New design, hybrid or electric: Citroën unveils its new C5 Aircross

After the Peugeot 3008 last year, it's the turn of its cousin, the Citroën C5 Aircross, to get a facelift. With nearly 431,000 units sold for the first generation , launched in 2018, the C5 Aircross is an important model in Citroën's strategy.

It belongs to the C-segment, in the jargon of manufacturers, this compact but family SUV segment that allows for both margins and volumes. It is in fact the best-selling body style in Europe: more than one in five cars (22%) last year, according to figures from the European Automobile Manufacturers' Association (ACEA). Launching this type of model is therefore essential for brands.

The design of this new C5 Aircross takes up the current codes of the Citroën range, with in particular more angular lines, less rounded shapes than on the previous generation.

"We're really focusing on geometric, vertical, horizontal lines; we're more in a modern, electric world," Kate Mouilleron, design project manager at Citroën, explained to BFM Business .

The large SUV in the range thus adopts Stellantis' multi-energy platform, called STLA Medium, which allows it to be equipped with:

• an electric version with a maximum range of 680 kilometers in its long-range version with a 97kWh battery (520 kilometers in the standard version with the 73kWh battery),
• a plug-in hybrid version with 86 kilometers of 100% electric autonomy (a 1.6-liter four-cylinder with 150 horsepower and an electric motor associated with a 21kWh battery)
• and a 48V hybrid version with 145 horsepower.

This platform also allows for a long wheelbase - 2.78 meters long - to preserve the travel comfort expected on a Citroën (and which was the charm of the first generation C5 Aircross).

Citroën also claims that this version is more user-friendly, with a large vertical waterfall screen, as well as easier-to-use buttons on the steering wheel and a large head-up display. These are all elements that we detail in our special issue of En Route Pour Demain dedicated to this new C5 Aircross .

While orders will open in June, deliveries will take place in the second half of the year. Pricing is not yet available for this model, which is assembled at the Rennes plant (Ille-et-Vilaine). Citroën hopes to double annual sales of the C5 Aircross.