Design review Citroën ë-C4

What makes a real Citroën? The designers of every brand should ask themselves this question in the research phase. A good indicator for such design research are the brand’s historic cars. The first major Citroën highlight is the Traction Avant from the mid-1930s.

The Citroën Traction Cabriolet.

In 1948 the brand showed the 2CV to the public. In 1955 the legendary and elongated DS, which was followed by the equally beautiful and streamlined CX in the 1970s.

Around that time the beautiful SM and smaller GS were also presented. Highlights of the eighties are the small AX, mid-range BX and limousine XM. What Citroën designs shared until the late 1990s is a clearly slender and sharp cut brand DNA. A long wheelbase was the foundation. For this, a nose with large overhang and a rear wheel placed far back in the body, with short overhang. Back then, a proper Citroën design was interesting with elegant solutions that, through the long wheelbase, spoke about the focus on comfort.

Around the turn of the century, Citroën design went radically in the wrong direction. The ZX, Saxo, Berlingo and Xsara are not very frivolous designs. The joie de vivre was completely achieved at Citroën, through very careful design work. The finely built finesse of before was completely missing. The special C6 was used as a top model in 2005, but to no avail. In addition to a first generation C3 and C4 in the showroom, and a range of other models that did not appeal to the imagination, there was no honor to be achieved.

In 2006, strong new ideas were shown in the form of the Citroën C-Métisse concept car. An outspoken front party with new ones down the road graphic, a long wheelbase as a direct link to the DS and CX and a strongly rearward leaning body that did the same. Diametrically opposed to the rising shoulder line that all manufacturers use. Perfect ideas for mass production, but unfortunately none of them ever made it to production.

In light of that rapid historical passage, is the new Citroën ë-C4 X a real Citroën? We can be brief about the brand’s heritage. That seems to have been completely forgotten. The nose, with its DRG, can be described as grossly material.

The elongated DS, streamlined CX and beautiful SM are also not visible in the flanks. However, the surfacing is heavy and can perhaps be called tough in places. Perhaps appropriate for an SUV, but much more generic than slender and sharply cut DNA.

The most important miss, but incredibly difficult to avoid in a world of platform sharing, is the missing long wheelbase. The rear wheel is in a regular place in the body. A copy placed further back in the body, which the regular C4 does have, with a short overhang behind the wheel would be that unique focus on comfort and finely built finesse, as a direct link to the DS and CX with their rearward leaning bodywork.

This ë-C4 Merde!