After a third generation which immediately experienced the success it managed to sustain throughout its career, the Citroën C3 is preparing to leave European roads to make way for its replacement. Within two months, Citroën will therefore lift the veil on the one that has crystallized so many doubts, misunderstandings, questions but also hopes and which will try to reproduce the success of the third generation.
With this fourth generation of C3, Citroën will finally materialize its promise to make the electric vehicle accessible while allowing us to really understand the positioning of the brand within the Stellantis group.
A very elaborate style
This future C3 will indeed be a brand new car for Citroën in Europe, drawing on the lessons learned by the C3 from the C-cubed program and marketed in Asia and Latin America. The fourth generation of Citroën C3 will therefore be a version exclusive to Europe both in terms of style and technique since the differences between the CMP platform in India and that offered in Europe will be strong.
The next C3 will be an opportunity for Citroën to present a clear evolution of its style imposed by the change of logo and announced via the oli concept. For this, we will find on the front face projectors inspired by the latter where two horizontal LED bars will frame LED modules, like what the brand already offers on the restyled C5 Aircross. The grille would also be black with, in the center, the new brand logo which would be more vertical. Like the C5 Aircross, the lower grille would be made up of herringbone patterns.
As for the profile, the future European C3 should sport a silhouette of a small adventurer, a sort of follow-up to the C3 “3” which, already, added SUV codes. First certainty: the door handles will not be clamshell like the Indian or South American versions but real door handles while the bodywork will be fully protected by plastic protections but we should no longer find airbumps as we currently know them , they would be replaced by a plastic element whose design would be close to that of the new C3 Aircross.
Citroën likes to play with its logo, so it is only natural that after inserting it everywhere in the passenger compartment of the latest models, it now appears on the bodywork and, alongside the rear strip, the pattern to chevrons should end up on the…wheel arches! Indeed, it seems that Citroën will offer on its C3 plastic protections on the wheel arches on which the chevrons will be engraved in the upper part when the lower part is smooth.
In short, the current C3 relied heavily on its SUV finery to differentiate itself and the future C3 will go a step further by posing as an SUV, a way of completely standing out from the competition and taking time in advance since many brands have already announced the arrival of small SUVs to replace their star models like Ford with the Fiesta or VW with the Polo. If this future C3 will have the mission of being accessible, Citroën has not forgotten the style and this fourth generation will not lack assets to offer a rewarding, neat and typical SUV style with, in particular, much larger wheels. than those of the C3 marketed in India or Brazil.
A generous and clever interior
The SUV-type body has the advantage of offering more living space and Citroën will prove it with the future C3 which should be much more generous in the rear seats than the current one. Still in a compact format, around 4 m, the future C3 should make it possible to compete with the Sandero and offer good space for the knees of the rear passengers but also for the trunk which could greatly exceed 300 liters in capacity.
In any good Citroën, this future C3 should be very comfortable and be the most comfortable car in its segment, a real advantage over its rivals. Will Citroën manage to offer suspensions with hydraulic stops? We will see at launch, but the comfort of this future C3 will be very neat with generous seats which should offer a new design putting an end to the capsule designs currently offered on the European range, this design should bring back some memories to Citroënists elsewhere since they were present on an old legendary model.
As for the dashboard, it is here that Citroën will show its capacity for innovation since, if it is certain that the dashboard will be totally different, here too from the Indian C3, it should also offer an innovation also in the spirit of the oli concept. Indeed, it would seem that the brand has continued its reflections on the instrument clusters and that it is inspired by its work on oli to offer on the C3 a dashboard where the handset would be moved back as close as possible to the visor. breeze through a very thin but very wide screen. In addition, the multimedia screen of the future C3 will be taken from the Indian C3 and will offer a 10-inch touch screen on which the new multimedia system will be broadcast.
On this very horizontal dashboard, still in the spirit of the brand's latest models, Citroën should offer fabric elements on either side of the touch screen which will give this future C3 a good atmosphere. far from low-cost.
A unique proposition
SUV-like, livable with a refined design, the future Citroën C3 is already drawing the outlines of a unique proposition on the market, but Citroën will go even further since, finally, this future C3 will allow the brand to offer an electric motorization on segment B.
Based on the CMP platform, the future Citroën C3 should use the new Stellantis eMotors engine but its power could be reduced in order to offer sufficient autonomy at a reasonable cost. And this is where Citroën will make all the difference! Indeed, while the Peugeot e-208 or Opel Corsa-e are available at around €35,000, excluding bonuses, the future C3 should be significantly lower with the objective of being under €20,000, bonus deducted.
In conclusion, look carefully: a versatile sedan, SUV-tinted, livable, comfortable and electric for less than €20,000 bonus deducted: there is none! Citroën will therefore strike a blow with this future C3 which, in thermal engines, could start at €15,000, or be one of the most accessible cars on the market. So, inevitably, to achieve this price, choices were made, choices that did not prevent Citroën from offering a C3 with a neat look, always customizable, in line with the current generation whose success has been real and lasting. It remains to be seen if the choices that Citroën has made will pay off, response by October when the brand will lift the veil on this new and so awaited C3.