CITROEN'S Saxo is helping to give the French maker its happiest New Year celebrations ever.

The last year has seen Citroen race ahead of all its rivals to become Britain's No 3 top seller.

Only Ford and Vauxhall traditionally the top duo have sold more cars here in 2001.

Citroen, once the quirkiest of the three big French marques, has romped into the UK's third position with an incredible 55 per increase in sales.

It means it has pipped Renault, which only a couple of weeks ago claimed to have taken over the No 3 spot, and puts Citroen sales ahead of more likely makers such as Rover, Nissan, Toyota, Fiat, Volvo, Volkswagen and Audi.

Citroen's winning tactic has been to combine a stylish new image with low prices. The maker has just boosted its Saxo range, which has spent several years building up its position as Britain's best-selling hot hatch, by introducing a new low-priced version, the Forte. Priced at £5,995 on the road, this 1.1-litre hatch includes a CD and sunroof.

Last year was the first time Citroen's UK sales topped 100,000. But in 2001, they have soared to nearly 150,000.

Part of the success is down to Citroen's strong traditional reputation for diesel engines, which are becoming more popular in Britain. Advances in diesel technology have brought driving characteristics more in line with petrol models, while still improving running costs.

In Europe the PSA group, which owns both Citroen and Peugeot, is now established as the second largest maker, with a market share of over 14 per cent.

That puts PSA ahead of Ford (11.2 per cent), Vauxhall/Opel (10.9 per cent) and Renault (10.5 per cent).

Another key to Citroen's success is the Picasso, which joined the mini-MPV race only last year but has quickly become the UK's best-selling compact MPV, overtaking the Renault Scenic which pioneered the style, and the popular Vauxhall Zafira.

The company has just added a new top-of-the-range Picasso, the Exclusive.