Recap: Citroen’s Next EV, Upcoming Launches And All The Essential Car News From Last Week

With the year coming to a close, we didn’t see any major launches from carmakers last week, although there are still some price announcements and unveilings left to go before December ends. Instead, we got a chance to look at Mahindra’s sales data and NCAP’s latest crash test results for four Indian models. 

Here’s our compilation of all the essential news from the past week: 

Electric Citroen C3’s name revealed

Citroen announced that the upcoming electric car based on the C3 hatchback will be called the ‘eC3’. It’ll be a Tata Tiago EV and MG Air EV rival and is expected to offer more features and amenities than the ICE C3. Its powertrain details are yet to be revealed, but you can find the expected range, launch timeline and specs in our story linked above. 

Hyundai Ioniq 5 launch date announced

The Korean carmaker’s first ground-up EV is coming to India this month. Based on a platform shared with the Kia EV6, the Ioniq 5 is a large, hatchback-esque EV with retro design touches and a decent range estimate of up to 480km. Importantly, it’s expected to be locally assembled, which should help the carmaker price it more reasonably. 

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New NCAP results announced 

The Global New Car Assessment Programme (NCAP) announced safety ratings of four Indian cars – the Mahindra Scorpio N and Maruti Ignis, Swift and S-Presso. While the Mahindra SUV achieved stellar scores that defied the unsafe reputation of its predecessor, the Maruti hatchbacks didn’t do so well. 

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Mahindra car sales analysed 

We got a look at Mahindra’s sales data for different models in November 2022. The data gave us key insights such as which Thar is more popular, how the diesel XUV700 took the lead compared to last year; and the initial trends of the Scorpio-N’s sales. On another note, the carmaker also announced a massive investment into a new facility for EV production in Pune.  

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2023 Hyundai Verna spied 

Hyundai has a next-generation Verna sedan in the pipeline, and for the first time, we got a peek inside a test mule. Heavy camouflage notwithstanding, we could see that it gets a dual-screen floating panel similar to the Ioniq 5. We already know it’ll get driver-assistance tech from previous spy sightings, alongside expected features such as a powered driver’s seat and 360-degree camera. 

Mahindra Thar five-door rendered 

It’s no secret that Mahindra is working on a long-wheelbase, five-door version of the Thar, but all the test mules we’ve spotted have been heavily camouflaged. A new set of renders give us an idea of how the upcoming five-door Thar would look, based on what the spy shots have revealed until now. 

International updates 

Toyota took the wraps off an electric concept based on the Hilux pickup truck in Thailand. Across the Pacific, Tesla rolled out a new update for its EVs that adds new functions and features including a new gaming service and the ability to put on a light show in the parking lot. Back on our continent, the Fifa World Cup is still on and the Qatari police added a new super-SUV to its security fleet. 

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