After two first appearances in India, Citroën's next novelty for the so-called emerging markets was surprised in tests in Spain with a camouflage that allows us to know more about the relationship that will exist between this new car, responding to the codename CC22, and the latest C3 Aircross.
The latest C3 will soon be joined by the new C3 Aircross on the Indian and Brazilian markets, among others, to enable the brand to develop its sales in these regions. The third vehicle in the C-Cubed programme, which is aimed at developing Citroën's international sales, is currently under development and is continuing its development tests, this time in Europe, more precisely in Spain, which are revealing a number of details.
These latest photos of prototypes allow us to learn a little more about this third product in the C-Class range, which has been rather obscure up to now. Between an alleged saloon with a boot to replace the C-Elysée and the latest reports of a C3 Aircross coupé, it is very difficult to know exactly what this CC22 will look like.
First observation: the similarities with the C3 Aircross seem to be numerous, since these photos make it possible to confirm that the entire front part of the car will be shared with the brand's latest compact SUV, this can be clearly seen on the bumper grilles, but also on the front wings, which seem to be identical to those of the brand's latest model. It seems that this CC22 is a direct descendant of the C3 Aircross, at least up to and including the front doors, the big differences come after these doors where this CC22 should have a roof drop like the SUV coupe or the latest C4 X, but unlike the latter, this CC22 will not have a classic boot but rather a tailgate, the camouflage present on this part tries to hide it.
However, the fully visible lights on this prototype indicate that they are directly related to the C3 saloon and not the C3 Aircross like the rest of the front end. The lights seem to be identical to those of the C3 and do not take the stylistic codes of the brand's latest SUV directly from the oli concept and which will sign the rear of all future Citroëns. Is it provisional for these tests? We will have to wait to find out for sure, but it seems strange to adopt C3 lights that do not correspond to the brand's new style, so it could be a kind of decoy or just a use for these development tests.
This series of photos taken in Spain underlines that the tests are active on this next CC22 which could possibly be presented earlier in the year, from the first quarter of 2024. This third vehicle of the C-Cubed programme should be slightly larger than the C3 Aircross, around 4.40m, and could be a C3 Aircross coupé or even a hybrid version of a compact saloon, we will have to wait for its presentation to find out.