Frankfurt Green: Citroen C-Cactus

By Richard Yarrow

Richard Yarrow

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Richard Yarrow After more than seven years on staff at Auto Express, Britain's top selling weekly car magazine, Richard left in fall 2005 to spend... More

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28,045 views Sep 4, 2007

2007 Citroen C-Cactus Concept

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It’s described as “an imaginative and ingenious eco-friendly concept car brimming with clever thinking and dramatic design”. Its point is to demonstrate how an intelligent “green” car can be made as cheaply as a conventional one.

Low on consumption – like the cactus plant – the diesel hybrid returns more than 80 mpg. Its impact on the environment is reduced by having fewer components than a standard car, including in the cabin where there’s half the usual number. The dashboard has gone, with all the main functions grouped together on the central console and Citroen’s signature fixed-hub steering wheel. The door panels are made of just two parts, while the ignition key doubles as an MP3 player.

The powertrain consists of a 70-hp diesel engine combined with an electric motor that provides an additional 30 hp of power. For urban driving, there’s a full electric mode that offers silent operation. Top speed has been capped at 93 mph, but the result is carbon dioxide emissions that are just 0.004 pounds per mile.

Citroën is also to show a production vehicle called the C4 BioFlex, which will be the company’s first flex-fuel vehicle. Running on bioethanol, unleaded gasoline, or a mix of the two, this model offers a remarkable “field-to-wheel” reduction in carbon dioxide emissions of up to 40 percent.

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