Citroen C-Metisse

Citroen C-Metisse Is The Concept Car Of The Year

Citroën will be presented with the award for the Louis Vuitton Classic Concept Award 2006 at the Geneva Motor Show in March (8 March 2007), one of the leading automotive prizes in the world to celebrate concept and prototype cars and judged by some of world's leading car and industrial designers.

The Citroën coupe's elegant design, exceptional travelling comfort, remarkable performance and environmental respect completely won over the jury, headed by Christian Philippsen and composed of:

• Serge Bellu, editor in chief, Automobiles Classiques.
• Xavier Dixsaut, designer, head of innovation at Louis Vuitton.
• Harm Lagaay, designer, former head of design at Porsche.
• Carl-Gustav Magnusson, designer, former head of design at Knoll Furniture.
• Samuel Mann, collector and winner of the LVC Concours Award 2005.
• Gordon Murray, engineer, former technical manager of the F1 Brabham and McLaren teams.
• Lorenzo Ramaciotti, designer, former head of design at Pininfarina.
• Stewart Reed, head of the transport faculty at the Art Center College of Design in California.

Unveiled at the 2006 Paris Motor Show, the C-Metisse concept car was inspired by Citroën's traditional design parameters of automotive passion and intelligence to produce a car that is both stylistically adventurous, but at the same time eminently practical and sensible.

With its flowing proportions, flamboyant red bodywork, spectacular door-opening design and premium-material cabin, this stand-out four-seater four-door coupe revives a passion for the most prestigious Grand Tourers.

C-Metisse blends automotive emotion and sensation with environmental principles. The concept car's diesel hybrid drivetrain, optimised aerodynamics and limited weight give it racer-like performance - 0 to 100 kmh in 6.2 seconds and 1,000 m in 25.4 seconds - combined with low fuel economy (6.5 l/100 km over a combined cycle) and CO2 emissions (174 g/km).

C-Metisse is a prime example of Citroën's quest to build cars that are attuned to the times without ever losing sight of rule number one: a car has to be a joy to drive.

C-Metisse will be on show at the Geneva Motor Show at the Vuitton stand at the entrance of halls 1 and 2 for the press days on 6 and 7 March. It will then be displayed on Citroën's stand in Hall 6, alongside the brand's other vehicles, which, just like C-Metisse, express all of the Citroën's innovation and vitality.