The conceptual Citroen 2CV shown in the trailers. If it has such headlights in the production version, I’ll fulfill my dream

Citroen has announced that it will unveil two concepts at the 2026 Paris Motor Show: the first is set to be a complete surprise (source), while the second will be a modern version of the Citroen 2CV model. The released teasers for the 2CV clearly show that the concept retains the old-style headlights that protrude above the bonnet/fender surface. Apparently, these are not allowed today due to pedestrian safety concerns, but if they were to appear in a production model...

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The original Citroen 2CV was intended to be an affordable gasoline car for the common people, especially those living in rural areas. It was unveiled in 1948 and quickly captivated buyers with its excellent performance-to-price ratio, thanks to its incredibly simple design. It featured an air-cooled engine producing 6.6 kW/9 HP to power the front wheels and consume little fuel, as well as a suspension designed to protect eggs carried in a basket on the passenger seat when driving over freshly plowed fields, since at the time of its launch (1948), only a small portion of roads in France were paved.

The Citroen 2CV in the Gendarme film series was quite modular when there was a need for extreme off-road driving.

Radial tires (French: radial = radial, ray-like, meaning running along the radius of the wheel) also appeared in this car for the first time in history. These tires have a reinforcing cord that is perpendicular to the tire’s circumference and direction of travel — today this is the absolute standard in passenger cars. These tires were produced by Michelin, which actually acquired Citroen at the turn of 1934 and 1935 to save it from bankruptcy. Citroen did not forget this legacy, as these illustrations appeared among the photos announcing the new concept model (we rotated some of them for better readability):

But from an aesthetic perspective, the three images showing the lighting of the new model are probably the most important. Unfortunately, this is just a concept, so such features might not be included in the production version. The car retains the traditional turn signals on the sides of the rear body, and its front headlights resemble frog (or snail?) eyes atop the metal. Protruding angular elements aren’t allowed these days, but if they were covered with transparent plastic, it might be possible to justify their use?

With models that draw inspiration from cars from years past, there’s always the same issue: they can be overpriced based on their “cult status” (see Fiat 500e, Fiat 600e), thereby killing off the new version of the vehicle. It’s possible to go even further by pricing them high and simultaneously cutting important features from the original models, completely turning off potential buyers (see VW ID. Buzz). There’s a risk that Citroen, part of the Stellantis group, will take the first path and try to capitalize on a tradition-inspired model, resulting in a new Citroen 2CV that is stylistically anachronistic, impractical, and expensive.

Editor’s note from Elektrowozu: But if it retained the original 2CV headlights and that simple aesthetic at an affordable price — we’d be first in line. We’ve always dreamed of driving a car that was once used by a nun to transport the Gendarme

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