CITROEN

New Citroen 2CV confirmed: €15,000

Citroen has confirmed the revival of the iconic 2CV nameplate for its upcoming €15,000 electric city car, while also revealing its design ahead of its unveiling at the Paris Motor Show in October.

Taking to the stage at parent company Stellantis’ investor day presentation in Michigan, Citroen CEO Xavier Chardon gave us a first look at the company’s new entry-level electric car and confirmed: “The 2CV is back.”

The long-awaited confirmation that Citroen will be reusing the iconic nameplate for its new electric car – which will be produced alongside Fiat’s reborn Panda in Italy from 2028 – comes with the first hint that the car’s 1940s styling will be reinterpreted for a new era.

Speaking to Autocar last month, Chardon said the new model would serve “exactly the same purpose as the 2CV in the late 1940s” in reviving customer demand in a stagnant European car market, and added that the company’s priority is to restore “purchasing power” to European drivers.

The first teasers of the new city car reveal that it will adopt the same snail-shaped silhouette as its era-defining predecessor, but with a more modern look influenced by the recent ELO concept, which set the tone for the brand’s future design.

The announcement comes just days after Stellantis confirmed that it will start producing affordable electric city cars – with a target price of under €15,000 – at its plant in Pomigliano, Italy, from 2028.

Fiat will similarly channel the styling – and likely the name – of its historic “people’s car”, the original 1980 Panda, for its version.

Chardon said the new 2CV would be one of seven new models to be launched by 2030. Five of them will be refreshes of existing models, while the 2CV and another – expected to be a slightly larger electric supermini – will take Citroen into “new profit pools”.

Confirming the name of the company’s new entry-level model, Chardon said: “Products themselves do not create icons. Icons create emotions. Icons connect brands with people. And today an icon is about to return. Yes, the 2CV is back.”

He then showed a blacked-out silhouette of the new electric vehicle and said: “If you want to see it in full light, you are invited to the [Paris] motor show in person in October.”

He mentioned the importance of the original 2CV in providing “freedom of mobility to millions” after World War II and said: “Eighty years later, the new 2CV will democratise electric mobility. It will be “a real people’s car designed for real life”, Chardon promised. "For me, the future of mobility will not be won by the most complex cars, but by the simplest and most intuitive. "What really matters is being relevant."

 

by Autonews