Citroën has updated its long-body Berlingo light commercial vehicle range with an all-new turbo-diesel engine, new transmission and idle-stop technology.
The French manufacturer says the running changes will bring a significant reduction in operation costs to its VW Caddy competitor, quoting a saving of around $300 per year in fuel use alone.
The Berlingo range comprises a short- and long-body variant with an 80kW petrol and new Euro 5-compliant 66kW turbo-diesel e-HDi engine respectively.
The petrol unit is fitted to a five-speed manual transmission only, while the revised diesel unit receives a new six-speed ETG6 robotised-manual transmission with paddle shifts and full-auto mode.
Citroën says the new diesel engine will reduce fuel consumption to 4.7L/100km on the combined cycle (-1.0L), and says it's a fitting choice for the L2 (long-body) variant, which is says accounts for 90 per cent of all Berlingo sales.
The Berlingo L2 e-HDi is also equipped with stability control and hill-start assist for the first time.
"The addition of the new Citroen Berlingo drivetrain tackles issues that are at the heart of all businesses, safety and running costs," said Citroen Australia’s National Sales Manager, Shaun Mackle.
"Being the first in its class with stop-start technology is testament to our commitment to Australian business operators and the growing number of Berlingo customers."
Pricing for the Berlingo range is unchanged at $19,990 (plus on-road costs) for the petrol-powered L1 and $24,990 (plus ORCs) for the diesel L2. The latter will be available in conjunction with a special drive-away price of $28,990 until December 31.
The French van is currently the fourth-best selling vehicle in its class with 251 sales year-to-date (to the end of November, 2014). It trails the Suzuki APV (463 sales), Renault Kangoo (635) and Volkswagen Caddy (1760), but leads the Peugeot Partner (24) and Fiat Doblo (2).