Living With the Citroen eC3

They say EVs are the future, and what better way to understand them than to live with one for a while? We got our hands on the Citroen eC3 for a month, and after nearly 1,000km under the belt, here’s everything you need to know.

The eC3 may sit in the budget EV segment in terms of pricing, but it doesn’t come cheap, especially when compared to rivals like the MG Comet EV and the Tata Tiago EV. Citroen’s sole electric offering in India will currently set you back by Rs. 13.50 lakh, compared to the top-spec Tiago EV and Comet, priced at Rs. 11.14 lakh and Rs. 9.78 lakh, respectively (all prices, ex-showroom). So, does the eC3 justify the premium it commands over the competition? Let’s find out.

The eC3 gets height-adjustment for the driver’s seat, and finding a comfortable position is rather easy. The seat is spacious and allows for a little movement, even with my heavy build, although longer drives might demand slightly harder cushioning at the seat base.

Storage space is plentiful, too. You can haul multiple bottles, be it water, your regular cuppa, or even soft drinks. There are two cubby holes on the centre console, accompanied by a dedicated slot to keep your phone right below the AC controls. Beneath this is another storage space that can hold other knick-knacks like your wallet, charger, and so on.

Apart from the single USB Type-A port at the front, the car features two additional units for the rear seat occupants, something most OEMs miss out on these days. Yes, they might bring along Type-C ports, but at least one Type-A port wouldn’t harm anyone, irrespective of the placement.

This is a big chink in the eC3’s otherwise well-built armour. Don’t get me wrong, it does have a digital instrument console, 10.25-inch touchscreen infotainment system, wireless Apple CarPlay and Android Auto, height-adjustable driver seat, reverse parking camera, and 15-inch alloy wheels in the feature set, to name a few.

There are neat touches all around, even in the design aspect, whether it’s the split headlamp design on the outside, matte grey pattern on the dashboard with dotted inserts, or the vertically stacked AC vents on either side. Citroen has also moved away from the traditional gear lever and instead offers a toggle-type system, which, in our opinion, is a tasteful addition and invokes a premium feel in the sea of sticks offered with automatics.

At the same time, it misses out on a lot of comfort and convenience in the form of automatic climate control, TPMS, LED headlamps and taillights, leatherette seats, Electric Parking Brake (EPB), and auto-folding ORVMs.

There are two other aspects that the eC3 lacks, the first one being safety. The model scored a zero-star rating in the Global NCAP crash test. Yes, the India-spec MG Comet or the Tata Tiago EV have not been tested, so our views on that will be reserved for now. The second miss has to be the share of updates that the petrol-powered C3 received as part of the MY24 update. A few key highlights from this include six airbags, auto-folding ORVMs, automatic climate control, LED headlights, and a new panel for the AC controls, which would have made it a more value for money offering if introduced.

The eC3 comes with a 29.2kWh battery pack, the largest among its key rivals, and is mated to a single electric motor producing 56bhp and 143Nm. Power is sent to the front wheels. While the company claims a range of 246km (MIDC cycle) on a single charge, our real-world range test confirmed a range of just under 219km. This difference of approximately 11 per cent is quite commendable and in an era of bloated claimed figures, this comes up as a pleasant surprise.

I am also happy to report that the range it does return in real life is very much on the reliable side. While range anxiety did kick in initially, just as it does with any EV, this tendency made its exit at a quicker pace as I spent more time with the car. The fact that the distance-to-empty gauge was accurate further cemented my confidence in pottering around the city without having to worry about the need for a charger nearby.

In our short stint with the eC3, we managed to use a regular AC charger that juiced up the battery from 20-80 per cent in 8 hours. Citroen claims that with the help of a DC fast charger, the battery can be replenished from 10-80 per cent in a mere 57 minutes, a claim that does seem believable in our opinion.

While most EVs today offer an engine (ok, battery pack/motor) start-stop button, Citroen has gone old-school by giving us the option to crank it to start, if I may. And that’s not the only retro aspect here. In the era of keyless entry and sensors, you have to manually use the key to lock and unlock the doors.

Coming back to the driving bit, being an EV, there’s plenty of torque right from the word go. Some heavy footings during small turns even resulted in wheel spins, which had the child in me giggling with excitement. The pickup, too, is more than progressive, and it builds up speed at a swift pace until it reaches just a shade over triple-digit speeds.

Its peppy nature makes the eC3 a breeze for intra-city runs. In fact, my daily commute of 50km saw me reaching a tad bit faster than usual. This was courtesy of the instantaneous torque that allowed me to sprint ahead of even the larger, premium SUVs and the smaller two-wheelers and autos that dodged them every now and then. It didn’t need to necessarily beat them in numbers or in a straight line, just the fact that it pulled us ahead in traffic at regular intervals saw me coming back home slightly early, and at times, just at the right time to enjoy the sunset as we commuted over a creek.

The suspension is set up marginally on the firm side, so much that you could go into small corners without getting nervous, but not so much that you’d feel the potholes and undulations in city speeds. While the suspension might be busy at work, it doesn’t make itself audible or pass on the jolts to its occupants. Where it does shine at the same time is the controlled body roll, thus giving you confidence if you ever feel spirited during a solo drive.

The eC3 comes with a warranty of three years or 1.25 lakh kilometres on the vehicle, while the battery has a warranty of seven years or 1.40 lakh kilometres. This puts it in a similar territory as its rival, the Comet EV, with a warranty of three years and 1 lakh kilometres and eight years or 1.20 lakh kilometres on the vehicle and battery, respectively. The case isn’t much different with the Tiago EV, which is offered with a warranty of three years and 1.25 lakh kilometres on the vehicle and eight years or 1.60 lakh kilometres on the battery.

The eC3 has an entry-level Live variant with prices starting at Rs. 12.90 lakh (ex-showroom), and the price goes up along with the addition of a Vibe Pack or the dual-tone colour option. Our star of the day here commands a premium of a whopping Rs. 3.72 lakh and Rs. 2.36 lakh over the MG and Tata offerings, respectively. While it does fall back in terms of features and equipment, it also makes up for it with the ride quality and the reliable range, the latter being a key differentiator in the new age of electric vehicles.

Pictures by Kaustubh Gandhi