Citroën is a unique automobile brand that has become legendary through many of its models, but also through its communication, especially that of its founder. In fact, André Citroën was a visionary genius for whom communication was important and who sought to create major events that are still legendary today, such as the Croisière Noire, which is celebrating its 100th anniversary this year. .
The Croisière Noire was the very first Citroën cruise, crossing Africa from north to south to demonstrate the reliability of the brand's cars, but above all to bring people together by opening up new lines of communication. As a tribute to this first cruise, Éric Vigouroux, adventurer, entrepreneur and former Dakar pilot, decided to create the Croisière Verte with the same aim: to meet Africans and introduce them to green mobility. As a tribute to the Croisière Noire, Éric Vigouroux and his three colleagues will cross North and South Africa in a Citroën Ami.
Transforming a small city car into a desert buggy was a risk, but like a good adventurer, Éric Vigouroux and his teams took the risk of completing the 14,000 km of this first Croisière Verte in a Citroën Ami to demonstrate the reliability of electric cars and to look to the future by proving that these light electric mobility objects are a good solution for tomorrow's mobility. Of course, the Citroën Amis used are not exactly the same as the ones we meet on the road, the driving conditions required significant modifications, but the top speed remains limited to 45 km/h. Instead of the usual 14 inches, the Citroën Amis is fitted with 17-inch wheels to increase ground clearance and motorcycle tyres to improve traction on sand. Because, yes, additional difficulty: Éric Vigouroux's team intends to cross Africa off the beaten track, not along the coast, stopping at every hotel to recharge the batteries, but through the heart of Africa, which is why they have equipped the Citroën Ami with a battery that gives it a range of 250 km, which it will be able to recharge at any of the existing renewable energy production sites, while it is equipped with a solar panel on the roof and a genuine folding solar power plant, one of the major innovations developed especially for this expedition. In fact, the Citroën Ami used for the Croisière Verte is an Ami Cargo, i.e. a single-seater in which the passenger seat is replaced by around forty extremely thin solar panels, which will allow the crews to recharge their vehicle in the middle of the desert, thus allowing the crews to be completely autonomous and unassisted, just like André Citroën's Croisière Noire in 1924.
This Croisière Verte is therefore a wonderful way to pay tribute to the Black Cruise and the genius of André Citroën and Louis Audouin Dubreuil, second in command of all Citroën cruises, while demonstrating the unexpected capabilities of the Citroën AMi, which never ceases to amaze us. The Croisière Verte will be unveiled at the Paris Motor Show on 14 October, before making its way across France to Ouarzazate, where it will officially depart on 28 October 2024, 100 years to the day after the Black Cruise. Éric Vigouroux's teams will cover 14,000 km at a rate of 200 km per day, with an expected arrival in Cape Town in mid-January 2025. The itinerary will vary each day, taking into account numerous parameters such as recharging facilities, existing conditions, climatic conditions and the geographical location of each country!
The objectives of La Croisière Verte are many and varied, but first and foremost is to demonstrate the potential of electric mobility, and in particular the simplicity, repairability and robustness of this new type of light, zero-emission electric vehicle, even on a difficult and varied route. Above all, however, the Croisière Verte aims to promote the potential of the African continent and to inspire the younger generations.
To sum up, the idea of this Croisière Verte really appealed to me because it makes sense and shows how much Citroën still inspires. To pay tribute to the "Croisière Noire", a time that the brand envisaged with the "Popée" before it was cancelled since Stellantis, and to do so in a Citroën Ami is a fantastic way of proving that these new forms of mobility have a lot of potential, while remaining faithful to the idea of André Citroën when he created these cruises, namely to meet and bring people together. Citroën is a passionate partner of this first Green Cruise, and I will be sending you a weekly report on the journey in the form of photos and videos that will allow us to follow this Green Cruise as closely as possible. 100 years later, Citroën is once again at the forefront of tomorrow's mobility, thanks to Éric Vigouroux's teams.
You can follow the Croisière Verte teams on their website (lacroisiereverte.fr) and on social networks:
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/lacroisiereverte/
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/la-croisiere-verte/
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