kinematics fascinate and arouse the desire to climb aboard.
Finally, its interior design fashioned from noble materials, its very comfortable individual seats and its sophisticated technology are able to satisfy both the pleasure of the driver and the well-being of three passengers.
A sleek design coupe
The first of the emotions facing CMétisse is a visual shock.
Long (4.74 m), wide (2 m) and low (1.24 m), sculptural, almost intimidating: it commands immediate respect. But far from creating a distance, this respect is mixed with an irrepressible seduction, with an absolute attraction. Whether it is its rear wheel arches, its hood or even its trunk, all of its volumes present the curves of a muscular body full of curves and rebounds of an astonishing sensuality.
Seduction, CMétisse also arouses it through the dynamism it expresses. Even at a standstill, everything about her suggests movement. With a very long front hood and an almost non-existent rear overhang, CMétisse recalls the balance of vehicles from the golden age of grand touring.
The CMétisse lines also reveal the search for optimal aerodynamics, a guarantee of reduced consumption and polluting emissions, just as they perfectly integrate the latest technological advances. Surrounding the double grille chevron, the headlamps are fitted with a row of LEDs which light up gradually according to the angle of the steering wheel and the speed of the vehicle, allowing optimum lighting to be obtained when driving at night. on winding road.
As for the Michelin tires, associated with rims with a central nut, they contribute to the sporty character of the coupe and, above all, their development has been integrated into the design of the vehicle, in order to optimize their air resistance and thus contribute to the excellent coefficient of penetration into the air of the vehicle (Cx of 0.30).
Spectacular openings and facilitating access on board CMétisse knows how to be astonishing by the technical solutions that it implements, particularly in terms of openings. The first surprise is the presence of rear doors on a vehicle constituting a perfect representation of the coupe.
The second lies in the real ballet that is offered to the eyes when the doors are opened since the reception of passengers is impressively staged: the front doors open like a seagull wing while the rear doors follow. a helical path.
Beyond the spectacular visual appearance, this solution facilitates access on board adding efficiency to the plume. Indeed, these openings partially release the roof, a major obstacle to extremely low vehicle access, and allow exemplary accessibility for this type of vehicle.
Finally, the parallelogram opening of the trunk contributes to the aesthetics of the whole.
A cockpit adapted to the driver
In the cockpit, technological development has been exploited in order to offer the driver services allowing him to be perfectly focused on his driving and offering him maximum driving pleasure.
The driver has the following equipment:
■ a steering wheel with fixed central controls which brings together the main controls for comfort and driving assistance (radio, speed limiter, on-board computer, lighting, indicators and wiper) within easy reach. This arrangement, like the presence of gearshift paddles placed behind the steering wheel, prevents the driver from any unnecessary movement, thus providing him with exceptional driving pleasure;
■ ignition and start pushes, placed on the overhead console, reinforcing the sensation of being in a fighter plane;
■ a driving position determined as a function of the optimum position of the driver's eye, hence a single seat height adjustment to reach this point, the presence of a headrest in suspension, secured to the roof, and two electric controls to adjust the leather steering wheel and the aluminum pedals. This innovative cockpit setting provides an optimal driving position while maintaining constant space for rear passengers.
This high-tech equipment fits perfectly with the design of the cockpit, which is characterized by an original center console divided by five claws between which are arranged the aluminum selector lever for the gearbox and controls such as the navigation, seat, steering wheel and pedal settings, opening the trunk, adjusting the ride height or even the sport mode of the suspension.
The central console extends into the passenger compartment in three light bars in order to inform passengers by a play of light of the current hybrid propulsion mode (ZEV - Zero Emission Vehicle - mode, recharging, “boost” function, etc.) .
In addition to the play of light, there are sound effects perceptible as soon as the doors are opened, accompanying certain actions by the driver (installation on board, starting the vehicle, navigation in the on-board computer) and informing him of the deployment of the aerodynamic fins.
This staging gives CMétisse a living dimension. It goes beyond the usual coldness of the technological object to breathe animal breath into it.
A high-end space for passengers
Sheathed in white leather, the space reserved for three passengers has been treated in a very refined way, creating an atmosphere of total serenity.
The three independent seats suggest by their design comfort and lightness. A feeling reinforced by the airy shapes and hollowed out volumes of the passenger compartment which, covered in leather and aluminum inserts, confirms CMétisse's membership in the world of exceptional vehicles.
For top-of-the-range passenger reception, each seat has independent air conditioning control, the controls of which are engraved in the leather of the storm doors, and individual lighting on the roof.
Thanks to a generous wheelbase (3 m), perfectly exploited, the rear passengers benefit from a habitability unknown in this type of vehicle with, in particular, a space in the knees corresponding to the standards of a limousine.
Upholstered in leather, the luggage compartments are in harmony with the passenger space. In addition to a rear trunk opening in a parallelogram, CMétisse passengers benefit from two spaces located behind the front wheels, enabling the entire Citroën luggage line produced exclusively for this concept to be placed.
Remarkable performance that respects the environment
The intelligence of CMétisse is to combine:
■ a diesel hybrid powertrain,
■ optimized aerodynamics,
■ a limited mass.
This association allows it to offer remarkable performance while combining it with control of consumption and respect for the environment.
Diesel hybridization in the service of the environment, motoring pleasure and safety CMétisse has a diesel hybrid powertrain that combines:
■ a diesel heat engine: the HDi FAP V6, coupled to a 6-speed automatic gearbox, which drives the front wheels and whose power is 150 kW (208 hp);
■ two electric motors installed in the rear wheels developing a unit torque of 400 Nm and a unit power of 15 kW (20 hp).
Thanks to diesel hybridization, CMétisse contributes to respecting the environment. This is particularly the case in urban use, with the ZEV (Zero Emission Vehicle) mode which allows access to an “extended” all-electric mode and this in the greatest silence (around 3 km to 30 km / h), or on roads requiring successive accelerations and decelerations where hybridization makes it possible to limit consumption by using the two energies together.
In motorway use, the V6 HDi diesel thermal engine with DPF (particulate filter), by its intrinsic qualities, has excellent efficiency.
With this control of fuel consumption and therefore emissions, CMétisse displays combined cycle consumption levels of 6.5 l / 100 km and C02 emissions of 174 g / km.
Driving pleasure, which remains at the heart of motorists' demands, has not been sacrificed. In the event of heavy stress on the accelerator pedal and an immediate demand for torque, the “boost” function combines the torque of the heat engine with those of the electric motors and allows CMétisse to achieve performance worthy of a great sports car without penalizing the consumption.
The 0 to 100 km / h is reached in 6.2 seconds and the 1000 m standing start is crossed in 25.4 seconds.
More than the search for an unusable maximum speed in normal traffic conditions, it is the pleasure of driving that has been favored with accelerations that are both frank and rapid.
For example, the change from 80 to 120 km / h is done in 4.2 seconds.
In addition, during the “boost” time, the vehicle is in 4-wheel drive since the electric motors drive the rear wheels while the heat engine turns the front wheels: traction is thus perfectly guaranteed.
Finally, when the ESP sensors signal precarious grip conditions, CMétisse is able to activate its electric motors and therefore switch to 4-wheel drive.
Their triggering then allows the driver to benefit from enhanced traction and to use CMétisse's potential perfectly and safely in all conditions. In addition to the motors, the traction chain is made up of a high voltage battery pack that powers the electric motors.
This pack, placed in the center of the vehicle, is recharged by the electric motors during deceleration phases, thus transforming the kinetic energy of the vehicle into electrical energy.
The traction and braking chain control system, the real nerve center of the system, automatically manages the energy configuration: switching from 2 to 4 driving wheels, energy recovery and recharging the battery.
Optimized aerodynamics to combine performance and respect for the environment
The aerodynamics and the fluidity of the lines, strong values of the Brand, have been particularly taken care of in order to contribute to the dynamism of CMétisse, to the efficiency of the vehicle's behavior and to this desire for performance while respecting the environment.
Thus, the volumes of CMétisse do not come under the free style exercise, since they combine aesthetic beauty with dynamic efficiency. CMétisse has a Cx of 0.30 obtained, in addition to its fluid and taut lines, thanks to a series of innovative equipment such as these aeraulic scoops at the front, the flat bottom under the car, these two retractable rear fins or a rear diffuser with fixed spoiler. All these devices actively participate not only in the reduction of aerodynamic drag, but also in the reduction of lift, thus placing the vehicle on the ground and increasing its handling.
A limited mass to reconcile dynamism and low consumption
Significant work on the weight of the vehicle has also been carried out in order to reconcile dynamism and low consumption. Thanks to the adoption of a carbon body and a carrying carbon trellis for the powertrain and the front axle, CMétisse has a weight of 1,400 kg, batteries on board, which is remarkable given its size.
The architecture of the diesel hybrid powertrain also contributes to this result. Indeed, the installation of the electric motors in the rear wheels and the position in the center of the vehicle of the battery pack allow a perfect distribution of the masses between the front and the rear of the vehicle and promote better road behavior.
