Select Page

Citroën Unveils OLI (all-ë) Concept.

CITROËN UNVEILS OLI [all-ë] CONCEPT

    Bucking industry trends for heavier, more complex and expensive zero emission family cars, the Citroën ‘oli’ reveals how the brand will lead from the front to deliver sustainable low impact motoring

    ‘Best in-class’ Life Cycle Assessment through reduced weight and complexity.

    Target weight of 1000kg to deliver 400km range; top speed limited to 110km/h for maximum efficiency and 10kWh/100km consumption; 20% to 80% charging in around 23 minutes

    20% lighter / low weight identical front doors, bumpers, protective elements, flat panels and glass

    Spacious, innovative interior with beam dash, and ‘bring your own device’ infotainment

    Comfortable ‘mesh’ backed seats using 80% less parts, washable floor and low-weight, recyclable materials

    Circle of life: can be refurbished, upgraded, and repaired with recycled parts and resold for several owners

    Expect to see oli ideas, design details and interior advances represented in future production models      

Citroën has always dared to do things differently – It is Citroën’s guiding light: Rather than being a 2500kg ‘palace on wheels’ filled with screens and gadgets, oli proves that with enough of the thing’s customers need and want, supported by the inventive use of responsible materials and a sustainable production process, the societal need can be met for inexpensive yet desirable zero-emission mobility that enables multiple lifestyles. The oli has sustainability at its heart, and explicitly demonstrates how ‘best-in-class’ Life-Cycle-Assessment (LCA) can be achieved, from restrained, optimal use of lightweight and recycled materials to sustainable production processes, and from durability for an extended “life in service” to responsible end-of-life recyclability. Being easy to repair, refurbish, upgrade, and personalise means it can easily be passed on ‘as new’ to several successive owners, or kept in a family for younger generations to enjoy. Overall cost of ownership will be low, but if there is a need to replace a door, headlamp or bumper, recycled parts could be sourced responsibly via Citroën from other oli vehicles that are no longer serviceable. When no longer economical to refurbish, Citroën would turn each oli into a recycled parts donor for others requiring parts or send other parts for general recycling. 

Delivering further electric driving range requires a bigger battery, adding more technology requires more power, which also means a bigger battery. All of this adds weight, complexity, and cost. The more a vehicle weighs, the less efficient it becomes. The oli shows what can happen with a completely different approach. The oli is neither heavy nor cumbersome – its target vehicle weight of 1000kg makes it significantly lighter than most comparable compact SUVs. As a result, its all-electric powertrain needs only a 40kWh battery to deliver a target range of up to 400km. By limiting top speed to 110km/h to maximise efficiency, excellent consumption of 10kWh/100km is realistic, and recharging from 20% to 80% takes just 23 minutes. By supporting smart ‘Vehicle to Grid’ (V2G) capability, the potential exists for oli to make money for its owner by storing excess energy from home solar panels, managing power issues at peak demand or during a power outage. Citroën oli also shows how a vehicle can perform as a home away from home thanks to its ‘Vehicle to Load’ (V2L) capability. Considering its 40kWh battery and a power socket output of 3.6kW (the equivalent of a 230v 16amp domestic socket), oli can theoretically provide power to a 3000-w electric device for around 12 hours.  

Oli’s unconventional stance and silhouette exude personality and positivity in a footprint similar to a compact SUV at 4.20m long, 1.65m high and 1.90m wide. Its flat bonnet, roof and rear ‘pick-up bed’ panels are made from recycled corrugated cardboard formed into a honeycomb sandwich structure between fiberglass reinforcing panels, co-created with partner BASF. The panels are very rigid, 50% lighter than a steel roof, and strong – so strong that an adult can stand on them to prune a hedge or even use the roof as a platform to mount a tent. Resource and material targets led the team to consciously create flat surfaces, for example in the glass and lighting details. The windscreen is vertical because it’s the shortest distance between top and bottom and uses the smallest amount of glass, is less expensive to produce or replace and lessens the exposure of occupants to the effects of the sun. It is also estimated to help reduce the power demand oli’s modest air conditioning system would make on its batteries by up to 17%. The eye-catching windscreen frame is finished with a bright ‘infra-red’ wrap – a new signature colour Citroën will use in conjunction with a new brand identity. Oli features a pick-up bed with trunk below, the load bed expands in length from 679mm to 1050mm instantly. The efficient 20-inch wheel and tyre combination fitted to oli marries a new hybrid wheel prototype design with a conceptual, sustainable, and intelligent tyre co-created with Goodyear which can achieve up to 500,000km through reuse of the sustainable carcass combined with the 11 mm tread depth which can be renewed twice across the lifetime of the tyre. Full aluminium wheels are expensive and energy intensive to produce and full steel wheels are heavy, so the decision was taken to blend the two. The resulting hybrid wheels are 15 per cent lighter than the equivalent full steel wheel.

Colin Sheridan, MD of Citroën Ireland commented: “I look forward to seeing elements of the oli concept being adapted to our future offering to provide our customers with sustainable and affordable electric vehicles. This innovative and simple concept also introduces the new interpretation of Citroën’s refreshed brand identity which will appear more prominently as the Citroën brand continues its growth in Ireland”  

For further information see citroen.ie

error

Enjoy this blog? Please spread the word :)