This is Citroen’s new ELO concept, a blue sky ideas lab on wheels that gives us a glimpse of where the company is heading next.
What’s with the name?
ELO takes its name from three ideas – rest, play and work. And that pretty much tells you what this concept is trying to be. Not just a car you drive somewhere, but a car that does something once you get there. And Citroen has collaborated with Decathlon and Goodyear (on smart tyres that tell you when they're worn) to help you on that journey.
Let’s talk about that design, shall we?
This is peak Citroen – that boxy shape screams practicality, but it’s quirky enough you won’t mistake it for a tiny van. They’ve gone compact and tall while everything else gets bigger and heavier. There’s lots of glass and the doors all open wide maximum practicality.
At 4.1 metres long and 1.7 metres tall it’s about the same size as a Citroen e-C3 or Jeep Avenger, but doesn’t necessarily look it. It was designed as an EV from the start, so Citroen has pushed the wheels to the corners and used it to its advantage. It looks very utilitarian but it’s wacky at the same time. Like I said – peak Citroen.
One of my favourite things about the design is that the bumpers and those flat ‘wing’ pads are made to take the knocks and act like little resting shelves when you stop.
What’s it like inside?
This is where it gets really interesting – the headline party trick is that the driver sits in the middle up front with a huge wraparound windscreen for an almost panoramic view.
Citroen has developed the ‘Smartband’ from the Oli concept, a wide horizontal strip at the bottom of the windscreen. Here the display is projected on a transparent film across the windscreen that makes it look like the information is hovering in front of you. Cheaper than a full head-up display, but still very futuristic.
Behind the driver are three seats that fold and lift out – like on the old Citroen 2CV, but Citroen also likens them to the folding camping chairs you can get from Decathlon. Then, hidden under the outer rear seats, there are two extra pop-out chairs. Flip them up just behind the driver and suddenly you’ve got a six-seater without losing boot space. They’re all very comfortable and massively practical.
Let’s get back to that rest, work and play part – ELO doubles as a mobile office. Spin the driver’s seat round, clip a little table on, and you’ve got a surprisingly decent sized workspace.
What about ‘rest’ and ‘play’?
Tucked in the boot are two fold-out inflatable mattresses, with a compressor built in to the car. Then the cabin becomes a flat, two-person sleeping space – even the rear lights double as bedside lamps.
There are hooks in the doors to mount an awning on, the boot opening is shaped so you can sit on it to change into your walking boots and you’ve got V2L tech to run your gadgets and equipment off the car.
There’s also a little mounting point in the cabin so you can attach a projector and turn the ELO into a cinema room.
Could it go into production?
Concepts are like mood boards for cars. But if even half of this cleverness makes it through, Citroen’s next family EV could be properly interesting.
We don’t know anything about the powertrain and batteries yet, but Citroen has told me that the ELO is made of 30% recycled materials and is itself 100% recyclable (if it’ll fit in your green bin). Hopefully we’ll get a bit more out of them when the concept is revealed at the Brussels motor show in January.
Years ago a car designer told me EVs would revolutionise car design – simply because designers wouldn’t have to squeeze an engine or exhaust system into the same old spaces. And if I’m honest, I haven’t seen much sign of that over the past five years.
But this feels like a proper glimpse of where things could be heading – and I like it.
Anyone for a film? This will be a particularly useful feature for traffic jams on the M1, we reckon 
