Every manufacturer seems to have its take on the future of car ownership. whether that’s some kind of fancy driverless concept a pure electric SUV with space for all the family or a car-sharing scheme that allows you to rent your wheels by the minute the hour or more you name it. someone somewhere has thought of it but few are putting their money where their mouth is by commercializing these projects for public consumption but credit, where it’s due Citroen,
Citroen is an exception this the all-new Citroen Ami is already on sale in France and can be driven by those as young as 14.
Overview
But given the current travel restrictions, Paris must wait. we’re here is not so sunny Coventry to see if citron should bring this innovative electric city car to the UK. the idea is simple, cheap, cheerful zero-emissions transport with everything you do want and nothing you don’t. it’s tiny and perfect for cities it’s got a 43-mile range which is enough for 19 laps of the Coventry ring road or to get from one side of London to the other.
Price
It will charge from a three-pin plugin for around three hours. and Citroen says there is a 75 chance it will come to Britain but should it let’s find out. when we said cheap we meant it Citroen claims the army is for everyone whether you need the car for one minute to one year or more to share to rent or to buy. you can buy a basic army out right in the front right now for 6,000 euros around 5,350 pounds or a top-spec one with graphic packs colored wheels and roof trims for a little over a thousand euros more.
But Citroen expects most people will lease one the cheapest lease plan with a deposit of around 2500 euros starts from under 20 euros a month. most people spend more than that on coffee in a week. citron will offer the Ami under its free to move initiative too, whereby you can rent the 2.4-meter long electric car for as little as 26 cents or 23 pence per minute.
Design
What do you get for your money well the whole everything you do want and nothing you don’t mantra has been taken to the extreme? you get a choice of just four colors but you can liven things up with these graphic packs and colored wheels should you so wish. I can see urban businesses plastering these things in logos and running them around like a moving billboard. these fantastic front doors open in opposite directions. so the passenger side hinges from the front whereas the driver’s side hinges from the back.
Interior
Now inside the passenger seat is fixed but the driver’s seat moves sufficiently to accommodate all kinds of body shapes and sizes. I’m six foot tall and I’ve got no trouble fitting here whatsoever. thankfully nobody is going to be complaining about that 43-mile range because, in all honesty, you’re not going to want to spend any more time in here than that. the interior is pretty spartan presumably to withstand the wear and tear of car sharing. now in here, you do get a mobile phone mount up the front a very rudimentary set of digital dials behind the steering wheel a USB slot, and a fairly basic heater. but that hits you a lot.
Specs and Performance
The Citroen Ami gets a 5.5-kilowatt-hour lithium-ion battery mounted under the floor. but can only be recharged using the domestic socket located in the passenger doorway. to keep costs down there is no option for faster charging which may pose problems if you want to charge the car away from home. still, connect the Ami to a three pin plug and you’ll top up the batteries to full in just three hours. on the road, the Citroen Ami feels like little else. it’ll do about 30 miles an hour flat out so we’re hitting the limiter at 46 which okay it’s a little bit shy of 30 but you know what that’s plenty for most urban journeys.
But the biggest thing perhaps is that it doesn’t have that instant acceleration that most ev owners will be used to don’t get me wrong it doesn’t feel like other road users are making a mockery of you. but it’s certainly not fast visibility is both good and bad the wheels have been pushed right out into the corners. so it’s not difficult to know where the car is on the road or when you’re parking. but there’s no rearview mirror and that rear window is quite small so you’ve got to be quite confident about where you’re placing it. added to that the dashboard is huge so you sit quite a long way back from the front axle which does take some getting used to.
Handling
We mentioned parking just then which is a task that is admittedly made a little bit easier by this car’s tight 7.2-meter turning circle. however, the steering is so slow and there is no power assistance which at times can make it feel quite laborious. but otherwise, the Ami feels quite agile. it feels quite fun. there are loads of body roll and refinement and comfort they are not strong suits these seats are rock hard. but no one’s going to be in this car for longer than say an hour so does that matter. I’m not sure about it.
Does well there we have it the Citroen Ami an innovative take on the future of urban zero-emissions motoring. now we’ve said at the start of this video that Citroen is currently considering whether or not to bring this car to the UK. well, all things considered, should.
Final words
We reckon it’s cheap and it feels like it. but it’s cheerful too it’s dead easy to drive. it’s even quite fun but it turns heads and in an uncertain world, it feels like a breath of fresh air. are people like you buy one as their only means of transport. maybe not but for an urban-focused business or as a quick and easy rental option. it’s fantastic to thank you citron for trying something new.
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