Photo: Citroen
Citroen has revealed a brand new concept car slated to debut during the upcoming Paris Motor Show. It's called the C1 Urban Ride and takes the form of a premium city car with a folding fabric roof and crossover rugged features. Interestingly, its debut coincided perfectly with the market launch of the Opel Adam Rocks, essentially the same type of machine, but fitted with a German badge.
The C1 Urban Ride is of course based on the all-new C1, the second-generation A-segment runabout built in partnership with Peugeot and Toyota. Knowing full well that profit margins are tight and it won't be able to sell much more than 100,000 units per year, Citroen is looking to diversify with a new variant. That is, of course, if it's well received by the public attending Paris.
We're inclined to give the C1 Urban Ride two thumbs up already. Its paint combination and jacked up suspension (15mm or 0.6 of an inch) make it instantly appealing. Perhaps even more important is the added practicality and curb-mounting capabilities. What's more, cheap, durable transportation is what Citroen has been all about since the 2CV.
Before we turned city cars into pseudo-premium vehicles, all of them used to have unpainted bumpers and tall suspension. Doing anything over 100 km/h (62mph) on the highway was scary. But let us tell you one thing: nothing beats not caring about dings on the bumper.
Citroen says if approved for production, the C1 crossover would be offered both as a 3-door and a 5-door. One area where the French might fall short of their German rivals is in the powertrain department. Th most "amazing" engine offered by Citroen on this car is the 1.2-liter VTI with 82 PS of 3-cylinder non-awesomeness. Opel, meanwhile, has a 1-liter turbo with about a quarter more torque that it can push up to 115 PS on the Adam Rocks.
Our final say: Drop the fabric roof and build it right now, Citroen. Anybody who's ever been camping will attest that nothing ruins an adventure quite like a leaky roof – it's just not worth the risk.
We're inclined to give the C1 Urban Ride two thumbs up already. Its paint combination and jacked up suspension (15mm or 0.6 of an inch) make it instantly appealing. Perhaps even more important is the added practicality and curb-mounting capabilities. What's more, cheap, durable transportation is what Citroen has been all about since the 2CV.
Before we turned city cars into pseudo-premium vehicles, all of them used to have unpainted bumpers and tall suspension. Doing anything over 100 km/h (62mph) on the highway was scary. But let us tell you one thing: nothing beats not caring about dings on the bumper.
Citroen says if approved for production, the C1 crossover would be offered both as a 3-door and a 5-door. One area where the French might fall short of their German rivals is in the powertrain department. Th most "amazing" engine offered by Citroen on this car is the 1.2-liter VTI with 82 PS of 3-cylinder non-awesomeness. Opel, meanwhile, has a 1-liter turbo with about a quarter more torque that it can push up to 115 PS on the Adam Rocks.
Our final say: Drop the fabric roof and build it right now, Citroen. Anybody who's ever been camping will attest that nothing ruins an adventure quite like a leaky roof – it's just not worth the risk.
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