Photo: Mircea Panait
Looking extremely funky and a lot better in the metal than we expected, the Citroen Aircross Concept sat back and winked at us on the floor of the Shanghai Auto Show 2015. Attracted by what the French are proposing for the future, we headed over to introduce ourselves.
Unfortunately, rules in China are different and we couldn’t get too close to the concept. Even so, we now have a good idea what it represents and what the French want it to do.
Set to represent the way Citroen did things along the 95 years of its history, the new concept is different than anything else we have on the road today. 50 million vehicles sold over the years prove that the double chevron brand did things right.
As a matter of fact, the ever growing crossover segment would be lucky to get such a car from Citroen. The thing is, being based on the C4 Cactus, the Aircross Concept is hard to say no to. It’s, more than anything, a breath of fresh air that is brought along by the curves that are ever noticeable on it.
Unlike other, more conventional cars that have harder creases and sharper lines, even the tires on this concept seem to be sporting a more circular, rounder design.
The 22-inch wheels they are wrapped around are also pretty imposing and, combined with the front fascia that features slim headlights and a huge skid plate, create a powerful image all around.
Under the bonnet lies a plug-in hybrid powertrain made up of a 1.6-liter turbocharged four-cylinder engine making 218 HP and 203 lb-ft (275 Nm) of torque along with an electric motor.
That last bit is in charge of powering the rear wheels alone and is good for 95 HP and 147 lb-ft (200 Nm) of torque. Since the Aircross is similar in size to an Audi Q5 or BMW X3, it’s not all that impressive that it will do 62 mph in 4.5 seconds from a standstill.
Unfortunately, for now, Citroen hasn’t decided yet whether it will make it to production or not. Keep your fingers crossed though!
Set to represent the way Citroen did things along the 95 years of its history, the new concept is different than anything else we have on the road today. 50 million vehicles sold over the years prove that the double chevron brand did things right.
As a matter of fact, the ever growing crossover segment would be lucky to get such a car from Citroen. The thing is, being based on the C4 Cactus, the Aircross Concept is hard to say no to. It’s, more than anything, a breath of fresh air that is brought along by the curves that are ever noticeable on it.
Unlike other, more conventional cars that have harder creases and sharper lines, even the tires on this concept seem to be sporting a more circular, rounder design.
The 22-inch wheels they are wrapped around are also pretty imposing and, combined with the front fascia that features slim headlights and a huge skid plate, create a powerful image all around.
Under the bonnet lies a plug-in hybrid powertrain made up of a 1.6-liter turbocharged four-cylinder engine making 218 HP and 203 lb-ft (275 Nm) of torque along with an electric motor.
That last bit is in charge of powering the rear wheels alone and is good for 95 HP and 147 lb-ft (200 Nm) of torque. Since the Aircross is similar in size to an Audi Q5 or BMW X3, it’s not all that impressive that it will do 62 mph in 4.5 seconds from a standstill.
Unfortunately, for now, Citroen hasn’t decided yet whether it will make it to production or not. Keep your fingers crossed though!
Google News