Citroën Elysée


The Citroën Elysée is a small family saloon car produced for the Chinese domestic market by the Dongfeng Peugeot-Citroën Automobile, a joint venture between the French PSA Group and the Chinese manufacturer Dongfeng Motor. Production commenced in June 2002.

First generation (2002–2013)

Design

The Elysée was designed in China and is derived from the Citroën ZX, with many parts taken from the Citroën Xsara and Citroën Saxo.
The car has a VTS sport version with only red colour.

Elysée VIP

The Elysée VIP version was launched in 2005. The VIP is a stretched variant of the Elysée with a wheelbase extended by 15 centimetres and more luxurious interior taking similar styling cues to the Citroën Fukang. It then ended production in 2010.

2008 facelift

The facelifted C Elysée was introduced on April 8, 2008, at the Beijing International Motor Show. The front and rear ends are heavily reworked, bringing the model in line with Citroën's current corporate design. At the end of February 2009 an Elysée hatchback joined the range, replacing the previous Citroën Fukang.
It is powered by the 1.6 L PSA TU5 JP4 engine, featuring 16 valves DOHC design and producing.

Second generation (2013–present)

The second generation, called Citroën C-Elysée, is built in Vigo, Spain, along with the Peugeot 301, on which it is based, for markets in North Africa, South America and Western Europe, Eastern Europe and Southern Europe. The C-Elysée is also manufactured in China, as its predecessor.

2017 facelift

A facelift was presented at the end of 2016 and sales began in the second quarter of 2017, with the main changes being the front lights and rear lights, and a multimedia touchscreen entertainment system compatible with Android Auto, Apple Carplay. The car also offers a rear camera as an option.

Citroën C-Elysée WTCC

In 2012, Citroën announced plans to enter the World Touring Car Championship. The team transformed a DS3 WRC into a laboratory vehicle to help with early development, while the engine was an evolution of their WRC engine which had been used in the WRC since 2011. Citroën started developing the car for the new TC1 regulations, which were brought forward a year early in 2014 to expedite the entry of Citroën into the championship. The introduction of the new regulations a year earlier than planned gave a seven month development headstart to Citroën over the other manufacturers. This large development advantage combined with a big budget and a strong driver line-up made Citroën the clear favourite going into the first season of the new regulations in 2014. Citroën would go on to win most of the races that season as well as the manufacturers' title, while José María López won the drivers' title. The team would repeat this feat in 2015 and 2016, before the factory team left the series at the end of 2016. A number of Citroëns were still raced by other teams in 2017, but were outpaced by the Hondas and the Volvos.

Sales