Groupe PSA, also formerly known as PSA Peugeot Citroen, will be formally announcing the entry of the Citroen brand in India on 3 April. The company will also showcase its first model for the Indian market, which according to reports, will be the C5 Aircross SUV.
The Citroen C5 Aircross will compete with the likes of the Tata Harrier and Hyundai Creta, as well as the Jeep Compass. It will also have to reckon with competition from MG and Kia, who are likely to launch their SUVs soon. The Citroen C5 Aircross will be imported in completely knocked down form (CKD) and assembled at the company’s plant in Hosur, with nearly 70 percent local parts being used to keep costs in check.
The company currently is only making engines at its plant in Hosur, which are for export markets, but it will soon start producing cars for the domestic market. Citroen, in addition to the C5 Aircross SUV, is also likely to bring in the C3 Aircross, which is a much smaller compact SUV, measuring about 4.1 metres in length. It’s slightly larger than a Maruti Suzuki Vitara Brezza and smaller than a Hyundai Creta, quite similar to the Mahindra XUV300.
These SUVs will come in only by 2021. PSA Groupe has tied up with the CK Birla Group in India on two projects - one to build and sell cars and another to make engines and transmissions.
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