New entry-level Citroen e-C4 Sense launched priced from £28,495

Citroen has revised the e-C4 range, ditching the car’s previous entry-level Sense Plus trim in favour of an even cheaper Sense variant. Now, prices for the electric coupe-SUV start from £28,495 including the government’s £1,500 plug-in car grant, making the car around £2,500 cheaper than it was at the end of last year.

Naturally, the new entry-level Citroen e-C4 Sense has a little less equipment than the previous Sense Plus model, but the cutbacks are less than you’d expect. Buyers still get 18-inch alloy wheels, LED headlights, electrically folding door mirrors, rear parking sensors and keyless go.

Inside, there’s dual-zone climate control and a 10-inch infotainment system with Apple CarPlay and Android Auto, and an integrated tablet mount for the passenger side of the dashboard. Citroen has also thrown in its Advanced Comfort suspension and seats as part of the package, which promise to keep the driver better isolated from bumps in the road.

Citroen has also tweaked the rest of the e-C4 range as part of the update. The previous Shine variant has been renamed “Shine Edition” and given a new starting price of £30,495 (including the government grant).

The e-C4 Shine Edition features the same equipment as outgoing e-C4 Shine, so includes front and rear parking sensors, a heated steering wheel, a two-position boot floor and a host of additional driver-assistance technology. 

On the technology front, upgrades over the Sense variant include a head-up display, front and rear parking sensors, active cruise control, active blind spot detection and a traffic sign-recognition system. There’s even a function that can detect cyclists at night.

The flagship Citroen e-C4 Shine Plus sits at the top of the line-up, basically unchanged over the previous model, with a starting price of £34,995. However, it’s no longer eligible for the plug-in car grant since the government revised the scheme’s terms, slashing the price-cap from £35,000 to £32,000.

Standard equipment includes an improved stereo with a subwoofer, heated front seats, black synthetic leather upholstery, black interior trim and a wireless smartphone charging pad.

This pricing and trim restructure follows Citroen’s recent technical update of the e-C4, in which the company extracted an extra 18 miles of “real world” range from the EV’s powertrain, by fitting more efficient ancillaries. Key upgrades included a more efficient heat pump and a revised transmission.

The e-C4 is powered by a 50kWh battery pack and a 134bhp electric motor mounted on the front axle. Citroen says that’s enough for a 0–62mph time of 9.7 seconds, a top speed of 93mph and, most importantly, a maximum range of 217 miles. A full charge via a 7kW wallbox takes a little over seven hours.

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