Smart move
Citroën is going full EV attack. After the ë-C3, which was launched on the market with a favorable price, it now comes with the brand new ë-C3 Aircross. The Citroën ë-C3 Aircross translates the concept of its little brother to a higher segment: that of the electric crossover. The Citroën ë-C3 Aircross is spacious, can accommodate up to seven passengers and, like the ë-C3, promises to have an interesting price.
Highlights Citroën ë-C3 Aircross
- Comes as electric ë-C3 Aircross …
- … But also as a C3 Aircross with (mild-hybrid) petrol engines
- Large and as a seven-seater
- Favorable pricing
Stellantis pushes the EV pedal to the bottom. It has been doing that for a while now. In recent years it has released one electric model after another. These were often compact hatchbacks or compact crossovers on an e-CMP basis. Think of the Opel Mokka Electric and Peugeot e-2008, but the true compact middle class cars were also not forgotten. For example, the Opel Astra, the Peugeot 308 and DS 4 received fully electric versions. These so-called C-segmenters are in turn on a modernized variant of the EMP2 platform that has been in operation for a while. With the brand new Peugeot 3008 and 5008, Stellantis is also bringing the STLA platform family, developed primarily for electric models – but suitable for combustion engines – to Europe. But there’s more. Much more. Stellantis has also found room for expansion at the bottom of the already extensive EV family. For example, it introduced the Smart Car Platform under the Citroën ë-C3. This is simpler in design than the (e-)CMP hardware and this means that models based on that basis can be marketed at a slightly more attractive price point. This brand new Citroën ë-C3 Aircross also uses this technology, and that is promising.
The C3 Aircross as it is already for sale in India and Brazil, among others.
European development
The Citroën ë-C3 Aircross is new to Europe down to the smallest detail, but elsewhere in the world a Citroën closely associated with this car has been for sale for a while. For example, Citroën not only launched the C3 and ë-C3 in Brazil and India, among others, well before they were brought to Europe in a modified form, the Citroën C3 Aircross has also been around there for a while. Since mid-2023, to be precise. Not yet as an EV, by the way. The electric ë-C3 Aircross that Citroën is now presenting for the European and therefore also the Dutch market, is in turn a version of that ‘exotic’ crossover adapted for our market. Remarkably, Citroën did not get the scoop to launch the SUV in Europe. We were recently introduced to the brand new Opel Frontera, which is actually a C3 Aircross with Opel design features.
The Citroën ë-C3 Aircross for Europe.
Spatial guesswork
Citroën does not yet share many technical specifications. At least: the brand only says that the crossover is 4.39 meters long. A little longer than the C3 Aircross mentioned and already delivered in growth markets. Striking: according to Opel, the Opel Frontera is ‘more than 4.3’ meters long. That is really something different than 4.39 meters. This difference in length can perhaps be explained by the different bumper work. Back to the Citroën. The new ë-C3 Aircross is 24 centimeters longer than the crossover that you currently find as C3 Aircross in Dutch showrooms. The new Citroën ë-C3 Aircross is about four centimeters wider and three centimeters higher than the now seven-year-old crossover. The old C3 Aircross, just like the old C3 with the Origin addition, may continue to exist alongside its successor for a while.
Those extra centimeters undoubtedly provide the crossover with a lot of interior space. How big is the loading space? Citroën does not report this either. Opel specifies a luggage space of 460 to – with the rear seats flat – 1,600 liters for the technically identical Frontera. So it’s a fill-in-the-blank exercise. Although the Citroën ë-C3 Aircross is close to the C4 in terms of size, the car is one step below it in the Citroën hierarchy, although it has a huge trump card compared to the C4. Unlike the C4 and the old C3 Aircross, the new Citroën ë-C3 Aircross offers space for three rows of seats. Indeed: it is a seven-seater!
Citroen ë-C3 Aircross
More SUV
With its relatively high nose and roofline extending far to the rear, the new ë-C3 Aircross looks more like an SUV than its old namesake. Because the ë-C3 Aircross simply shares its base with a ‘low’ hatchback and has front-wheel drive, it is a straight crossover. Just as the European ë-C3/C3 has a completely different face than the model intended for growth markets, the European Citroën ë-C3 Aircross has a completely different face than its exotic namesake. Not surprisingly, the ë-C3 Aircross looks quite similar to ‘our’ ë-C3/C3 from the front. It has similar headlights and an almost identical semi-closed front.
The design of the rear is also comparable to that of the smaller ë-C3/C3. Here too, rear lights connected by a ribbed plastic strip with a C-shaped light signature composed of three elements. However, the shape of the rear lights on the new ë-C3 Aircross is also C-shaped, unlike the smaller ë-C3/C3. The model name can be read in large letters at the bottom of the tailgate. Furthermore, the Citroën ë-C3 Aircross is clearly different at the front and rear from the related Opel Frontera. Citroën is not yet releasing images of the interior.
Powertrains
We keep talking about the Citroën ë-C3 Aircross, but we could also call it the new C3 Aircross. So without an ë-tje. Conventional variants without a plug are also appearing, although they do not completely miss the electrification boat. In addition to engines without electrification assistance, there will also be 48v mild-hybrid petrol engines. In any case, Stellantis has both 100 hp and 136 hp powerful mild-hybrid 1.2s on the shelves. So don’t be surprised if they find their way to the C3 Aircross.
We are also in the dark about the electric versions. It is not inconceivable that Citroën will install the 113-hp electric motor and 44-kWh battery of the most powerful ë-C3 in the most modest variant of the ë-C3 Aircross. We are also thinking of the 136-hp or even 156-hp electric motors and the 50 kWh batteries of the Opel Mokka and Peugeot 2008. The fact is that the relatively cheap basis of Citroën’s new practical crossover suggests that it will be relatively favorable in the can be put on the market. So a step below C4.
In the summer, Citroën fills in all the open spaces. Then the new ë-C3 Aircross will make its public debut.
– Thanks for information from Autoweek.nl