USING RECYCLED AND GREEN MATERIALS
Recycled materials
Recycled products have the same technical specifications as new ones. Their thermal and mechanical durability ensure high quality and high performance.
Green materials
The extremely high quality of green materials means that they can now be used in Citroën vehicles for both hidden and visible parts.
SETTING UP CIRCULAR ECONOMY CLOSED-LOOP SYSTEMS
Our aim at Citroën is to fully recycle our vehicles at the end of their lives. We have therefore put a vehicle life cycle analysis procedure in place where we measure vehicles’ total environmental impact from design all the way to destruction. Using this system also means we can evaluate the materials we use, and make better choices for future cars.
ECO-FRIENDLY MANAGEMENT OF END-OF-LIFE VEHICLES
7 steps for recycling a vehicle
There has been a structure set up for the environmentally-friendly collection and processing of end-of-life vehicles (ELV) within the Citroën network for over 15 years. There are 7 stages to the recycling process of a car.
STEP 1: TRADE-IN
The last owner of an end-of-life vehicle takes it to an approved trade-in centre. The approved trade-in centre then checks the vehicle and issues the required Certificate of Destruction (CoD).
STEP 2: PRE-PROCESSING AND DEPOLLUTION
The battery and tyres are removed, and the airbags neutralised. Next, our partner removes any remaining fuel and other liquids from the vehicle: engine oil, transmission oil, brake fluid, and air conditioning coolant. This pollutant waste will then have 100% of its value reinstated in their specialist treatment facility.
STEP 3: DISMANTLING FOR RE-USE
The next step consists of dismantling mechanic parts, bodywork, and electrical and electronic components. These will either be reused as used parts, or reconditioned. If it’s economically viable, materials such as plastic and glass are also salvaged for recycling at this point.
STEP 4: STORAGE
Environmentally hazardous materials are recovered and sent to companies specialising in waste recycling or destruction.
STEP 5: CRUSHING
The depolluted shells are sent to a crusher, where they are crushed and shredded into pieces only a few centimetres in size. These pieces are then sent through an initial magnetic sorting process to recover any ferrous metals (steel).
STEP 6: POST-CRUSHING
The remaining crushed material is sorted automatically, using physical properties (magnets, Eddy currents, flotation) to separate the different types of material fragments.
STEP 7: RECYCLING, RECOVERY AND LANDFILL
Once sorted, these material fragments are recycled (metals are sent to steelworks/metalworks, and certain plastics back to the plastics industry) or converted into energy (cement works, urban heating, power stations, etc.). This industrial process means that over 95% of a vehicle’s weight can be reused, recycled or upcycled, which greatly reduces the amount of final waste ultimately sent to specialist landfill sites.
RECYCLING OF YOUR CITROËN
Trade-in scheme for end-of-life vehicles
Looking after the environment has always been a central focus for us. Now, end-of-life vehicle recycling has become a legal requirement.
This means that owners of any end-of-life Citroën vehicles can trade them in for free, providing that they fulfil certain conditions (listed below).
So we can make sure that your vehicle is recycled in the most environmentally-friendly way possible, we have commissioned a team of independent experts to check that vehicle returns are carried out correctly, and in compliance with current legislation. They also certify that our Partners fulfil all legal recycling requirements. This means that at each of their sites, all processes and documents relating to incoming and outgoing vehicles must comply with requirements set out by Citroën.
SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT RIGHT FROM THE START
To make sure that all Citroën products can be properly recycled, our research and development teams follow recyclability and reuse processes.
These are also used by suppliers, and help us to analyse vehicle parts and components in terms of their recyclability and potential for reuse.
The conditions for sustainable design are:
- A range of sustainable materials
- Depollution as a design factor
- Deconstruction as a design factor.
TRADE-IN CONDITIONS OF YOUR VEHICLE
You can trade in your end-of-life Citroën vehicle free of charge if:
- The vehicle has a maximum of 9 seats or is a commercial vehicle weighing less than 3.5 tonnes;
- The vehicle is registered in France;
- The vehicle still has all its essential parts;
- The vehicle does not contain any other waste;
- The vehicle’s original paperwork is returned at the same time as the vehicle.
VEHICLE LIFE CYCLE
From design to destruction
DEVELOPMENT
- Life cycle analysis
- Selection of sustainable materials
PRODUCTION
- Use of recycled materials
ACTIVE LIFE
- Waste management and disposal by approved repairers
- Reuse and refurbishment of spare parts
TRADE-IN
- Vehicle trade-in
- Depollution and pre-processing
- Compliance with the EU directive
