Will Citroen C3 electric steal the thunder away from Tata Tiago EV?

Citroen is now betting big on India’s electric vehicle (EV) market by bringing in the affordable electric C3 and this will help the company catch the volume customers early, and maybe, steal the thunder away from the Tata Tiago electric, which was till now India’s most-affordable EV.

For Citroen and other car makers, bringing in an affordable EV makes sense because that is the prime purpose of an EV, that is, saving costs as well as the environment from toxic fuel.

The Citroen C3 electric vehicle will hit the road
around the month of February.

Other Citroen cars in India

Citroen has been steadily getting its cars into India — in 2021, it brought in the Citroen C5 Aircross SUV, and in 2022, it introduced the C3 internal combustion engine (ICE) model, with a starting price of Rs 6 lakh (Rs 600,000).

Since Citroen is one of the early players in India’s affordable EV space, it could be one of the disruptors in this segment.

Tata Motors had cleverly rolled out the Tiago EV with a starting price of Rs 8.5 lakh (Rs 850,000) and this move could rev up the Indian car maker’s sales manifold in the EV segment.

Citroen C3 electric range

The range of the Citroen C3 EV is around 320 km, according to the Modified Indian Driving Cycle (MIDC) standard on a single charge and this is commendable.

Citroen C3 electric motor

The Citroen C3 comes with a permanent magnet synchronous motor, which belts out 57PS and has a 143NM of peak torque.

The C3 electric is offered in two drive modes — Standard and Eco — and it can accelerate from 0 to 60 km an hour in just 6.8 seconds with its top speed being 107 km.

 

Citroen C3 EV battery, charging unit

The Citroen C3 electric comes with a 29.2kWh lithium-ion air cooled battery pack, and the e-SUV has a3.3kW onboard charger.

The C3 electric is equipped with CCS2 charging unit as standard. The battery can reach from 10 per cent to 100 per cent in just over 10 hours, with a 15A plug point.

There is also a DC fast charger, which can rev up the battery from 10 to 80 per cent in less than an hour.

Citroen e-C3 warranty

The C3 electric will be bundled with a seven-year/140,000 km (1.4 lakh km) warranty (whichever earlier) on the battery as well as a five-year/100,000 km (1 lakh km) warranty on the motor.

Additionally, there will be an overall warranty of three years or 125,000 km (1.25 lakh km) for the electric C3.

Citroen C3 price and launch date

Bookings for the Citroen C3 electric car have started and the C3 will hit the road within a month.

The C3 electric has been very judiciously priced between Rs 8 lakh (Rs 800,000) and Rs 11 lakh (Rs 11,00,000).

This could see many volume customers fulfilling their dreams of owning a compact electric SUV.

 

E-Vroooom’s views

So, the Citroen C3 electric’s smart pricing, and considering it is an SUV (India’s favourite passenger vehicle segment), the firm could see C3 EV sales match that of the Tata Tiago electric vehicle, which has a similar pricing, starting from Rs 8.5 lakh (Rs 850,000).

READ ALSO: Citroen C3 petrol version launched for Rs 5.7 lakh