(TIM) CITROEN'S 28 MPH AMI TO GO ON SALE IN UK

Citroen's new back-to-basics green electric city car costing around £6,000 is to be sold in the UK following 'unprecedented' demand for it to cross the Channel.

Bosses gave the green light to the quirky two-seater Citroen Ami runaround coming here in spring 2022 after receiving more than 12,000 expressions of interest from potential British customers.

The French carmaker says the dinky car exemplifies the 'spirit' of the legendary cheap and cheerful 2CV.

So proud is the French car firm about exporting its new car to post-Brexit Britain that they have adorned one of the 47-mile-range models in a bright Union Flag - though it won't be sold with this paint-scheme option.

Powered by a 5.5kWh battery, the pure electric vehicle with zero-emissions has a top speed of 28mph and a range of up to 46 miles. It recharges in just three hours.

The Citroen Ami vehicle will be adapted for the UK market but be sold only in left-hand drive.

However, the vehicle is so small and the steering wheel so central in that cabin that this will make little to no difference to Britons' customers who are happy and willing to take the plunge.

However Citroen pointed out: 'One significant benefit of Amis left-hand drive configuration when being driven in the UK, is that it will allow the driver the benefit of exiting the vehicle at the kerbside when parking at the roadside in city centres.'

In a statement released this morning, the French maker announced: 'Due to unprecedented customer demand, Citroen is pleased to announce that Citroen Ami will launch in the UK during spring 2022.' - link - Ray Massey - link - picture - link - more like this - link

BEHOLD - THE BRILLIANT CITROEN AMI

Gersende Gloanec, 15, drives to school in the neighboring town of Fouesnant every day with her little sister. 

What emerges from the garage is a small gray two-seater blob that automaker Citroën doesn’t even call a car but a “mobility object.” With a maximum speed 28 mph, the Ami or “friend” is actually classed as a quadricycle. Think four-wheel moped. No driver’s license required.

“I’m too young to have a driving license, but you can drive an Ami from the age of 14,” she said.

“At the beginning it was strange to be out on the roads like this because I’d only ridden a bike before but it gives me more independence,” Gloanec said.

As the Ami’s publicity puts it: “Yes, it looks like a toaster. Which is why you can buy it at the electrical goods store.” Citroën is not selling it in the usual dealerships at all, in fact, only in electrical goods stores and online.

The cost: just over $8,000 minus a thousand-buck government eco-bonus — cheaper than a normal car - link - picture link - (€6000) - John Laurenson - link - more like this - link