We are almost there! The car that has been so much talked about for many months is about to be unveiled by the brand with the ambition of continuing the success of the current generation, while trying to widen its customer base with an electric offer that Citroën wanted to be particularly attractive.
An SUV-inspired look
At 50 days from its presentation, the future C3 remains a complete unknown, since no photo of the prototypes undergoing testing has been published for the moment and it is a safe bet that it will be once the presentation is made that these latter will be published. However, this next generation of the C3 is not a complete unknown, as we have been presenting you with an illustration as close to the original as possible for a few months now.
These illustrations show that the future C3 will remain a saloon, but that it will need a lot of height to look like a subsequent SUV, in the footsteps of the C4 and C5 X, which combine the codes of saloon and SUV. This greater height will make it possible to place the battery pack while ensuring optimal space for the rear passengers and the boot. Because if the C3 will grow, it will be on the margin, since the length should very slightly exceed 4m for a width identical to the current one, but a much higher height therefore, which will make it look like an SUV. A photo recently proposed by Citroën in Argentina makes it possible to better perceive the dimensions of this C3, which will not be the one sold in Latin America, but whose proportions will be close.
A mission: to make electricity affordable
Above all, this future Citroën C3 will be the very first generation to receive a 100% electric version, which will have a difficult mission: to make the electric car accessible to all. To do this, it will be based on an electric motor different from the one used in India, but with a modest power output, probably between 80 and 100 hp, which is quite sufficient given the torque always available from the electric motors, which will ensure that the C3 can move without difficulty. But what counts in an electric car is the battery and the C3's should be around 40 kWh, which would allow it to offer a promised autonomy beyond the 300 kilometres on the WLTP cycle and probably 250 km in real conditions.
Because Citroën wants its C3 to be an accessible car, it has decided to sell it at a price without competition: under €25,000 excluding bonuses, i.e. a starting price of under €20,000 excluding bonuses, or even under €18,000 if the 7,000th bonus is included. Above all, this future electric C3 is the first car to meet the conditions to be sold under the social package desired by the government, which will make it possible to offer an electric car for rent for less than €100 per month.
In addition to the electric versions, the future C3 will only be available with petrol engines, with the diesel no longer available at this level of the range. It should therefore offer slightly hybrid thermal engines with a power of 100 bhp, the 136 bhp version would probably not be offered. The range could continue to receive the 82 bhp Puretech, which will allow the C3 to offer a starting price, in thermal versions, similar to the current generation, i.e. around 16,000 euros.
In conclusion, there are only 50 days left before we see and know everything about this new generation C3, which will have the difficult task of ensuring the brand's new positioning, inaugurating the new Citroën style with the new logo and continuing the success of the current generation which, despite being 7 years old, will continue to be at the forefront of the French market in particular.