Allow me to introduce, the Citroen C15 • Hacker News Board

Re: Allow me to introduce, the Citroen C15

#321

Post by MobiusHorizons » Sat, Jan 10, 2026, 6:10 PM UTC

Aurornis wrote: post #128

KronisLV wrote: post #19

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> The C15 represents a time when a vehicle was a tool. I feel vehicles want to turn into a subscription service these days. I wonder how differently cars would be built, if instead of maximizing for value extraction and crap nobody needs, they instead were optimized for utility and maintenance (and sure, fuel economy, aerodynamics and some sane environmental stuff). Like take the C15 and add 2-4 decades of manufactur…

> I wonder how differently cars would be built, if instead of maximizing for value extraction and crap nobody needs, they instead were optimized for utility and maintenance (and sure, fuel economy, aerodynamics and some sane environmental stuff). Auto manufacturers already have stripped-down base models of their entry-level vehicles. Many have commercial versions of their vehicles, especially trucks and vans, that ar…

And yet I personally know more people who own iPhone minis (myself included) now in 2026 than that own pixel phones of any model. I think the data is distorted by the fact that most people who want things like that also don’t typically buy new (especially with cars). I did buy my iPhone 13 mini from Apple directly, but I bought it after the 14 line had already been released.

Re: Allow me to introduce, the Citroen C15

#322

Post by cuu508 » Sat, Jan 10, 2026, 6:11 PM UTC

jfengel wrote: post #280

cuu508 wrote: post #194

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Were they sold with an option to have have no OEM infotainment? Just speakers and a phone mount?

I don't think it has any OEM infotainment. I think there is some kind of software in there but I've never looked at it. It's not intrusive.

Looking at image search for "2020 impreza dash" there's a screen above climate controls in all images. I was asking if there was an option to have no sceen.

Re: Allow me to introduce, the Citroen C15

#323

Post by vdupras » Sat, Jan 10, 2026, 6:12 PM UTC

alephnerd wrote: post #181

Arodex wrote: post #132

Earlier quoted context omitted.

The guillotine wasn't for the super rich, but for the privileged by birth. The equivalent would be to guillotine the nepo babies (and the Ivy League administrators who rubber stamp their admission). Or fix inheritance. And by fix I mean tax as hell.

Most guillotined were commoners [0] - not the wealthy nor the intelligentsia. > Or fix inheritance. And by fix I mean tax as hell If France can't fix it [1] after politically powerful billionaires stymied it [2], neither can the US [0] - https://theconversation.com/the-french-revolution-executed-r... [1] - https://www.lemonde.fr/en/france/article/2025/10/31/french-l... [2] - https://www.reuters.com/world/frances-rich…

The statistics cited in the article you cite talks about the Nobility/Clergy/Other classification. There is no wealth-related statistic. It's entirely possible that a good fraction of the "Others" category were wealthy bourgeois.

Re: Allow me to introduce, the Citroen C15

#324

Post by formerly_proven » Sat, Jan 10, 2026, 6:12 PM UTC

ramesh31 wrote: post #53

helsinkiandrew wrote: post #37

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> The sane environmental stuff you mentioned has morphed into a requirement for deeply integrated electronic oversight Decent catalytic converters require an array of sensors, ECU, and ability to fine control the engine inputs to work - without them most large cities would become smog ridden hells.

This is why late 90s cars are objectively the greatest ever built. You had ECUs, cats, ABS, disc brakes, airbags, power steering, and conventional automatic transmissions. Everything that makes a modern car safe and reliable, but none of the high tech digital BS that has infused things nowadays.

In reality many 90s cars are phenomenal rust buckets due to issues in the adoption of water-based paints, cars which actually still have tangible amounts of steel in their panels are basically golden samples.

Re: Allow me to introduce, the Citroen C15

#325

Post by nandomrumber » Sat, Jan 10, 2026, 6:13 PM UTC

klum wrote: post #230

Fiveplus wrote: post #29

Earlier quoted context omitted.

That would be the absolute dream engineering brief. If I actually sit down and design that vehicle, it would have something like this. List, off the top of my head. 1. You keep the modern metallurgy and the crumple zones. You keep ABS and basic traction control because they are solved problems that save lives without needing cloud connectivity. 2. Instead of a 2000 USD proprietary touchscreen that will be obsolete in…

I have a theory that these environmental regulations at least to some degree defeat themselves. They make engines more complicated, so more fragile and harder for an amateur (edit: or any professional who isn't their own brand repair shops) to service. They encourage smaller-block engines with turbos and compressors which makes the engine more short-lived. They produce stuff like throttle-hang and gear selection reco…

Did I hear right that some new vehicles are claiming 20,000km service intervals?

I know I’ve seen 15,000 service intervals.

This is the minimum to maintain the warranty for the first 3 / 5 / 7 seven years whatever.

If you change the oil at every 5000k and never turn off a cold engine - all petrol engines have fuel wash down at ignition cut, but much worse when the engine is come - you should expect 500,000+ plus kilometres out of an engine barring any metallurgical problems or manufacturing defects.

Petrol makes a poor lubricant for engines, and fucks engine oil. The less of it in engine oil the better.

Modern engines and fully synthetic oils are way better than the their counterparts from my youth, but 15,000+ kilometres service intervals are less about what engines need and more about what the folks over in marketing need.

Edit: I did see a second hand commercial diesel van recently that had met all service requirements for the warranty period, x number of years or 90,000 kilometres.

This meant it had logged exactly two oil changes since new, and the third had just been done at 90,000.

90,000k on two oil changes. Wild.

Re: Allow me to introduce, the Citroen C15

#326

Post by perardi » Sat, Jan 10, 2026, 6:16 PM UTC

jcpst wrote: post #99

First off, I agree with the point made, though I think a more reasonable comparison would be something like a subaru. The people I know who have to deal with excessive snow or mud on country roads commonly opt for that. Of course there’s the “men” who compensate for their lack of buldge with 350s, dualies, etc. If you don’t work a farm, those whips are dummm. That was a good perspective though- I grew up hearing Citr…

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Re: Allow me to introduce, the Citroen C15

#327

Post by Aaargh20318 » Sat, Jan 10, 2026, 6:18 PM UTC

IgorPartola wrote: post #259

kube-system wrote: post #157

> The Ford Ranger (2020). One of the most popular pickups in the US. A key selling point is that the cabin is so high you can run over toddlers without even noticing. The craziest thing about this criticism is that it is phrased as hyperbole but the reality is that this is seen as a small truck in the US. The Ford Ranger actually is the best selling pickup truck in Europe for 10 straight years, but doesn’t sell as mu…

I have a Ford F-150 (14 gen) and the front is so huge I need to step on the front grill guard to reach anything inside the engine compartment. It is all around an unreasonably sized vehicle. My excuse is that (a) I do use it for home improvement stuff and for hauling stuff around and (b) I work from home so no commute. But for most people who do not work construction this is an insane daily driver.

> I do use it for home improvement stuff and for hauling stuff around

I don’t understand this argument, as they seem incredibly impractical for that. There is very little space for ‘stuff’, there is only the uncovered bed which is relatively small. The bed is also at an awkward height so very impractical to get stuff in or out. Since the bed is open, you always have to take all your ‘stuff’ out, you can’t leave tools in there or anything of value or it will get stolen. If you put a hard cover on. it leaves even less space. And since a large part of the vehicle has no roof you cannot have a roof rack.

You do not see these used by people in construction or other trades here in Europe. They use vans. An (extended) van has an ungodly amount of lockable storage space, easily accessible with side and back doors, with a floor at a reasonable height and if that isn’t enough you with a roof rack you can strap a lot to the roof as well.

I really don’t see how something like an F-150 is more practical for ‘hauling stuff’ than something like a Mercedes Sprinter.

I did look up some numbers (used the most capable configuration I could find for each of the vehicles):

Max bed length for an F-150: 247cm Max cargo space length for a Sprinter: 481cm

Bed/cargo width: F-150: 126cm, Sprinter 178cm Bed/cargo height: F-150: 54cm, Sprinter: 200cm

Max. payload capacity: F-150 : 1106kg, Sprinter 1477kg for the extra-long version, 2447kg for the long version.

Re: Allow me to introduce, the Citroen C15

#328

Post by Aurornis » Sat, Jan 10, 2026, 6:18 PM UTC

nottorp wrote: post #291

soared wrote: post #264

Earlier quoted context omitted.

My point was you can buy a car that is primarily safety+capability and not luxury+subscription. My rav4 has a touchscreen and power windows but that’s literally it as far as convenience/luxury. ~28k a couple years ago, no subscription. Anything heated, remote, touch to start, etc is in the luxury category what gp was asking about avoiding.

Depending on the weather, heated mirrors may be a safety feature. I'd very much like that for rain/foggy days for example.

This comment section went from “I don’t understand why car makers don’t sell a cheap stripped down car without luxuries” to “Heated mirrors and seats are very important” very quickly.

HN comments discovering in real time why the stripped-down base model vehicles don’t actually sell. People like those luxury features and they choose to pay extra for them.

Re: Allow me to introduce, the Citroen C15

#329

Post by formerly_proven » Sat, Jan 10, 2026, 6:18 PM UTC

Aurornis wrote: post #128

KronisLV wrote: post #19

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> The C15 represents a time when a vehicle was a tool. I feel vehicles want to turn into a subscription service these days. I wonder how differently cars would be built, if instead of maximizing for value extraction and crap nobody needs, they instead were optimized for utility and maintenance (and sure, fuel economy, aerodynamics and some sane environmental stuff). Like take the C15 and add 2-4 decades of manufactur…

> I wonder how differently cars would be built, if instead of maximizing for value extraction and crap nobody needs, they instead were optimized for utility and maintenance (and sure, fuel economy, aerodynamics and some sane environmental stuff). Auto manufacturers already have stripped-down base models of their entry-level vehicles. Many have commercial versions of their vehicles, especially trucks and vans, that ar…

Econo shitboxes also have very stiff competition from used low-end cars. The economics of them are often rather dubious.

Re: Allow me to introduce, the Citroen C15

#330

Post by tavavex » Sat, Jan 10, 2026, 6:18 PM UTC

ozim wrote: post #245

Typical technically correct content. If you are person that doesn’t give a fuck about keeping up with Jones’s you just buy whatever does the job. I could drive much better car but I don’t have to impress my neighbors. Still with non-impressive car I get pushed around on the road by guys in big and impressive cars. But also I drive on defense anyway so I get them to go far away from me by letting them pass. I am quite…

I think you've hit the nail on the head, but not in the same way as what I was thinking. It's not about impressiveness - as in, a show of wealth or status. It's all about size. This is a relatively small car, but as far as I can tell, back in the day all of them were considerably smaller, even the ones that were pricey and designed to look cool or expensive. Nowadays, the most obnoxious and dangerous car drivers have united with the most hands-off governments and manufacturers willing to pander to them exclusively to create an arms race of building the biggest megatank that can fit within a lane and only occupy six parking spots at once.