Citroën ë-C3 Van
A niche product these days, but there clearly is still a market for small vans that were originally planned as cars. By John Kendall
Citroën ë-C3 Van
A niche product these days, but there clearly is still a market for small vans that were originally planned as cars. By John Kendall
The car-derived van market shrank considerably a few years ago as coin-operated phone boxes disappeared from our streets. BT had kept the market alive with a fleet of Ford Fiesta vans used for emptying the booths and there was no-one else to pick up the slack as mobile communications took over.
Move forward a few years and other manufacturers realised there was still some demand for a small van that was easy to drive and no bigger than a car. Businesses carrying light loads, or needing to carry tools and little else, did not need anything bigger. First to market was Toyota with the Corolla Commercial based on the British-built Corolla Touring estate car. Others identified a market for a smaller van, including Dacia with the Spring Cargo EV, recently joined by the Duster Cargo.
Citroën introduced a van variant of the latest ë-C3 in the spring, bringing another electric car-derived LCV to market. It’s based on the ë-C3 Plus, which includes Citroën’s usual Advanced Comfort seats and suspension, as well as a 10.25-inch touchscreen with wireless Apple CarPlay and Android Auto, head-up display, LED headlights, cruise control and rear parking sensors as part of an extensive list of standard equipment.
The ‘head-up display’ needs further explanation. Don’t expect to find information projected onto a pop-up screen or directly onto the windscreen. Citroën has placed the driver display at the top of the dashboard, rather than projecting it above it, so it’s not a head-up display in the sense that most people would understand it.
You get a lot for the money. The list of standard equipment is lengthy, including the latest ADAS (advanced driver assistance systems). It doesn’t include a navigation system but, since most users will have a smartphone, it’s simply a matter of plugging it in or connecting wirelessly to bring the navigation details to the screen. What’s more, Apple Maps or Google Maps will be up to date.
The Citroën is probably most comparable with the Dacia Spring Cargo. Both are electric, the ë-C3 offers a payload of 300kg (including 75kg driver) with a loadspace of 1.22m3, while the Spring Cargo also offers 300kg (including 75kg driver) and 1.10m3 of load space. The Dacia is several thousand pounds cheaper at £14,995, excluding the £2,500 Plug-in Van Grant. However, the ë-C3 has a much larger battery – 44kWh compared with the Spring Cargo’s 26.8kWh unit – giving the ë-C3 greater driving range, which might be important in cold weather. The regenerative braking booster is selected using the gear selector, but we would prefer steering wheel paddles for greater flexibility.
The load space in the ë-C3 benefits from two rear side doors as well as the tailgate. If the load is not too tall, the extended load area cover will keep it out of sight, helped by blanking out the glass in the rear doors. If you’re carrying smaller packages, or tools and equipment, it should provide reasonable space. The steel and mesh front bulkhead and lashing eyes are standard items.
It’s no surprise that the car-derived ë-C3 is easy to drive and offers a pleasant driving experience too. The high-mounted instruments mean you can adjust the steering wheel to suit you without worrying if it will obscure the speedometer. The Citroën didn’t appear to have a remaining mileage indicator, making do with a charge percentage indicator instead. The squarish steering wheel may not be to everyone’s liking – it’s not so convenient when manoeuvring but works well on the open road.
There is plenty of storage space in the cab with door pockets, lidded glovebox and centre console storage. Overall, it’s fun to drive, comfortable and should cope with small loads easily, while offering low running costs.
