Soberly considered, you can not do very much with the Citroën Ami and it is questionable whether this electric box will come to the Netherlands. Still, he has a huge appeal. You just want it! In short, relevant or not, we like to drive around the church in Montsoult near Paris with this.
The little thunder is as crazy as a Citroën can be and turns out to be very ingenious. Take the doors. On the driver’s side, the door opens against the direction of travel (so-called suicide) and on the co-driver’s side the hinges are in the conventional position. Rode? For example, Citroën only needs to make one type of door, which fits left and right. Or take the front and back. The panels are identical, only the lamps differ. The folding windows in the doors evoke nostalgic feelings in former 2CV drivers and the simple door mirrors could also have been on a moped. The 14-inch wheels with 155/65R14 tires are right on the corners and are not inferior to the wheels of an early C1. All in all, the Ami misleads you a bit, because it looks like a ‘real’ car. With its length of 2.41 meters, it is ten centimeters shorter than the first Smart and 18 centimeters narrower. In height, it is one centimeter in favor of the Smart.
trouser pocket
Minimalism reigns supreme in the interior. You remove the infotainment system from your pocket and clamp it in the smartphone holder, which is suitable for both Apple and Android. For the reproduction of sound you have to rely on the speakers in the phone, earplugs or a cool Bluetooth speaker from Citroën. It fits in the holder behind the small instruments. The information consists of the range, speed, mileage and in which mode the transmission is. You control it with three buttons to the left of your seat: D, N and R.
The seats are reminiscent of the plastic tubs in a football stadium, but they are equipped with thin cushions and headrests. There are push buttons for the heater, a fan (in both cases the air comes from the same slot under the windshield) and for the hazard lights. To open the door again, pull an orange loop sticking out of the door. There is also a USB port to charge the infotainment system. Speaking of charging: this is only possible at a normal socket, via a three-meter long cord (not with a winder) that is in the car. What is striking is the enormous amount of legroom for the passenger, which can also partly serve as luggage space, because there is no other place to store things.
No airbags
Starting is completely analog, with an old-fashioned key in the ignition. Foot on the brake, press button D and drive away. The little Ami jumps smoothly and even with wheelspin from his place and soon you are at the top speed of about 45 km/h. It bounces over every bump and you can hear what’s going on under and around the car, as just about any kind of soundproofing is missing. Because the A-pillars are far away and there is a lot of glass, you do not experience the Ami as small or cramped. On the contrary, he seems very mature in that respect. The low top speed, driving noise and hard suspension remind you that it is not a real car. Or if you brake hard and you feel the wheels lock, because ABS is obviously not on it. There are also no airbags, everything has been done to keep the Ami as cheap as possible and all those attributes are not required by law for this vehicle category.
A Twitter user already spotted an Ami on a Dutch moped registration in Leiden. The cheerful Frenchman, which is also available as Opel Rocks-e, is already on sale in France, Belgium, Spain, Italy and Great Britain. There are already 11,000 orders in the order books. It is not yet certain whether the Ami will come to the Netherlands. As a microcar for use in urban areas, there is quite a market for it, although you are a driving chicane outside built-up areas. Anyway, it is an enormously cuddly cart that captivates you with its mischievous appearance and playful interior.
– Thanks for information from Autoweek.nl