Citroen To Unveil New Subcompact SUV Next Month, Will Be Made In India

Citroen officially entered the Indian automotive market a few weeks ago with the launch of the C5 Aircross SUV. The C5 Aircross is one of the French automaker’s halo products and is priced like one, coming in at Rs 29.90 lakh, ex-showroom. However, it is the second offering from Citroen that is more interesting, as it will be competing in the rapidly growing subcompact SUV segment. Codenamed the CC21, the vehicle is slated for a global unveil on May 20, 2021, and will reportedly go on sale in India sometime around the festive season.

The Citroen CC21 subcompact SUV will be manufactured in India, for both domestic and export purposes. The new SUV will be the automaker’s best chance at being mainstream and successful in the Indian market. The new CC21 is being specifically developed by Citroen for India and other developing nations. Underpinning the new subcompact SUV will be a new platform that will be derived from Citroen’s Common Modular Platform (CMP) which also underpins several Peugeot vehicles globally as well. This will also be the first time that Citroen will debut a new platform outside of Europe.

Recent spy shots reveal that the Citroen CC21 will be smaller than other subcompact SUVs like the Kia Sonet or the Hyundai Venue. It does have an SUV-ish design and has increased ride height, but overall dimensions are more similar to the premium hatchbacks. This could mean that Citroen may price the CC21 very aggressively with a sub-Rs 5 lakh starting price, which will considerably undercut its segment rivals.

The India-spec Citrooen subcompact SUV will be a derivative of the C3 sold in international markets. While the automaker offers a variety of petrol and diesel engines on the C3 globally, the India-spec model will come with a petrol engine only, though there are other powertrain options the automaker could be considering. Citroen will be manufacturing engines with a displacement between 1-litre and 1.4-litre at its joint facility with the CK Birla group in Tamil Nadu. The subcompact SUV will be powered by a 1.2-litre NA engine or a 1-litre turbo-petrol engine.

The CC21 will be the first model under Citroen’s C-Cubed programme for India. The subcompact SUV will be feature high levels of localization and will be ‘made in India’. The automaker has also promised to keep introducing at least one new model every year to its India lineup to gradually increase it. After the CC21, a mid-size SUV to compete with the likes of the Jeep Compass and Tata Harrier may be in the plans.