Is Citroen becoming an anti-Dacia brand?

In addition to the rapid growth of Chinese automakers and Tesla’s success as an electric vehicle manufacturer, there are few very successful cases in the automotive industry over the last 10-15 years. As everyone knows, this sector has faced several challenges that seem to have no end. In this difficult context, it is notable to see exceptions. Dacia is perhaps one of these.

From 1999 to today the Renault Group’s low-cost brand has seen a great transformation which has led it to become a major player in the European automotive market and an essential part of the French automaker’s global expansion plans. In 25 years, the right brand positioning, combined with an efficient cost strategy, has allowed it to achieve a very solid position.

Last year, Dacia sold almost 660,000 units in the regions where it operates. The volume rises to 943,200 units if the Renault rebadged Dacia models are included. This year, through September, Dacia and Renault’s rebadged Dacias sold 682,000 units.

A case study

Despite clear evidence of Renault’s success with Dacia as a competitive car, there have been no other automakers who have replicated this formula. Indeed, part of the continuous growth recorded by the Romanian brand is that it has been almost only in the entry parts of the lower segments. The situation could change soon.

Some recent examples suggest that Citroen, one of Stellantis’ three French car brands, is aiming to reposition and to play the low-cost Dacia game. It all started with the presentation of the fourth generation of the C3.

Average and basic retail price in France in September 2024

This small car, whose internal name is CC21, was initially introduced in India and Brazil using the Stellantis Smart Car platform. It was conceived as a “global” car that would appeal to both developing (India, Latin America) and developed (Europe) markets. With the CC21, the C3 wasn’t designed with Europe in mind, but more frugal emerging markets. This means lower production costs and a lowest final price.

This formula has also been applied to the second generation C3 Aircross, which is now larger, is a 7-seater B-SUV and is relatively less expensive than the previous generation. These two models are part of the C-Cubed plan to make Citroen a car brand more global (and accessible?).