New Citroen 2CV: retro-futuristic concept previews £13k EV
A reboot of the 2CV has been on the cards for years, but only now are conditions right for it to prosper
A new Citroen 2CV is on the way, and this is what it’ll look like when it arrives in showrooms by the end of 2028. It’ll be built according to the EU’s incoming E-car regulations – a simpler and by extension cheaper new type of car that’s being negotiated between the EU and European car manufacturers.
Under these new rules, Citroen says the new 2CV will cost from as little as 15,000 Euros (£12,700), totally changing the game in terms of affordability for new car buyers across Europe and the UK.
So rather than being another gratuitous retro reboot, Citroen’s new ‘Deux Chevaux’ aims to once again be an affordable car designed for Europe’s masses. There’s even an egg crate in the door card.
What is the new 2CV? A car or a concept?
At 3.76m long, the 2CV Concept is actually a smaller car than the original, and will sit where a traditional A-segment city car might otherwise exist. This will put it somewhere between Citroen’s Ami – which is technically a ‘quadricycle’ – and a traditional car such as the e-C3.
In the flesh, the 2CV certainly feels closer to a normal car in terms of its stance and proportions – it’s shorter than the new Renault Twingo. Given that it has such a close connection to a post-WW2 package that is so far removed from a modern car, Citroen is aware of the challenges of trying to reimagine it for the 21st century.
Speaking to Auto Express, Citroen’s design lead on the project, Antoine Gaillot-Drevon, told us: “We didn’t want to do a retro or revival design. We managed to bring it into a modern territory.
“We had some super-interesting discussions between all the team members, because we’re all different age groups and different backgrounds. The 2CV resonates differently to all of us, [so] we wanted to speak to every generation.
“We always had those questions of debate, like, is it too retro? Do we just have to copy and paste the door handle from the original 2CV, or do we have to reinterpret them?”
Designed to be inexpensive, not inexpensively designed
In the flesh, the 2CV Concept’s compact footprint helps keep its many retro design references from looking clunky. Those ridges on the bonnet and the flattened headlights are a supersized reference to the original, but they’re crisp and precise, although function hasn’t totally dictated their form.
Many of the new 2CV’s elements do have a clear functionality, though. Near-flat windscreens on the front and rear, the exposed cowl and wipers, opening ventilation slots and a roll-back fabric roof all help reduce the car’s complexity, and therefore cost. The concept doesn’t have opening windows, but we’re told the production version will have roll-down windows up front, and simple pop-out units at the back.
The 2CV Concept has been designed to be inexpensive, rather than a stripped-out version of a normal car. Citroen’s design boss continued: “Glass costs a lot of money. If you bend it in only one direction, it’s cheaper than bending the glass in two directions. The rear of the car is [also] completely black, and it’s not painted. It’s directly injected into the tailgate.”
The concept’s exposed bumpers are another element that Citroen wants to carry across to production. “There’s no regulation from the EU saying no, [but] we have to go deeper into the legislation to see where we can improve the shape. It’s our role not to be just stylists, but designers.”
The concept’s wheels are 18 inches in diameter, and although they have plastic covers, they will be reimagined in steel in that same size for the production car. The narrower tyres will also be designed specifically for the new E-regulation class, and will be developed with Michelin to retain equivalent levels of grip and stability as those found on a standard car.
Citroen 2CV Concept, the inside story
The cabin is where Citroen’s designers have taken the 2CV Concept furthest away from what many would consider a modern car’s interior. The idea is to reduce it to its bare essentials, maximising space and only using technologies that will be needed by drivers.
For instance, in place of a traditional instrument cluster is a black bar that sits under the windscreen, which displays the reflection of a small screen below – similar in principle to BMW’s Panoramic Vision, albeit much smaller. This shows all the car’s key information such as speed and warnings.
The single-spoke steering wheel is a particularly sculptural element that sits as part of a barrel-like appendage. This in effect makes up the entire dashboard, and houses another small screen – in the case of the concept made from e-ink, just like a Kindle – and the car’s gear selector. This takes direct inspiration from the original 2CV, and juts out from under the screen.
Space inside the cabin isn’t as restricted as you might suspect given the car’s length, but the final packaging and proportions are still to be finalised. However, while the upholstered doors and yellow tartan fabrics are unlikely to be directly reimagined for production, clever elements such as the hanging lanterns and wicker bin between the seats could easily be made available as some creative accessories.
Due to the arching roofline, the boot will be compact, but Citroen is working to include folding rear seats to make the most of the available space.
Citroen 2CV Concept tech specs
No technical specifications have been revealed so far, but Citroen is aiming for a one-tonne weight for the future production car. This suggests a compact battery size, but while this will limit range, the low mass should mean it can make the most of what capacity it does have.
Gaillot-Drevon reiterated that this is a concept in a class of car that’s still largely undefined, but he added: “It's super-credible. It's not a crazy concept like we did 20 years ago. We don't want to promise something that we will not be able to deliver. So what you see here is clearly possible to make production.”
However, there’s a whole world of unknowns when it comes to the E-regulations’ requirements in terms of capability. Will they be able to keep up with larger traffic on fast A-roads and motorways? What are the cost-based compromises when it comes to performance, safety and comfort? Will manufacturers from outside Stellantis get involved?
With big manufacturing bases in two of the EU’s biggest markets – France and Italy – Stellantis is particularly well placed to clarify many of these questions. Through collaboration with EU officials they can ensure the regulations that are being developed work for all parties, especially buyers who are currently priced out of the new car market.
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