Used Citroen C3 Pluriel review and buying guide (2003 to 2010): which one to buy and what to check

Which used Citroen C3 Pluriel should you buy?

Any C3 Pluriel from 2003 to 2010 is the same gamble, and it's the roof that decides it, not the year. The tracks the roof runs in are on record as breaking outright once a car reaches about 5 years old, and every one for sale now is well past that, so the only safe buy is a car whose roof slides back and forth smoothly while you watch.

Water is the other deciding factor. Leaks where the side bars meet the windscreen surround are a known complaint, and in December 2003 a Citroen campaign on 2,500 Pluriels fitted new seals to the A pillars, improved the front seats and changed the rear roof release handles. Ask for proof that work was done, and don't assume any car's watertight, because nothing on record says the leaks stopped.

Which C3 Pluriel engines and gearboxes are the safe choices?

A manual is the safer gearbox, because the Sensodrive automated manual has a snow mode that can refuse to work in the cold and switch itself on, unasked, in hot weather, holding the car in 2nd gear. One owner of a 1.6 Sensodrive also had the throttle stick again and again, which made the car hard to control. That's a single car, but it's another reason to favour a manual.

There's very little on record about the engines themselves, and that's a gap in the evidence rather than a clean bill of health. The one warning concerns the 1.4 HDi diesel: a whirring whine from the engine points to a failing tensioner, a roller bearing part, and when it's replaced the water pump driven by the same belt should be changed with it. Nothing on file covers the other engines either way.

What should you check when viewing a used C3 Pluriel?

Work the roof through every position before anything else: slide it all the way back, close it again, and watch for any point where it sticks or stops, because broken tracks are the fault on record. Then fit the roof side bars, make sure they lock in cleanly, and check they're coming with the car, because the roof can't be raised without them. A seller who's left them in a shed is selling half a car.

Hunt for water next. Lift the carpets and feel the footwells, and look at the seals where the side bars meet the windscreen surround for damage from bars being forced back in. Poor fitting bumpers are on record, so look for a gap as big as 6mm between the front bumper and the headlights. Check the rear hatch plastic for splits, make sure the boot security covers are there, and run the air-con, since leaks from it are on record.

On the test drive, listen for rattles, and on a 1.4 HDi for a whirring whine from the engine. On a Sensodrive, check it changes cleanly and that the throttle comes back when you lift off. For paperwork, ask for proof the December 2003 seal, seat and roof handle work was done, and for receipts for any roof track repair.

Paste the advert into the free check and it runs these against the listing, the MOT history and the DVLA record before you travel.

What does a used Citroen C3 Pluriel cost to run?

What do C3 Pluriel owners like about them?

It's a car with real character: the looks are quirky, and the roof lets you change its shape to suit the day. Run it as a closed coupe, slide the roof back for a cabriolet, take the side bars off for a fully open car, or use it as a small pick-up when there's something bulky to carry.

There's more room inside than the size suggests, with space for four adults. That makes it a car you can use every day with friends aboard rather than a two seat toy, and it's that mix of genuine room and a shape you can change that gives the Pluriel its appeal to the people who own one.

• The C3 Pluriel offers distinctive styling and versatile body configurations, easily transforming from a coupe to a full convertible.
• The C3 Pluriel provides ample interior space, comfortably accommodating four adult passengers.
• This model achieved a four-star rating in independent crash safety tests, indicating good occupant protection.