Citroën Floats a 2CV Van Comeback With the Fourgonnette

Citroën has shown it is thinking seriously about bringing back one of the 2CV family's most distinctive relatives. At the Paris motor show, alongside the concept previewing the next generation of the passenger 2CV, the French brand unveiled a cargo version called the Fourgonnette. It is a square-backed van that recalls the original model, built from 1951 to 1977.

The conversion is easy to read. Behind the B-pillar, the passenger car's rear seats and sloping roofline give way to a large box. Access to the load area comes through flip-up side windows or split rear doors. The silhouette stays unmistakably 2CV, which is clearly the point.

Citroën chief executive Xavier Chardon argued that the original van showed commercial vehicles can have soul. The brand believes that emotional appeal can help it stand out in Europe, where a growing number of Chinese manufacturers are competing hard on price and threatening the value-led positioning Citroën has long relied on.

Don't expect a van in showrooms soon, though. Citroën has not approved the Fourgonnette for production, and it says the show car does not preview a model arriving in the short term. The company calls it a passion project that grew out of a spontaneous wish to build one while developing the passenger car. It also says the idea "opens up new avenues for consideration" in the years ahead.

If it does reach production, it would most likely follow the passenger car by a couple of years and share its brief. Citroën is targeting a starting price of €15,000, roughly £12,700, and a kerb weight of around one tonne, which suggests a fairly small battery. The van could slot in beneath the current ë-Berlingo or take its place. Either way, it would carry forward the original 2CV's mission of getting people moving, this time aimed at buyers who have been priced out of electric motoring.