Citroen will soon be entering the Indian market. The French carmaker will be introducing the C5 Aircross as their first vehicle in India. Because of the rising SUV trend, it is wise of Citroen to first launch a mid-size SUV. This strategy has been proven successful for MG Motors with their Hector as well as for the Kia Motors with their Seltos.
Till now, we know that the C5 Aircross will be a CKD unit which means that the components will be imported to India and then the SUV will be assembled locally. There is a high chance that the new SUV will cost more than the competitors because of this. However, the highlight for the Citroen will be a new compact-SUV, internally called CC21. It will be replacing the current generation of Citroen C3 and it might get launched as the new generation of C3 globally.
Citroen is expected to launch the new C3 in the mid-2021. The best thing about this vehicle is that its underpinnings are adaptable which means that different countries might get a different body on top of the same chassis. It will also be manufactured and build locally which should significantly help in decreasing the costs for the C3. This will help in placing the compact-SUV very aggressively in the market. This is important as the compact-SUV segment is already a very crowded and competitive segment. Almost every manufacturer has a compact-SUV that competes in this segment.
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Here, we have a render based on the spy shots of what the upcoming C3 might look like. At the front, there are split headlamps which now we have seen on quite a few vehicles such as Hyundai Venue, Tata Harrier, MG Hector and much more. The LED Daytime Running Lamp will be placed above the headlamps and will connect seamlessly with a chrome strip that forms the Citroen’s badge eventually. The angular headlamps are placed below the LED Daytime Running Lamps. The hexagonal fog lamps sit in the lower half of the bumper with a large central air dam.
The compact-SUV also gets sculpted bonnet, roof rails and prominent shoulder lines to enhance the SUV character. Just like any other Citroen, there is heavy use of plastic cladding all over the body. At the rear, we can see LED tail lamps, a black stripe that connects the taillights.
Powering the new C3 will be small and potent engines. There would also be all-electric versions of the compact-SUV down the line. There will be two battery options, a 30 kWh will produce around 50 HP while the more powerful 40 kWh should produce around 80 HP. In Europe, the new C3 will get the same electric drivetrain as the Peugeot e208 with which it will share the underpinnings. Peugeot e208 gets a 50 kWh battery that produces 136 PS and 260 Nm. It has an electric range of 275 km. Once launched, the Citroen C3 will be competing against the likes of Nissan Magnite, Maruti Suzuki Vitara Brezza, Hyundai Venue, Kia Sonet, Tata Nexon, Ford Ecosport, Mahindra XUV300 and the upcoming Renault Kiger.
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The post New render of India-bound Citroen C3 compact SUV surfaces first appeared on Cartoq.