Citroen C5 Aircross will be offered in a fully-loaded trim and it will be powered by a 2.0-litre diesel engine developing 180 hp
Groupe PSA has commenced trial assembly of the Citroen C5 Aircross ahead of its domestic market debut in the early parts of next year. It is locally assembled through CKD (Completely Knocked Down) kits at CK Birla’s manufacturing plant in Thiruvallur near Chennai, Tamil Nadu. Just as the recent crop of premium CKD models available, the C5 Aircross will be sold in a single fully-loaded trim.
Expect the Citroen C5 Aircross to cost above Rs. 30 lakh (ex-showroom) upon arrival. The C5 Aircross and the same EMP2 platform based DS7 Crossback had already been spied testing many times on the Indian soil but they were full imported units. The trial assembly production enables Citroen to test the locally assembly C5 Aircross across varying surface and weather conditions ahead of its market entry.
The C5 Aircross was previously confirmed to be launched this year but the health crisis made the French manufacturer to reassess its strategies and thus it will appear on showrooms in the first quarter of next calendar year. It will be retailed with a 2.0-litre diesel engine, which is good enough to develop a maximum power output of 180 hp and is paired with an eight-speed torque converter automatic transmission.
Citroen may consider bringing in more variants depending on the C5 Aircross’ initial reception among the customers. The premium SUV will cater to the upmarket buyers and the equipment list will have features like a large eight-inch touchscreen infotainment system, panoramic sunroof, Electronic Parking Brake, dual-zone climate control system, a 12.3-inch digital instrument display and so on.
On the outside, the Citroen C5 Aircross carries on with the funky and eccentric styling the brand has been famous for in the European continent with split LED headlamp cluster and LED Daytime Running Lights. India is one of the key markets Citroen has been targetting for its expansion beyond Europe. While the C5 Aircross may not bring in huge volumes, it will helping in establishing a premium brand image.
Following the C5 Aircross will be a sub-four-metre SUV codenamed C21 and it will have high localisation of up to 95 per cent. It is expected to be priced around Rs. 8 lakh to Rs. 12 lakh (ex-showroom) and it will be positioned in a competitive compact SUV segment against Maruti Suzuki Vitara Brezza, Hyundai Venue, Tata Nexon, For EcoSport and Mahindra XUV300.