► The Citroen Ami now has a wider smile
► There’s a new off-road model coming in 2025
► But it still has a maximum range of just 47 miles
The Citroen Ami’s been on sale for four years. No, we couldn’t believe it either. So, in keeping with the conventions of the motoring industry, Citroen has launched a facelifted version of the little quadricycle at the 2024 Paris Motor Show.
And isn’t it sweet! Citroen has rejigged its front and rear styling, which it says makes the car look ‘even more mature and friendly.’ Plus, the brand previewed the off-road Ami Buggy Vision concept which Thierry Koskas, Citroen’s CEO, hinted will spawn a production model in 2025.
Apart from these tweaks, though, the Ami formula remains largely unchanged. That means it has the same dinky battery pack, the same 47-mile range and the same 28-mile top speed that allows you to drive it on a moped licence.
But there’s no need to fix it if it isn’t broke – and the Ami has been a roaring success for such as small-scale passion project. Citroen has already sold more than 65,000 examples of the Ami since it was launched in 2020.
Prices for the updated model haven’t yet been released, but you could put the pre-facelift car on your drive for just £7695. We can’t see the price inflating much higher than £8,000. Scroll down to learn more.
What’s powering the Citroen Ami?
The Ami is powered by a 5.5kWh battery pack and an 8bhp electric motor. Citroen says it can reach a top speed of 28mph and that it’ll cover 46 miles before needing to be recharged. That doesn’t sound like much, but Citroen reckons that’s double the required mileage for most urban motorists.
Because the battery is so small, it can be completely recharged from a three-pin socket in around three hours. If you’re out and about, the Ami can also be connected to a wallbox charger or a public charge point using a Type 2 cable, although that won’t make the battery charge any faster.
What’s the deal with the Ami Buggy Vision Concept?
Well, it’s an Ami wot goes off road. It has lifted suspension, knobbly tyres, door bars in place of panels and a sunroof that puts you at the mercy of the elements. If you’re the sort of lunatic that likes to spend your weekends hang gliding or extreme ironing, then Citroen reckons this is the car you need to get to those off-piste locations.
Citroen is even encouraging its Ami Buggy drivers to take up a new extreme sport. The firm has designed a special kite surfer that slots over the door bars. So, you’ve no excuse for not catching a wave. Dude.
And because the Buggy was designed to go off-road, Citroen fitted it with some more heavily padded seat cushions to help isolate your backside from the rough terrain you’ll be tearing over. They feature the same tech as the Advanced Comfort seats in Citroen’s normal cars.
Tell me more about the design
Even though it has four wheels and two doors, the Ami technically isn’t a car. Like the Renault Twizy, it’s a pure-electric quadricycle, which means it’s closer to a moped than a car in the eyes of the law. In France, for example, children as young as 14 can drive one without a full licence.
It’s tiny, measuring a mere 2.41 metres long. It also has a London cab-like 7.2-metre turning circle, meaning it should be a doddle to park. More than 50% of its upper body it glazed, too, which will make it easy to see kamikaze moped riders and rogue cyclists when zipping around crowded cities.
Citroen says the Ami was designed as a safer urban transport solution than a scooter or a bicycle, and that it was priced to compete with public transport. To hit that low price-point, Citroen made the car as symmetrical as possible to save money on making lots of moulds.
What about the Ami Cargo?
It’s a van. Only smaller. Citroen saw a gap in the market for a tiny urban courier van, so it re-engineered the Ami to suit the market. The company ditched the EV’s passenger seat and replaced it with a big plastic storage box with a 260-litre capacity and a maximum payload of 140kg.
This tiny storage capacity means it probably won’t find much use with the likes of DHL and Amazon, but it could easily serve as a delivery vehicle for your local pizza restaurant. Citroen also added a lockable storage bin in the Ami Cargo’s cabin, which it says was designed to keep valuables like smartphones and wallets out of sight.
Citroen reckons the Ami Cargo will be popular in big cities, partly thanks to its compact dimensions and low running costs, but mostly due to its eye-catching looks. The Ami turns heads and can be liveried up to become a distinctive rolling billboard.
Citroen hasn’t yet unveiled the facelifted version of the Cargo, but we expect it’ll follow the commercial launch of the passenger carrying model in 2025.
Now check out our Citroen Ami review and video (below) – in which we take it to some unusual places on a road test with a difference…