No new Citroen 2CV! Boss disappoints fans of the classic but promises 'affordable' and 'different' cars

Citroen boss Thierry Koskas has said he has “no specific projects” relating to a reimagined version of the iconic 2CV, but instead will double down on “different” and “more affordable” family cars, Auto Express can reveal.

We asked Koskas, who has headed up the French brand since 2023, whether his team has been paying particular attention to the success of the latest Renault 5, and whether Citroen might look to capitalise on the public’s new-found appetite for retro remakes.

“We prefer to look forward,” Koskas told us. “We have introduced a design language that is now quite clear, and very visible in the different cars. I think we need to be recognised and we need to look forward. I'm not going to look backwards.”

However, he refused to dismiss his firm’s illustrious back-catalogue, telling us that “Citroen is the most collected brand in the world,” with fans all over the globe. “We know that we have super-iconic products,” he said.

“I'm not opposed to the principle to have, maybe one day, one iconic vehicle that will remind of the glorious past of Citroen. But again, I don’t want to make it as a general direction,” he told us.

Instead, Citroen will renew its focus on offering unique family cars at affordable prices. The C3 and e-C3 were a statement of intent, using parent company Stellantis’s budget-focused Smart Car platform designed to underpin a family of small cars from the forthcoming Fiat Panda to the seven-seat Vauxhall Frontera – plus plenty in between.

“We need to extend the positioning of the brand,” Koskas told us. “Not only in the B-segment as we are doing today with C3 and C3 Aircross, but maybe on an upper segment. 

“So for example, you could be in the C-segment with more affordable cars. I still think that we also have opportunities in proposing different shapes, different car lines that nobody has thought about and nobody has seen.”

Last year, Koskas hinted at a radical new Citroen, saying: “It’s basically something that does not exist in the market. It’s something new, and very much in the DNA of Citroen, which has very much been a daring brand over the past 105 years.

“There really is a tradition in Citroen to be able to break the codes and propose things that have not been proposed before,” Koskas continued. “That was the case with many, many cars that we offered in the past starting with 2CV and with the DS, and I think that really is part of our tradition and it’s something that we shall not give up on.”

This, plus his recent comments about an affordable C-segment model, would suggest Koskas is planning a Volkswagen Golf or Ford Focus-sized family car to also sit on the Stellantis Smart Car platform, offered with a choice of petrol, hybrid and pure-electric powertrains. However, given his line on “different” bodystyles, its exact form remains to be seen.

With the C3 and C3 Aircross deliveries set to start soon, and the C4 and C4 X revised only recently, it’s already shaping up to be a busy year for the Citroen brand. The firm is also gearing up to reveal the all-new Citroen C5 Aircross later this spring, with a market launch expected towards the end of 2025.

Are there any classic cars you would like to see receive a modern-day remake? Let us know in the comments section below...