Stellantis’ ambitious FaSTLAne 2030 strategy has lots of new product – more than 60 new vehicles and 50 significant refreshes worldwide by 2030. The company plans to grow in Europe by better differentiating the brands it will now consider global (Peugeot and Fiat) and the smaller brands that will be regional (Citroën, Opel/Vauxhall, and Alfa Romeo).
Citroen 2CV, Rear 3/4 View, White with StripesCitroen-Stellantis
In France, automotive historians must be popping champagne corks as Citroën announced the revival of the iconic 2CV, an economy car that saw production of more than 9.2 million units from 1948 to 1990. With similarly quirky, bulbous styling, the 2CV was compared to the Volkswagen Beetle, which arrived 10 years earlier.
The 2CV and Beetle established their legacies over the next several decades, but there were big differences: Beetle’s engine was in back, driving the rear wheels, while the 2CV’s original air-cooled 375cc four-stroke flat-twin boxer was positioned up front, driving the front wheels. Yes, it was a “hemi,” with hemisperical combustion chambers. Also, 2CV had four doors, while the Beetle had two.
Citroën 2CVCitroën
Good Enough For Bond, James Bond
Citroën’s original “Deux Chevaux” (French for “two-horse”) was a car for the masses that was inexpensive, simple to maintain, functional, and easy to maneuver in tight French streets, and that first engine delivered a whopping 9 horsepower. 2CV engines grew over the years, and the last new one, displacing 602cc and introduced in 1979, churned out 29 horsepower. Fans of the 2CV boasted it could go “Zero to 60 in a day.” Nicknames included the “Umbrella on Wheels, “Tin Snail,” and “Ugly Duckling.” Spaniards called it “Dos Caballos.”
Citroën 2CV featured in 1981 James Bond film For Your Eyes Only.United Artists
But the model’s name was derived to comply with the allowable “taxable horsepower” as specified by French taxation. No, the 2CV never had just 2 horsepower, but it did have two cylinders and Citroën designed the car to fit into the nation’s lowest-cost tax bracket to make it affordable for the working class.
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The 2CV was also good enough for James Bond and his cohort Melina, who fled from bad guys through the Spanish hills in a pale yellow Deux Chevaux in 1981’s For Your Eyes Only. No better commercial could establish the car’s indestructible nature: It rolls over twice during the chase, and townspeople prop it up so the chase ensues. This beaten and battered compact was still able to jump one of the chase vehicles (a Peugeot) as Bond escapes, of course.
Citroën 2CV featured in 1981 James Bond film For Your Eyes Only.United Artists
How Much Range Will €15,000 Get You?
At last week’s Investor Day presentation in Michigan, an original yellow 2CV bearing the “007” logo was on display next to the new all-electric 2CV, which won’t be officially revealed until the Paris Motor Show in October.
Citroën CEO Xavier Chardon said the original 2CV gave freedom of mobility to millions, “and 80 years later the new 2CV will democratize electric mobility, 100% electric, made in Europe, below 15,000 euros.” He called it the true people’s car.
“For me, the future of mobility will not be won by the most complex cars, but by the simplest and the most intriguing ones.”
– Xavier Chardon, Citroën CEO
CarBuzz was among the media outlets to see the new compact last week, with windows blacked out. Instead of pale yellow, the new model was painted a deeper yellow, with more orange, like Corvette yellow. Until official photography surfaces, we can say the new 2CV carries on the bumble bee theme, its yellow contrasting with a black roof and black fascia front and rear.
Citroën 2CV featured in 1981 James Bond film For Your Eyes Only.United Artists
From the rear three-quarter view, the new 2CV hatchback resembles a Fiat 500, especially with its steeply raked liftgate, which opens with the old-school mechanical handle, twisting to open, just like on the original 2CV. But while the old handle was chrome (above), the new mechanism is finished in gloss black, blending neatly into the blacked out lower rear end.
The new 2CV definitely looks larger and longer than a Fiat 500 and it has four doors. Two people should fit comfortably in the second row, with plenty of headroom.
1951 Citroen 2CV, Front 3/4 View, GreyCitroen-Stellantis
The wheels on the display vehicle were finished in battleship gray and were very simple, like dinner plates with small perforations around the perimeter, similar to some of the wheels found on earlier 2CVs.
At the front, you see the familiar lines of the original 2CV and why it was often compared to the Beetle. The front fenders push outward – not as pronounced as the original but paying tribute to the classic designs of the 1930s. The hood waterfalls forward from the base of the windshield and is punctuated by at least 10 parallel grooves that descend toward the front end, recalling the five lines on the hood of the Bond 2CV.
Citroën 2CV product slide at Stellantis Investor DayCitroën
Leapmotor, Dongfeng Help With Low Pricing
While the original 2CV was a compliance car, the new one will be as well, helping Stellantis meet increasingly stringent European Union emissions requirements with an all-electric powertrain.
Stellantis has confirmed to CarBuzz that the new 2CV will be assembled in Pomigliano d’Arco, Italy, (the French can’t be too happy about that) and a “key pillar” in the automaker’s new E-car project that will launch in 2028. Despite some reports that the 2CV will be on Stellantis’ new global STLA One platform, the automaker declined to confirm for CarBuzz that STLA One will underpin the 2CV or other E-car programs. In his presentation, Chardon said Stellantis’ “smart car platform” will support 2CV and other E-cars.
Citroën 2CVCitroën
The goal is to price these E-cars under €15,000 ($17,438) to achieve cost parity with equivalent ICE models. How can a modern, competent vehicle be priced accordingly in Europe? Stellantis showed a slide (above) titled, “Leveraging World-Class Partnerships” and mentioning Chinese partners Dongfeng and Leapmotor. Dongfeng will handle sales, distribution, purchasing, and engineering, and will share capacity in Rennes, France. Leapmotor International will handle global distribution and localize production in existing Stellantis plants being retooled in Madrid and Zaragoza, Spain.
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Pricing that low suggests small-ish batteries, but Stellantis is not yet disclosing any specs for the upcoming 2CV. The EV market is growing in Europe, and Stellantis said its EV sales were up 24% last year. Chardon said the brand has delivered double-digit growth so far this year and will launch seven new vehicles by 2030.
Stellantis CEO Antonio Filosa said people in Paris and across France have been crying out for a new 2CV. “So this is the beauty of Stellantis,” he said. “And this is the way we want to organize capital allocation among the brands.”
Source: Stellantis
