Citroen Ami first impressions

When Citroen first showed Ami the world gasped - some people were excited, some though it was nothing but April Fools. It was a bold move by the French automaker and one that surprised even the Citroen. This 21st century take on the immortal 2CV proved to be a runaway success.

Unveiled on February 27, 2020 the Citroen Ami went on sale the following June. Despite global lockdowns over the last two years, Citroen managed to sell over 20,000 units of its quirky little electric two-seater. Success was soresounding that now Opel and Fiat plan their own versions.

Part of the success was the price with the little Ami being available in some markets for €7,500. In France Citroen was selling the car for less than €20 a month - significantly cheaper than the cost of public transport. While the price played its part in overall success, the size and utilitarian design of Ami made it perfect for cities and that’s where the car found its customer or rather fan base.

We recently wrote about Dacia Spring - that car was cute and cuddly - but walking up to Ami you cannot help but to smile. It feels impossible that a serious automaker would create this glorified 4-wheel electric bicycle, without any modern features, almost entirely made out of plastic and try selling it to us. And succeed. But then again - this is Citroen, it gave us 2CV, 5DS and Xenia among many of its mad creations.

Ami was designed with a strict budget in mind - front and rear lights are identical, the front of the car and its rear are identical and there is no left or right door. To keep the manufacturing as simple as possible, there is only one door and because of that the doors open in opposite directions on each side of the car - complete madness.

Only a small part of the window in each door opens - it flips up just enough to let some air in or reach out to grab a cup of coffee or a burger when using a drive-through establishment. The interior is sparse, calling it basic insults some basic interiors. But it is hugely functional unlike in any other car on the market. What other car can you think of that hides a charging cable inside the wheel arch? No mess, no fuss, no loose cables getting in the way.

The driver’s display shows the speed and battery charge, there are three buttons in the center that operate the heated rear window, single speed fan for demisting of the windscreen and emergency flashers. That’s it. No more and no less.

The infotainment is taken care of by the driver’s phone that plugs into the USB port and sits proudly on the center console. The Ami app integrates with the car and provides everything from navigation to music to weather and calls. Steering wheel is the most plasticky wheel ever and the whole setup just screams budget.

And yet it is wonderfully utilitarian, you can wash down the whole car inside and out without worrying much about causing any damage, there are oodles of space - there is a shelf behind the seats that can take a suitcase, passenger seat folds flat to make more room for larger items. Large shelf in the front of the cabin can take a couple of shopping bags and the passenger footwell is large enough to stash a folding bicycle. For such a tiny car, Ami offers surprisingly a lot of room.

Citroen Ami is small and it costs little money but it is just a part of a reason why it is so successful. The car has got a tiny electric motor and tiny battery that gives it about 75 km of range on a good day and if there is no wind. The top speed is only 45 kph and it means that in some EU countries it can be driven without a car license since it is classed as a quadri-cycle.

The price, the size, no license requirement, cheap insurance and almost no maintenance turned this car into the success it is today. It is cheaper to buy and run than using public transport in many cities. It charges from the domestic 230V socket in just three hours (up to 80% SoC) and it is easy to find a parking space for it. 20,000 people already voted with their wallets and plenty more is waiting to join the ranks.