It would be naive on my part to be surprised at this point in the film with Citroën swimming against the current. And it is that the firm of the two chevrones has always stood out for carrying out, with more or less success, techniques and designs different from the rest. This is currently demonstrated with models such as the Citroën C5 X or the C4 X, hybrids between a saloon, crossover and family car that have a very important mission and that will be in good taste for many: do away with SUVs.
This was announced by Vincent Cobée, CEO of Citroënin an interview to medium Auto Express. But those responsible for setting a death date for SUVs are not only models like those already mentioned, but also the boom that he predicts with electric cars, which, according to Cobée, will give the final blow to the fashion segment in 2030.
Citroën already visualizes the date for the end of the SUV
And although the CEO of the French house himself admits that “the numbers are not giving me the reason right now”, firmly believes that SUVs are destined to disappear. But how do electric cars play a crucial role in this, a sector that, at the moment, is not taking shape as well as many institutions would like? The answer is in the weight.
One of the ways in which the electric car could fit a large bulk of the population would be through greater autonomy and efficiency. Neither poor aerodynamics nor excessive weight will achieve this, two traits that SUVs do not comply with and the reason why Citroën points, as Vincent Cobée points out, towards “sustainable electric cars like the Citroën Oli.”
And in search of having a palpable and logical alternative, the gala house advocates concepts as different as those presented by the C5 X and C4 X. They are neither a saloon, nor a crossover, nor a family car, they are a fusion of all those concepts with the objective not only of not breaking with such a strong fashion in an abrupt way, but also to offer a logical alternative to SUVs.
Although it is true that those baptized as “SUL” they have to move forward and polish aspects, is already a first step towards the eradication of SUVs. They help save sedans and offer, to a certain extent, better aerodynamics than SUVs, as well as a more contained weight, space and ride comfort.
However, Are Vincent Cobée’s predictions really correct? It is difficult to hit a segment that has caused such a fever and that, after all, also has positive points. However, Cobée’s arguments are firm and logical, and there is no point in continuing to make electric SUVs when the main problem of the electric car is accentuated precisely by this segment, which are none other than poor autonomy, high weight and high outlay.
What is clear is that Citroën is being faithful to the objective of its CEO with a range in which, right now, there are only two SUVs available, the C5 and C3 Aircross. And at the same time there are the C5 and C4 X, models that bring a concept destined to replace SUVs and set trends, something that is also being carried out at Peugeot with the newcomer 408 and that we will surely see replicated in other members of Stellantis.
