The Citroën Ami is a new electric car that that takes affordability to a new level.
The Ami will be available to rent for the equivalent of $23 a month, for a 48-month period with $2,900, or for shorter terms through Free2Move, the car-sharing service operated by Citroën parent PSA Group.
Customers will also purchase an Ami outright for $7,600 when it goes on sale later this year.
What’s more, the Ami can be driven in in Europe without a full driver’s license. The Ami’s small size and low top speed (28 mph) mean it isn’t considered a car under EU regulations. It’s technically a “quadricycle,” according to Citroën.
That means the Ami can be driven without a license by people was young as 14 and France, and 16 in other European countries, according to the automaker.
A 5.5-kilowatt hour battery pack gives the Ami an estimated range of 43 miles, as measured on the European WLTP testing cycle. A full recharge takes three hours from a standard European household outlet, Citroën said.
2020 Citroen Ami
The Ami borrows its name a model Citroën launched in the 1970s. Like the original, the electric Ami is about as basic as four-wheeled transportation can get.
The interior has space for two people and not much else, and instead of a permanent infotainment system, drivers simply plug their smartphones into the dashboard.
This isn’t the first time Citroën has attached an old name to a new electric vehicle. In 2016, it launched the e-Mehari, an open-air electric utility vehicle named after a model launched in 1968.
Rival French automaker Renault has a small electric vehicle—the Twizy—similar in concept to the Ami. But the Twizy lacks an enclosed cabin, making it a but less practical than the Ami.
Renault has more or less led the PSA Group on electric cars, offering the affordable K-ZE in China and the Zoe hatchback in Europe. The Zoe is now the basis for a car-sharing service in Paris.
The Ami won’t be sold in the United States, but if it was, it would likely be classified as a neighborhood electric vehicle rather than a conventional car.
PSA Group previously discussed bringing its Peugeot brand back to the U.S., but it’s unclear how a recent merger with Fiat Chrysler Automobiles will impact those plans.
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