The Citroen ELO concept might not be able to fit all of the members of the Electric Light Orchestra, but it does pack a surprising amount of space for a city car.
Citroen says the name isn’t a reference to the prog rock band, but rather uses the second letter from the words Rest, Play and Work.
Measuring just 4.1m long, the ELO is 50mm longer than the Volkswagen Polo and 95mm longer than the C3, but can transport six people and their gear, as well as function as a camper van. Thanks to its 1.7m height and completely flat floor, there’s plenty of head and leg room for all passengers.
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Ingress and egress should be easy as there’s a pair of dual sliding doors and no B-pillars blocking the way. Similar to the Fiat Multipla and Honda FR-V, the ELO has two rows of three seats.
Like a McLaren F1, the driver sits in the middle, and the front passenger seats are offset to the back. This layout, Citroen claims, provides drivers with an easy 180-degree view of the car’s surroundings.
A desk attachment allows the car to function as a mobile office, and the driver’s seat can be rotated around to face the rear passengers.
Instead of a head-up display and touchscreen, there’s a wide strip at the base of the windscreen displaying all of the information the driver needs.
The front seats on either side of the driver can be removed and either stored underneath the rear seats when on the go, or taken out of the car completely and used as picnic chairs.
While the rear seats cannot be fully removed, the bases can be taken out and used as stools as they include fold out legs. When the rear seats are folded down, a pair of single mattresses can be lowered from the ceiling to turn the car into a camper.
The ELO is also designed to function as a base camp for outdoor gatherings. To that end there’s a canopy that be stretched out over the doors to provide extra shade, a projector screen that slides down from the ceiling, a built-in air pump, and a variety of power outlets.
Although the ELO is said to use on a EV-specific platform, Citroen hasn’t provided any details about the concept’s drivetrain or battery pack.
Citroen CEO Xavier Chardon says the ELO “conveys our vision of what Citroen should be” and it “ticks all the boxes of what has been the brand’s DNA for over 100 years”.
It’s not known if Citroen plans to bring the ELO or something like it into production. If it does, it will see the brand return to the car-based people mover scene it abandoned after it axed the C3 Picasso in 2017, and the C4 Picasso in 2022.
Citroen hasn’t been the only European brand to abandon its car-based people movers in favour of SUVs and van-based models, with the Ford, Renault and Opel all making similar moves.