What's the news?
Citroën is going to sell an electric version of its Cactus-based Mehari, which should appeal to the quirky out there. It'll be on sale in its native France from the spring of 2016 and it will be called the E-Mehari.
Exterior
In a rather effusive announcement, in which Citroën talks about the car's 'expressive gaze and smiling front end', calls it 'incomparable' and a 'free spirit', and goes as far as to say the car's even 'sassy', allow us to cut through the guff and put it a little more bluntly: it looks like a slightly uglier version of the Cactus with the roof lopped off. Although we would say it's very distinctive and it certainly pays homage to the original Mehari of 1968. So we kind of like it.
Citroën will launch it with four body colours - all of which were present on the 1968 vehicle - which means you can pick from blue, orange, yellow and... um, beige. Yes, beige. The roof comes in either black or orange-red, and it can be configured to cover the front, the rear, the sides or the whole of the cabin. The E-Mehari also has a raised ride height, lots of black body detailing and doors with two indentations on them to mimic the original ribbed items. Finally, the entirety of the E-Mehari's body is made of thermoformed plastic - making it rust-proof and resilient to low-speed bumps.
Interior
Inside the E-Mehari are four seats, including a folding rear bench, while the trim comes in either beige (again) or orange-red, with a central pattern said to be inspired by water sports. Talking of which, all the seats are fully waterproof and the cabin can be hosed down as a result, making it easy to maintain.
Mechanicals
A motor with a maximum rating of 50kW is linked up to a 30kWh lithium metal polymer (LMP) battery pack, developed by PSA in conjunction with France's Bolloré Group. This LMP pack is made up of 'dry' cells, which means they're fully solid - so they have a number of advantages, including less susceptibility to temperature variations. That means the E-Mehari can cover 100km out of town, up to 200km in city driving conditions and the motor can propel the Citroën to a top speed of 110km/h. The E-Mehari can be recharged fully in eight hours on a 16-amp charging point, or 13 hours on a 10-amp domestic socket.
Anything else?
So, with Citroën's announcement 'confirming its ambition to bring to market cheery, optimistic vehicles' (we kid you not), the E-Mehari will be built at the PSA Group's Rennes plant and will be showcased in Paris from 9-11 December.