Citroen’s head of design thinks there’s a lot more to come from the electric vehicle yet, and that could include a return to the humble MPV – but with a bit more pizzazz, hopefully.
Pierre Leclercq spoke to Electrifying at the recent Brussels motor show, where his ELO concept was seen in public for the first time and made quite a splash on the company's stand.
Ginny went to see it in the studio at the end of 2025 and quite liked all of the fun details like the central driving position, extra pop-out chairs and versatile interior that be configured into a bed with a projector to watch films.
As far as Leclercq is concerned the most important detail to watch out for is the front, where space has been freed up by the electric architecture. “Even if you only find 30 or 40cm of space without moving the front wheels, that’s huge. We used to be able to make great MPVs, and we went from MPVs to SUVs with a bit more dash to axle, the windshield went backwards, and then you have a bit less space.”
Bad news out of the way first though – the ELO concept won’t be going into production. “There are two types of concepts – there’s what I call the teasers, where we have a production car on the way, and then something like this where there’s no direct plan for it to go into production, we’re trying to push and we’re trying to test.”
Citroen had a great run in the 1980s and 1990s with a series of practical family cars in what’s known as a ‘monobox’ shape, where they look like a single solid form rather than the ‘three box’ shape of a traditional car that’s a bit more like something a child would draw in side profile.
MPVs went out of fashion, though, as buyers craved something just as big, but with a more traditional shape. There’s no denying that we’ve lost a lot in that move to SUVs, but Leclercq thinks it’s something we can get back to.
“If you make an MPV desirable, then they’ll make a resurgence,” he says. “In the 1990s I never wanted to drive an MPV myself. Though I remember the Picasso saved my life when I came back from holiday with my family – I went to the rental desk three times, our things just wouldn’t fit in the cars they were giving me. It was a great car.”
You can’t have a desirable car when you’ve got children to cart around, can you? “I think you can – look at that car.” He points to the e-C5 Aircross on the Citroen stand. “It’s fantastic, it’s what I drive every day and my kids love it.”
That car is definitely much more conventional for Citroen, though isn't it? “But what’s next? The C5 and the ELO can live next to each other. There is something for us to do within the MPV world, I would really like to make MPVs desirable.”
