French carmaker Ctroen launched their entry level hatchback C3 in the Indian market last year. An electric version of the C3 hatchback has been spotted testing several times and Citroen will be launching the electric hatchback this year. We will be driving the Citroen eC3 later this month but, before its official launch or unveil, a production-ready version of the Citroen eC3 has been spotted testing. Here we have a video that shows how electric version of Citroen C3 is different from the ICE version.
The video has been uploaded by Talking Cars on their YouTube channel. In this video, both presenters talk about the Citroen eC3 production-ready test vehicle that was spotted in Chennai at a charging station. The exterior look of the car is exactly the same as ICE version. Unlike other manufacturers, Citroen is not offering a closed grille set up at the front. Normally manufacturers offer a closed grille in EVs as there is no engine under the bonnet that needs cooling and a closed grille also increases the aerodynamics which helps them with the range. This was not present in the vehicle that was spotted at the charging station.
Also read: Citroen C3 mini SUV spied ahead of launch
There is even a possibility that Citroen might offer a slightly different grille with the production version. The vehicle seen here in the video looks just like a regular C3 from distance. The halogen headlamps, muscular looking cladding around the car, steel rims with wheel caps were all retained. The test vehicles had a camouflage on the rear fender and front fenders. The rear fender has camouflage because the fuel lid on the regular car has been removed. The front fender gets camouflage because the charging port is placed there in the car. The car looked too basic in terms of looks and there was no differentiating factor in it.
Just like the exterior, interior on the eC3 is not going to look much different from the ICE version. The test car still had the small monochrome digital instrument cluster with reading for the battery percentage and range instead of fuel level. The gear lever on the C3 hatchback has been removed in the eC3 and it now comes with a toggle switch which can switch between Neutral, Drive and Reverse. There is no park mode and regen mode buttons on the center console. Other than this the video also mentions that the car was charging speed of the batteries installed in the eC3 test mule was 16 kW which is too low when compared to others in the segment. As mentioned above, it is still a prototype and the production version is likely to support fast charging.
There were two trims at the charging stations and according to the video, Citroen eC3 is expected to come with a 28 kWh battery pack. The claimed range of the upcoming Citroen eC3 is likely to be around 230 km to 240 km. There are reports of a 30.2 kWh battery version as well which would have a claimed range of 315 km on single charge. If the information is true, Citroen might offer a short and long-range version of the electric hatchback in the market. Citroen will have to price the eC3 competitively as it would be competing against Tiag EV in the segment.
Also read: 10 DC Design cars & how they look in the REAL world: Maruti Swift to Mahindra XUV500
The post Citroen eC3 electric hatchback spotted testing before launch first appeared on Cartoq.