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Citro"en Cactus Concept declares an end to door dings [w/video]

This is the Citroën Cactus Concept, a car we previewed almost two weeks ago, which was then unveiled last week. Now, we have a full gallery of live images. You'll recall that Citroën opted to split its line, with the C-Line models like the C2, C3 and C4 being remodeled to play in the bottom of the market, and the DS models, like the DS3 and DS4, representing a more premium experience.
The Cactus is our first hint of the C-Line's future, as it will likely evolve into a production C3 or C4, considering its size. Powered by PSA's innovative Hybrid Air drivetrain, the Cactus pairs a small, gas-powered engine with compressed air and hydraulics to deliver over 94 miles per gallon without battery packs or electric motors. It's claimed that the system can cut down on urban fuel consumption by 45 percent.
Besides the powertrain, the most obvious talking point is the appearance of the Cactus. The Airbump system on all sides of the vehicle use soft, air-filled bladders to keep away the dings and scratches that come with commuting in our crowded urban world, while the floating roof adds to the airy feeling of the interior and is a great styling detail. We've got live images of the Cactus up top, while photos, a press release and a video from Citroën can be found below.

Touch but don't look at Citro"en's new Cactus concept [w/video]

Citroën isn't telling us much about its concept for Frankfurt this year. All we know is that it's called the Cactus, and its nose in profile looks like the image above. That, and it's got some kind of special bumpers on it that are apparently filled with air to absorb shocks. Whether those are there to protect the doors from dings, the body panels from shopping carts or the structure from crashes, we don't know, but something tells us it's not the latter.
The French automaker plans on revealing more on September 5, just a few days before the show opens, so we'll have to wait until then. But in the meantime you can watch the brief, quirky and typically French clip below.

Toyota's Euro Aygo spied in prototype form

The five-door version of the next-generation Toyota Aygo, a Euro offering cloned by the Peugeot 107 and Citroën C1, has been caught out on the town wearing all black. Facelifted early last year, predictions are that the next version of the city car will be slightly lower and wider than the current car, with improved ergonomics and materials. Based on what little can be seen for now, a new intake and headlight treatment should be on the menu in front, with taillights placed higher on its backside.
A three-door version is expected, but a gasoline-hybrid model is also rumored, along with power and fuel economy improvements to the three-cylinder engine that presently puts out 67 horsepower and 69 pound-feet of torque.
We should see it next year, along with the new Citroën C1 and Peugeot 108.

Citro"en to launch value-oriented C-line as part of brand reorganization

A report in Autocar says that PSA Peugeot-Citroën is realigning its brands. Peugeot will take the top slot to fight in the "premium mainstream" segment; in other words, Volkswagen. Citroën is said to be pointing its spear at a space that has Ford above and Dacia below, while its "DS arm" is classified as "near premium," but it isn't clear how high its aspirations climb. The entry-level point will be occupied by a C-line to be introduced by Citroën that would be "a balance between cost and functionality" and will take cues from the Lacoste concept shown at the 2010 Paris Motor Show (seen above).
The company has split its design studio into halves, one side for DS, the other for the C-line. The C-line's philosophy will be "bold" styling outside with "ease of use and simplicity" everywhere else. Build options will be kept low in order to maintain profits and low prices, but the options sheet won't be bare. The first offering in the line could be shown at the Frankfurt Motor Show, and will preview the replacement for the C3.

PSA Peugeot-Citro"en gets EU approval for life-line loan from France

PSA Peugeot-Citroën has been struggling to offer low finance rates to customers since its banking arm, Banque PSA Finance, had its credit score downgraded, which in turn has made it hard for the French carmaker to compete with brands that offer lower finance rates, such as Volkswagen. The French government recognized the catch-22 and, after negotiations with PSA and European Union approval, has guaranteed the banking arm seven billion euro in bonds to secure its debt and lower borrowing costs, Automotive News reports. The infusion of bonds will be spread from January 1, 2013 through December 31, 2016.
As part of the requirements for EU approval, PSA agreed to refrain from acquisitions in excess of 100 million euro per year and curb its debt levels, Automotive News reports. The EU Comission was required to approve the bond infusion before it could take place in an effort to reduce to a minimum "the damaging effects for competitors who have not received support from public funding," said Joaquin Almunia, EU Competition Commissioner.
In addition to the bonds for Banque PSA, a diesel-hybrid program will also receive 86 million euro from the French government, which was also approved by the EU Commission.

Citro"en to campaign World Touring Car C-Elys'ee with Sebastian Loeb

Citroën has released the first images of its latest racecar, the C-Elysee, which will be contested by Sebastien Loeb in the World Touring Car Championship next year. Based on the C-Elysee sedan, a model first shown at the 2012 Paris Motor Show, the WTCC variant has been designed for the new regulations set to be imposed by the FIA.
The C-Elysee is offered with a range of low-powered gas and diesel engines, but the WTCC model gets a 1.6-liter, turbocharged four-cylinder with 380 horsepower and 295 pound-feet of torque. A six-speed sequential gearbox from Sadev sends power to the front wheels through a twin-disk, carbon-fiber clutch. Hopefully all this potential won't result in any shenanigans this season.
The roster for next season is far from finalized, although Honda will be contesting the championship with its Civic WTCC.The C-Elysee WTCC will make its race debut with Sebastien Loeb at the wheel when the 2014 FIA World Touring Car Championship starts, likely around the end of March 2014. Citroën will also be showing its new racer at the 2013 Frankfurt Motor Show.

Citroen DS3 Cabrio Racing going into limited production

We just heard about the Citroën DS3 Cabrio Racing getting its global debut at the 2013 Goodwood Festival of Speed, now Autocar reports that Citroën reps on site have said they're studying production possibilities. This would back up what UK magazine What Car? was also told by the car's project director in January of this year: "There's no reason why we couldn't do it - it could make sense."
After showing a prototype of the DS3 Racing hatch three years ago the French carmaker put it into production and ended up making 1,000 more than planned in order to keep up with demand. The run of the cabriolet version should be much lower according to both publications, something like 200 units, as compared to the final number of 2,400 hatchbacks.
What Car?'s report said the car would "likely" go on sale next year and put the price at about 25,000 pounds, while Autocar's more recent piece says the price would likely be "around 30,000 pounds." If Autocar is correct, that would make the cabrio about 7,000 pounds more dear than the hatch. That would be quite the jump, as there's only a difference of about 2,400 pounds between the standard hatch and cabrio.

Seinfeld tours with Citro"en 2CV and French standup in latest CiCGC

Jerry Seinfeld has released his latest Comedians in Cars Getting Coffee, and the new episode is dedicated to all things French. Or at least as French as one can get in New York City. The show follows a 1950 Citroën 2CV and French comedian Gad Elmaleh as both try to endure Seinfeld's attempts to navigate the metropolis. Of course, Seinfeld and Elmaleh spend plenty of time stalled in the ancient piece of budget French engineering between stops at various French establishments around the city. There are French Fries, which turn out to be from Belgium, baguettes and, as you might expect, coffee.
You can watch the duo ham it up in the clip below. Our favorite moment? Watching the Citroën drop to one cylinder in downtown traffic. Hilarity ensues.

Citro"en and Sebastian Loeb to enter World Touring Car Championship in 2014

You didn't think that Sébastien Loeb was just going to completely give up racing altogether, did you? Sure, the dynamic French driver may have decided to call it quits in the World Rally Championship with nothing left to prove (he did, after all, thoroughly dominated the sport from 2003 through 2012 and won the Driver's Championship each of those nine years), but the draw of competition is apparently too great to ignore.
Citroën - the automaker Loeb won each of his nine WRC championships with - has officially announced that it is entering the World Touring Car Championship with their favorite driver in 2014. Citroën CEO Frédéric Banzet cites "extensive media coverage, regulations that keep costs down and a genuinely global race calendar" that will "help [Citroën] to develop the brand in promising growth markets such as China, Russia and South America" as reasons for entering. The team will be sponsored by the automaker's longtime partner, Total.
There's not much more to the press release below, but it's there if you're interested in taking a look.

Citro"en Wild Rubis helps the DS cross over

What we have here is an urban crossover from Citroën that is the newest member of its well-received DS lineup, and we're told it will soon lead to a production machine with similar styling and intent. We'd love to tell you more, but the quirky French manufacturer hasn't actually revealed many details about the machine.
We do know that the Wild Rubis boasts a full plug-in hybrid drivetrain, but we have no idea what that all includes, what kind of power it produces or, well... anything else, really. Come to think of it, we don't even know if it can move under its own power. It's painted a wild ruby color, hence its name, and we think it's pretty.
If you're hankering for more detail than that, we're afraid you'll have to fly out to Shanghai and corral a few Italian executives for yourself. Or you could just sit back and stare at our high-res image gallery, live from the show floor, and read through the brief and uninformative press release below. It's up to you, but choose wisely. Oh, did we mention that it's pretty?