We got a preview of Citroën's new Hypnos hybrid 'ute a month ago and the real thing is even more ka-razy than we thought. Offset rainbow seats? You got it. Suicide doors and a pillar-free frame? No problem. An interior that Citroën calls a "powerful sensory experience, verging on the magical"? But of course.

Yes, this is a concept vehicle where Citroën designers were given free reign to dream (I won't suppose they were testing a substance or two while at the drawing board). Just check this description out:

A ceiling-mounted camera films the driver's face and regularly measures anthropometric data. The system compares these measures with pre-recorded data to gauge the driver's state of mind and adjusts the cabin lighting and scented air-freshener fragrance in consequence. ...

Hypnos combines technology with creativity to striking effect with its original onboard clock, designed by the artist Michel Serviteur. Combining advanced technology and sheer poetry, the clock changes colour depending on the light at different times of day. Dispensing with needles and digital read-outs, this dreamlike timepiece emits a succession of rhythmic colour pulses like the breathing of a living being.

Got all that? You can read the whole thing after the jump.

Things get a little more sensible with the powertrain. The Hypnos concept is powered by Citroën's HYmotion4 technology, which is a diesel hybrid drivetrain that propels the car from a rear axle-mounted electric motor. In the concept, that would net the Hypnos a 52 mpg (U.S.) rating with emissions of 120 grams of CO₂ per kilometer. Citroën calls the HYmotion4 technology "feasible from an industrial standpoint," but what I really want is that Willy Wonka interior.


[Source: Citroën]

Citroën is out this week talking about the new look of its revamped C4, and we're paying attention to the new HDi and enhanced petrol versions that reduce CO₂ emissions and improve fuel economy. The petrol engines - a 1.6 16v VTi 120hp and a 1.6 16v THP 150hp - are the result of Citroën's work with BMW and offer drivers 35 mpg (U.S., combined cycle) and 159g/km of CO₂ with the VTi or 34 mpg (U.S.) and 164g/km with the THP. The THP offers 177lb.ft of torque from just 1,400 to 3,500rpm. On the diesel side of things, the 2.0HDi with standard diesel particulate filter gives us 44 mpg (U.S.) and CO₂ emissions of 140g/km. On the outside, the new C4 gets a front end that mirrors the look of the new C5, along with other changes (see more after the jump).


[Source: Citroen]

Fuel efficiency was the deal closer for the city of Nottingham in the UK, which just purchased over 300 Citroën Dispatch and Relay LCVs. The new fleet vehicles have HDi diesel engines which are certified to use biodiesel blends up to 30 percent. Nottingham City Homes' procurement & operational support manager, Peter Smith, said in a statement (pasted after the jump) that, "thanks to Citroën's clean, fuel efficient HDi diesel engines ... these vehicles are best equipped to play a key role in an on-going programme to reduce our carbon footprint."

The LCVs also have Citroën's "Fleet Director" system, which will allow a central office to dispatch the van that is closest to the job site, saving fuel by reducing the number of miles traveled. Most of Nottingham's new work vehicles are Relay 35 L3H2 120hp panel vans, but the city also took delivery of some "Relay Luton vans, tippers and dropside trucks, as well as more than 100 Dispatch L1H1 panel vans."

[Source: Citroën]

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The Citroën C4 will get a new look in 2010, but for now the French company is happy to update and upgrade the version it currently sells. The changes include small styling updates and some eco-aware changes in the new petrol engines and some low-rolling resistance tires from Michelin.

The current engines in the C4 include a 1.6i 16V and a 2.0i 16V, and both will be scrapped in favor of 1.6 liter units (co-developed with the BMW group) called the VTi 120 hp (Variable valve lift and Timing Injection) and THP 150 hp (Turbo High Pressure). Citroën isn't saying just how much cleaner these engines are, just that they "offer improved fuel economy and lower emissions."

Inside the new C4, Citroën has added a new navigation system with a 7-inch screen and a 10GB hard drive. The redesigned front end now shares a few touches with the C5. Not bad, but we'll keep an eye out for the reported diesel hybrids in the next generation.

[Source: Citroën]

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If you like the look of Citroën's C2 and C3 superminis (I do), then the announcement of a style refresh might be most welcome. The fact that one of the marque's new lookers emits just 113 grams of CO₂ a kilometer is just an eco-bonus. As you can see in the company's chart pasted after the jump, emissions from the new supermini line-up range from 113 to 172, but there are seven trim and engine combinations that break the important (for now) 120 CO₂g/km level. The bulk of the low emission models use the 1.4HDi 70hp engine, and the C2 also comes in a 1.6 HDi 110bhp VTS flavor that emits 119 g/km of CO₂ and goes from 0-62 mph in under 10 seconds. Not bad for 53.4mpg, right? Add in Citroën's approval to use up to B30 in the C2 VTS and you've got a solid car, the kind Americans wish they could be buying right now. Citroën also recently introduced a natural gas-powered C3.