What is The Citroen 19_19 Concept?
It’s the big brother to the Citroen Ami One concept car we saw at Goodwood alongside the 19_19, and let me start off by saying that I absolutely love this car. If you want to design an EV then this is the way to go and do it. Apart from the futuristic looks that might take you some time to get your head around, everything else regarding the 19_19 is truly mesmerising.
Sumptuous Luxury
The 19_19 is designed as a long-distance EV cruiser. Think of it as the S-Class of tomorrow. The cabin may not be as luxurious as the one in the S-Class, but it’s every bit as elegant and a lot more innovative. Minimalistic simplicity is the name of the game here. The materials are superb and the cabin design is something we haven’t seen before. Because it’s got fully-autonomous capabilities the steering wheel retracts once you activate the self-driving mode and a personal assistant pops up from the dash to keep you entertained as well as look after the car.
Citroen-Famed Ride Comfort
The body has been designed to resemble the ‘fuselage of an aircraft and the transparent bubble of a helicopter’. It rides on incredibly tall and narrow wheels for increased efficiency, but Citroen says they’ve worked with a tyre manufacturer to ensure it doesn’t lose one bit of comfort or ride quality. The 19_19 also has something that Citroen likes to call Progressive Hydraulic Cushions. It’s essentially an innovative suspension system with smart active control, monitoring the dampers and the road in front to prepare the car for any road imperfections or bumps.
Making Electricity Fun
Instead of making yet another slow and sensible EV, Citroen managed to design something for the customers who enjoy driving and performance. The 19_19 Concept is powered by 100kWh batteries, sending power to two electric motors in both axles, through an intelligent 4WD system. The end result is 340 kW of power (around 455 hp) and a whopping 800 Nm of torque. The 19_19 can sprint to 62 mph in just five seconds and will go on to a top speed of 125 mph. That’s super quick, and we haven’t even gotten to the good part yet.
Under the WLTP protocol, the 19_19 can officially cover around 500 miles. Because it uses quick charging technology, it can recover lost energy staggeringly fast too. Around 370 miles can be put into the car in just 20 minutes. In the real world, where range anxiety is every EV owner’s number one concern, the 19_19 might completely eliminate that fear.
Is the 19_19 Concept realistic in terms of what we can expect today? Not really, but it does give us a glimpse into what we can expect several years down the line. We need more manufacturers pushing the boundaries of what’s possible. I for one am excited about the possibility of a fun electric vehicle. Not just affordable electric mobility, but actual real-world EVs people will buy and own.
Citroen 19_19 Concept Pictures
