Citroen is marking its 100th birthday in 2019, and it’s making sure everyone knows.
Alongside a host of events planned to celebrate the French firm’s centenary, it’s also got a few concept cars up its sleeve to roll out across the year.
The first of these is the Ami One — an all-electric model looking at the future of mobility, particularly for youngsters. Citroen boldly claims that the brand is “re-inventing itself again” with this concept, which is set to make its public debut at next month’s Geneva Motor Show.
The Ami One is a tiny 2.5-metre long city car that Citroen claims is an alternative to public transport and electric scooters, which can be driven by 16-year-olds or by those with no driving licence due to the model being classed as a quadricycle.
It’s a fully-connected concept that majors on tech. Interestingly, Citroen describes it as an “object” that offers on-demand mobility that can be used for a minimum of five minutes using an app, all the way up to five years through an all-inclusive leasing deal. The French brand has also shown off ‘Ami One Counters’, which could distribute cars in city centres.
A host of apps support the Ami One from remote access to the car’s battery information to ‘Free2Move’, which can help to track down vacant charging bays and also act as a trip planner.
Driving is operated by a smartphone being placed in a dedicated area in the cabin, which provides the driver with a huge head-up display which is projected onto the windscreen.
The two-seat concept is all-electric and is strictly aimed at the city with its limited 62-mile range and a top speed of 28mph, but its small batteries allow it to be handily charged in just two hours using a public charger.
Despite all its tech, it’s remarkably simplistic in terms of design, with the Ami One having matching doors hinged different ways, the same bumpers at the front and back, although each positioned differently. The inside also features wipe-down materials to give it a no-frills approach to the task of ferrying folk around — particularly as its a model aimed at the car-sharing market.
The quirky Ami One is a far cry from Citroen’s current range of models, with only the two-line grille, iconic Chevrons and quirky interior finishes resembling current cars from the manufacturer — such as the C3 Aicross and C5 Aircross.
Citroen has always been a brand that looks ahead with other forward-thinking cars including the iconic DS and hugely popular 2CV. The Ami One Concept is not likely to be seen in production form but explores what a future Citroen city car could look like.
