Citroen to Produce Survolt, GTbyCitroen, Metropolis

Good news for electric vehicle enthusiasts who liked Citroen's Survolt concept, but never dreamed they could own one: the French manufacturer is apparently considering producing the model. According to Autocar, the French manufacturer is planning a limited production run of the Survolt, complete with establishing a one-make spec racing series for the electric vehicle.

Although not officially confirmed, news of the Survolt entering production was accompanied by pieces of news saying the GTbyCitroen concept will have the same fate. GTbyCitroen, whose production was announced even since early 2009, has in the meantime enter a cone of shadow from various reasons.

Autocar says however that the project has been revived and it will too see more than one unit built. Even more, the Metropolis concept, a luxury saloon unveiled at the Shanghai Expo this year, will also get into production.

Back to the Survolt, the electric concept was present last week at the Le Mans Classic event, in the hands of female racing driver Vanina Ickx.

The Survolt was presented at the 2010 Geneva Auto Show. The car is fitted with a pair of electric motors which propel it using the 300 hp to a top speed of 260km/h (162mph), but only after accelerating it to 100km/h from a standstill in less than five seconds.

The motors draw their power from two 140kg (309 lbs) lithium-ion batteries which give the Survolt a maximum range of 200km (124 miles). The batteries can be recharged using a special power supply in no more than two hours. When charged from a regular 220V household outlet, the time needed for a full charge reaches 10 hours.