Like the other brands of the Stellantis group, Citroën will become 100% electric in Europe by 2030. At the same time, it will clearly position itself as the entry level of the group. Its offer should therefore be further transformed.
In recent months, several brands of the Stellantis group have announced that they will become 100% electric in Europe before the end of this decade, including Peugeot, DS, Fiat and Opel. During the presentation of its strategic plan Dare Forward 2030 At the beginning of March, the Euro-American giant went further by announcing: “ We are preparing the conditions to reach 100% of electric vehicles sold in Europe and 50% in the United States by 2030 “. In other words, provided that the charging infrastructure allows it, all the group’s manufacturers will have stopped offering thermal engine cars on the Old Continent within eight years. Citroën will be no exception. Renault having unveiled a similar strategy, no more generalist French manufacturer will offer a petrol or diesel model in 2030.
Gradual electrification for the C3 family
Over the course of the current decade, therefore, the chevron brand will first offer some of its models in “zero emission” variants, then will hurry on abandoning the thermal to the change of generation of its cars. One of the first cars to follow this strategy will be the next C3, developed under the code name CC21 and expected for autumn 2023. This will be based on a modified version of the CMP architecture of the new C3 offered in India and South America, will display like it an SUV look, and will be available as a battery-powered ë-C3. The future C3 Aircross of 2024, (CC24), which will grow a little to display around 4.30 m long, will also exist in thermal as in electric. These two vehicles will be available with two “Eco” electric engines which will not be supplied by Nidec as for the Peugeot 208 restyled in 2023. Ditto for the battery which will come from the German factory of Chinese Svolt and not from CATL.
Citroën will occupy the ground in the battery-powered city car market, without the small electric SUV (CJ4) which was to position itself between the two but whose development has been abandoned. Note that the C3 Aircross II will no longer be produced in Zaragoza in Spain but will join the C3 in Trnava in Slovakia.
How will the Citroën range evolve?
In 2025, the Citroën C5 Aircross, the second of the name, will go into production in Rennes. Its STLA Medium architecture, optimized for 100% electric vehicles, will allow Citroën to offer such a variant of its largest SUV. But this model should also be available in micro-hybrid and rechargeable hybrid at first. Here is what we already know about the upcoming electric Citroëns.
- 2023: new ë-C3 (CC21)
- 2024: new ë-C3 Aircross (CC24)
- 2025: new ë-C5 Aircross (CR3)
For the rest, it is still difficult to know what the offer of the chevron brand will look like in 2030 as the latter has “searched” for itself in previous years. The C4, whose electric version ë-C4 currently accounts for 16% of sales, should be restyled in 2024 and replaced by 2027, perhaps indirectly, to allow the manufacturer to maintain its position in the C segment. The replacement of the just-launched C5 X, on the other hand, is more uncertain whether Citroën will position itself as Stellantis’ entry-level offering. Also because of this, its range will be among the last of the group to abandon thermals. Because to maintain affordable prices, the costs associated with electrification must fall, which depends on the increase in production volumes and takes time. See you in 2029 for the 110th Citroën’s birthday?
TO READ. Manufacturers going 100% electric by 2030 in Europe