Citron Aircross Concept Ready For Shanghai Debut

Cameron Aubernon
by Cameron Aubernon

Coming to the 2015 Shanghai Auto Show is the Citroën Aircross crossover concept, whose looks harken back to when designs took after jelly beans.

The Audi Q5-sized PHEV rides on 22-inch wheels shod in custom Continental tires, and is motivated by a 1.6-liter turbo-four producing 218 horsepower and 203 lb-ft of torque, paired with an electric motor on the rear axle contributing an additional 95 horses and 147 lb-ft of torque; total output is 313 horsepower and 250 lb-ft of torque. Nil to 62 occurs in 4.5 seconds, electric-only range comes to 31 miles, and combined fuel economy is 166 mpg.

Part of the Aircross’ design includes so-called “Alloy Bumps,” which are meant to protect the Aircross from lateral impacts thanks to their motorsport-derived aluminum honeycomb structure. Meanwhile, the PHEV’s enhanced aero package — such as the “Air Signs” rear-window trim and “Air Curtains” air intakes up front — improve the concept’s aerodynamic profile beyond the initial design.

Inside, the driver is greeted by a pair of 12-inch panoramic HD screens “inspired by the worlds of fashion and modern furniture design,” one of which can be transferred from passenger to passenger via hand gestures. All occupants can also enjoy a pair of webcams mounted on either side of the cabin’s door frames, which can take photos of the outside world to be shared via social networking, as well as to gain information for use with the Aircross’ navigation system.






Cameron Aubernon
Cameron Aubernon

Seattle-based writer, blogger, and photographer for many a publication. Born in Louisville. Raised in Kansas. Where I lay my head is home.

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  • Corey Lewis Corey Lewis on Apr 09, 2015

    I have a hard time believing anything Citroen puts out will have 300hp, much less that crazy fast 0-60 time and custom tires. Citroen doesn't really make fast cars, it's not their thing. Economical yes, quirky certainly - but not fast. The stripy tweed fabric on the back of the seats needs to stay. And it needs TURBO motifs embroidered into it. A very early 80's or late 70's kind of feature. Overall, I really like it. The silver frame around the rear doors looks like a bottle opener.

  • Buzzyrpm Buzzyrpm on Apr 09, 2015

    This is a very original forward thinking design. Inside and out. Very contemporary. I think Citroen may be entering an era to match that of its earlier glorious history.

  • CanadaCraig You can just imagine how quickly the tires are going to wear out on a 5,800 lbs AWD 2024 Dodge Charger.
  • Luke42 I tried FSD for a month in December 2022 on my Model Y and wasn’t impressed.The building-blocks were amazing but sum of the all of those amazing parts was about as useful as Honda Sensing in terms of reducing the driver’s workload.I have a list of fixes I need to see in Autopilot before I blow another $200 renting FSD. But I will try it for free for a month.I would love it if FSD v12 lived up to the hype and my mind were changed. But I have no reason to believe I might be wrong at this point, based on the reviews I’ve read so far. [shrug]. I’m sure I’ll have more to say about it once I get to test it.
  • FormerFF We bought three new and one used car last year, so we won't be visiting any showrooms this year unless a meteor hits one of them. Sorry to hear that Mini has terminated the manual transmission, a Mini could be a fun car to drive with a stick.It appears that 2025 is going to see a significant decrease in the number of models that can be had with a stick. The used car we bought is a Mk 7 GTI with a six speed manual, and my younger daughter and I are enjoying it quite a lot. We'll be hanging on to it for many years.
  • Oberkanone Where is the value here? Magna is assembling the vehicles. The IP is not novel. Just buy the IP at bankruptcy stage for next to nothing.
  • Jalop1991 what, no Turbo trim?
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