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-- Citroen will add a full-electric version of the C4 Cactus successor when the compact hatchback is renewed next year, CEO Linda Jackson said.
The battery-powered variant of the C4 Cactus replacement will be Citroen's first mass-market EV.
Starting next year every new Citroen will have plug-in hybrid or full EV versions, depending on the platform, as well as gasoline versions, Jackson said. There will also be diesel versions for as long as there is enough demand for diesels, she said.
"By 2025, 100 percent of our range will have electrified versions," Jackson told Automotive News Europe in an interview.
Citroen's electrification expansion will start with a plug-in version of the C5 Aircross compact SUV that will go on sale next year.
For the C4 Cactus replacement, Citroen will use an extended version of its CMP architecture, which can accommodate internal combustion and electric drivetrains.
The platform underpins the Peugeot 208 and Opel Corsa small hatchbacks, the DS 3 Crossback small SUV, as well as the upcoming Peugeot 2008 small SUV.
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PSA currently sells battery-electric versions of the 208, Corsa and DS 3 Crossback, along with versions with combustion engines.
Jackson did not say when the C4 Cactus replacement will be unveiled or when production would start.
Citroen expects the car's electric version to be more successful than the brand's C-Zero full-electric minicar, a version of the Mitsubishi i-MiEV. C-Zero sales in Europe were just 929 in the first 10 months, according to JATO Dynamics market researchers.
The C4 Cactus replacement will be a "very important launch for us," Jackson said.
Citroen's electrification of its its lineup will start with the launch of a plug-in version of the C5 Aircross compact SUV next year.
SUV rebound
Citroen sales have rebounded in Europe in the past two years with the introduction of the C3 Aircross and C5 Aircross SUVs as the brand shifted to SUVs and crossovers from its previous focus on minivans after market demand shifted to vehicles with a high seating position.
The brand's European sales increased 6.4 percent to 546,036 in the first 10 months, according to JATO data.
However, demand for the aging C4 Cactus is falling. Its European sales were down 8 percent to 45,966 in Europe through October. The model's best sales year was 2015 when 79,000 were sold.
The C4 Cactus was originally a crossover-styled small car when it launched in 2014 but was repositioned as a compact hatchback after a 2017 restyling when Citroen began to phase out the conventionally styled C4 compact hatchback. The C4 hatchback had residual sales of 202 in the first 10 months.
Citroen has not said whether the C4 Cactus successor will keep Cactus as part of its name or be simply called the C4.
The C4 Cactus was the first Citroen to use the brand's new styling language, including distinctive plastic cladding on the bodywork that the brand calls "air bumps." The cladding protects the body from minor bumps in congested cities and parking lots. It is now used in a much smaller form on facelifted C4 Cactus launched in 2917 and on the new C3, C3 Aircross and C5 Aircross.
The current C4 Cactus is based on PSA's PF1 architecture, as is the current C3 small hatchback.
PSA has two main new platforms: CMP for small cars and EMP2 for midsize vehicles. The platforms overlap in the compact segment.
Jackson said a midsize sedan that will replace the now-discontinued C5 will appear at some point after the C4 Cactus replacement.
The car will take as its inspiration the CXperience concept shown in 2016, she said.
La C4 Cactus nonostante il flop avrà un erede e sarà solo elettrica. Presentazione a fine 2020, pianale CMP cioè quello di Ds3 Crossback, etc...
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