The SUV could be on the verge of extinction as car makers focus more heavily on aerodynamic design cues in the hunt for range, according to Vincent Cobée, CEO of Citroën.
Speaking candidly to Autocar, the French brand’s boss said designers are placing increasing emphasis on how slippery a car can be, with “anything which is high or squarish” more than likely not considered for reasons of aero efficiency.
“The transition to electric vehicles is going to massively increase the importance of aerodynamics,” he said, calling it the “post-SUV world”.
He added: “Because, to be honest, whether your car is aero or not, in the current ICE world just increase the fuel tank and as long as your purchasing power ignores the price of petrol, which it does for 30-50% of the population, why bother?
“[In the] fully electric world, you lose autonomy because of aerodynamics, so the link is much stronger. So anything which is high or squarish will have immediate penalty to its autonomy in a battery-EV world.”
Cobée also suggested new methods of vehicle taxation – perhaps designed to penalise heavier, larger vehicles – could further threaten the onward viability of SUVs.
“There will be, I’m quite convinced, some form of regulation or directive or incentive [cut] on weights and battery sizes,” he said. “Now in France, if you buy an electric car and it weighs more than 2.4 tonnes, you’re not eligible for incentives,” he explained, suggesting that eventually this cut-off could fall to 1.8 tonnes.
“So if you start talking about less than two tonnes and less than 60kWh or 70kWh, then SUVs will suffer massively.”
Because of this, Cobée is confident car makers will instead look to design cars that sit lower and offer more efficient shapes, rather than shaving kilograms from bulky, straight-edged SUVs.
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Citroen boss declares that cars should be lighter, smaller and more fun. But, a Citroen manager would never mention "more reliable", it is not part of its tradition.
They have to say that. It's not like Citroen as a brand would work on a big heavy expensive SUV. BMW is having huge problems making mini profitable as an electric car. That's hardly a brick.
Autocar shouldn't really be a mouthpiece for Original Equipment Manufacturers' PR. My first though is "hey, you guys have relentlessly promoted SUVs because the profit per unit is massive. They drive awfully and because they are un-aerodynamic give low EV range. So I tell you what, let's go back to what cars were like - but now that SUV prices have become embedded let's sell them at those prices so that we can continue to hose car buyers to make HUGE profits"
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