Citroen Ami is coming to Germany – we tested it

The American can be seen as an alternative to the large SUVs that have been popular for many years and that close the cities and sometimes do not enter parking garages. The French manufacturer’s electric car, which is based on the Ami One concept car presented in 2019 and has been available in Germany as E-Rocks from the Stellantis Opel subsidiary since 2021, fits into any parking space and is even smaller than Previously connected smarts from Daimler.

However, the American, with its unique, angular design, which looks like something from Lego kits, does not go faster than 45 kilometers per hour and is very unique in its equipment. So it is more than an electric moped with a roof and four wheels. However, the Ami is a real attraction that brought a smile to the faces of many road users when testing* through Berlin.

Citroën Ami: More sophisticated design

In order for Citroen to offer its Ami at an affordable price, it is made of plastic – inside and out. It is only 2.41 meters long and 1.39 meters wide. Due to its small dimensions, it has a small turning circle of only 7.20 meters.

The smart manufacturing principle is also exciting: Ami has 250 individual elements, with left and right doors, which can be opened from the inside using a loop, placed asymmetrically. This means that the same part can be used on both sides, which saves costs. Citroen doesn’t just use the same elements for the door: the rear and front elements are identical – only the headlights differ, of course.

Citroën also does not use roll-down windows for cost reasons. Instead, the manufacturer relies on folding windows, as it did almost 70 years ago with its 2CV, which is also known in this country as a duck.

The interior is also spartan: there are no panels, so that the angular steel struts can be seen in the ceiling area next to the glass roof that provides light and visibility in all directions. Padding foam can be seen in places on the doors. Another unusual feature is the lack of a rearview mirror – Ami drivers have to make do with two manually adjustable side mirrors.

Additionally, the shelves and hooks are made of plastic, as is the steering wheel. The storage features themselves are part of the option package that the buyer must additionally order and, if necessary, install himself. The package includes floor mats, decorative pieces and even Bluetooth speakers that are connected to a smartphone – the radio is not part of the scope of delivery.

Citroen Ami interior. (Photo: t3n)

Citroën Ami: Stops at 45 km/h

Ami can be driven as an electric moped with a class AM driving license. The performance of the car, which weighs only 500 kg, is as weak as five kilowatts or eight horsepower. The top speed is 45 km/h, which is usually enough in the city center, as we discovered during the hour and a half drive through Berlin-Mitte.

Sure: In some cases you have to be thick-skinned, but city dwellers have to do it every day. An American is not allowed on a city highway.

Citroën Ami: Sort of an electric scooter with four wheels and a roof

Little Stromer spins quietly and quickly on flat roads, but the lack of suspension is noticeable on cobblestones, which are often found on side streets in Berlin. Here Ami almost feels like an e-scooter with four wheels and a roof. In the end, it is not a luxury sedan, but a pragmatic micromobility solution with character.

With its range of almost 75 kilometers, which the American should achieve with a built-in battery of 5.5 kilowatt-hours, long trips with the family are not possible, but the two seats were not designed for that either. It is mainly suitable for trips to work, school or university or for shopping – but you should not buy too much as there is no trunk.

To restore the battery, the car should be connected to a household outlet with its permanent Schuko plug fitted with a three-meter long cable, which, according to the manufacturer, recharges it after three hours. It doesn’t support fast charging, but with the right adapter, it should at least be able to juice up through public charging stations. During the trip we could not determine if the battery charge goes as described, but we believe that the description is true. The range can be shortened on cold days by using a heater.

Citroen Ami accessories are delivered to your home in such a box. (Photo: t3n)

Sales are also different from “regular” cars: Citroën only sells the minivan online. The small electric car is scheduled to be delivered in Germany from spring 2024. The Ami with option packages in various colors costs around 7,000 euros – Citroën has not yet announced final prices for the domestic market, even more than three years after the announcement.

Citroen Ami: Not quite “anti-SUV”.

Is America anti-SUV? Well, yes and no. A small electric car takes up much less space than popular larger cars and costs less to buy and run. However, it also offers less comfort and luxury than an SUV.

But if you consider that cars are usually parked for about 23 hours a day, especially in cities, and that they are usually only driven by one person, it would be a great benefit to cities if more people used such a small car. In Paris, the American is already part of the car-sharing group of Citroën subsidiary Free2Move.

The small electric car is definitely not the right choice for everyone, but there is still something between the American and the big SUV. For example, Citroën offers the ë‑C3, an electric car for about 25,000 euros, and VW is also working on a small car ID 2 All, which will probably appear in 2025, but will not be mass-produced until 2026. . Dacia Spring is close in price to the American, and currently costs only around 13,000 euros.

* Note: The test was conducted in 2020, but the manufacturer has not changed anything to the car since then, so the information is still current.