The Mercedes-Benz Citan is a
panel van
A panel van, also known as a blind van, car-derived van (United Kingdom) or sedan delivery (United States), is a small cargo vehicle with a passenger car chassis, typically with a single front bench seat and no side windows behind the B-pillar. ...
and
leisure activity vehicle
Minivan (sometimes called simply as van) is a North American car classification for vehicles designed to transport passengers in the rear seating row(s), with reconfigurable seats in two or three rows. The equivalent classification in Europe is ...
introduced as a
badge-engineered
In the automotive industry, rebadging is a form of market segmentation used by automobile manufacturers around the world. To allow for product differentiation without designing or engineering a new model or brand (at high cost or risk), a manu ...
variant of the
Renault Kangoo
The Renault Kangoo is a family of multi purpose vehicles manufactured and marketed by Renault since 1997, in commercial as well as passenger variants, across three generations. For the European market, the Kangoo is manufactured at the MCA plan ...
in 2012 and marketed by
Mercedes-Benz
Mercedes-Benz (), commonly referred to as Mercedes and sometimes as Benz, is a German luxury and commercial vehicle automotive brand established in 1926. Mercedes-Benz AG (a Mercedes-Benz Group subsidiary established in 2019) is headquartere ...
as the successor to the
Vaneo compact MPV
Compact MPV (an abbreviation for Compact Multi-Purpose Vehicle) is a vehicle size class for the middle size of MPVs. The Compact MPV size class sits between the mini MPV and large MPV (minivan) size classes.
Compact MPVs remain predominantly a ...
. In the Mercedes-Benz van lineup, the Citan is the smallest model offered, alongside the mid-size
Vito
Vito is an Italian name that is derived from the Latin word "''vita''", meaning "life".
It is a modern form of the Latin name Vitus, meaning "life-giver," as in San Vito or Saint Vitus, the patron saint of dogs and a heroic figure in southern ...
(aka Viano, V-Class, and EQV) and large
Sprinter.
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First generation (W415; 2012)
Production
The Citan, internally designated as the W415, is a result of the partnership between
Daimler and the
Renault-Nissan-Mitsubishi Alliance and is assembled by
Renault
Groupe Renault ( , , , also known as the Renault Group in English; legally Renault S.A.) is a French multinational automobile manufacturer established in 1899. The company produces a range of cars and vans, and in the past has manufactured ...
subsidiary
MCA in the northern
French town of
Maubeuge
Maubeuge (; historical nl, Mabuse or nl, Malbode; pcd, Maubeuche) is a commune in the Nord department in northern France.
It is situated on both banks of the Sambre (here canalized), east of Valenciennes and about from the Belgian border ...
, alongside its twin, the
Renault Kangoo
The Renault Kangoo is a family of multi purpose vehicles manufactured and marketed by Renault since 1997, in commercial as well as passenger variants, across three generations. For the European market, the Kangoo is manufactured at the MCA plan ...
.
The van is aimed at both the
passenger car
A car or automobile is a motor vehicle with wheels. Most definitions of ''cars'' say that they run primarily on roads, seat one to eight people, have four wheels, and mainly transport people instead of goods.
The year 1886 is regarded as ...
and
light commercial vehicle
A light commercial vehicle (LCV) in the European Union, Australia and New Zealand is a commercial carrier vehicle with a gross vehicle weight of no more than 3.5 metric tons (tonnes). The LCV designation is also occasionally used in both Canad ...
markets and is the first
Mercedes-Benz
Mercedes-Benz (), commonly referred to as Mercedes and sometimes as Benz, is a German luxury and commercial vehicle automotive brand established in 1926. Mercedes-Benz AG (a Mercedes-Benz Group subsidiary established in 2019) is headquartere ...
to be launched into the
commercial vehicle market since the
Vito
Vito is an Italian name that is derived from the Latin word "''vita''", meaning "life".
It is a modern form of the Latin name Vitus, meaning "life-giver," as in San Vito or Saint Vitus, the patron saint of dogs and a heroic figure in southern ...
in 1995.
Daimler claim the
leisure activity vehicle
Minivan (sometimes called simply as van) is a North American car classification for vehicles designed to transport passengers in the rear seating row(s), with reconfigurable seats in two or three rows. The equivalent classification in Europe is ...
sector is the fastest-growing market area in
Europe
Europe is a large peninsula conventionally considered a continent in its own right because of its great physical size and the weight of its history and traditions. Europe is also considered a Continent#Subcontinents, subcontinent of Eurasia ...
, accounting for 700,000 sales annually.
Bodystyles
The Citan is available in three different lengths: compact (3.94m), long (4.32m) and extra-long (4.71m). The vehicle comes in three bodystyles: Panel Van, Dualiner and Traveliner, with the Panel Van seating up to two people and both the Dualiner and Traveliner seating up to five.
Safety
The Citan Traveliner received four passenger stars in the
Euro NCAP
The European New Car Assessment Programme (Euro NCAP) is a European voluntary car safety performance assessment programme (i.e. a New Car Assessment Program) based in Leuven (Belgium) formed in 1996, with the first results released in February ...
safety tests. The Mercedes-Benz CITAN Kombi was first tested by Euro NCAP in April 2013, and was given a three star rating. Mercedes-Benz indicated at that time that they would improve the safety performance of the vehicle, especially the deployment of the side airbag and the installation of child restraints; and that they would provide a seatbelt reminder for the front passenger seat and make the speed limitation device comply with Euro NCAP's requirements. These changes are now in production and
Euro NCAP
The European New Car Assessment Programme (Euro NCAP) is a European voluntary car safety performance assessment programme (i.e. a New Car Assessment Program) based in Leuven (Belgium) formed in 1996, with the first results released in February ...
has reassessed the vehicle. Several tests have been redone to assess the changes that Mercedes-Benz have made. Where the performance is not influenced by the changes, test results have been carried over from the original assessment.
Marketing
In 2012,
Mercedes-Benz
Mercedes-Benz (), commonly referred to as Mercedes and sometimes as Benz, is a German luxury and commercial vehicle automotive brand established in 1926. Mercedes-Benz AG (a Mercedes-Benz Group subsidiary established in 2019) is headquartere ...
began a marketing campaign for the Citan with
Richard Dean Anderson
Richard Dean Anderson (born January 23, 1950) is a retired American actor and producer. He began his television career in 1976, playing Jeff Webber in the American soap opera series ''General Hospital'', and then rose to prominence as the lead a ...
reprising his role as the popular TV show character
MacGyver
Angus "Mac" MacGyver is the title character and the protagonist in the TV series ''MacGyver''. He is played by Richard Dean Anderson in the 1985 original series. Lucas Till portrays a younger version of MacGyver in the 2016 reboot.
In both po ...
. The series of short films, titled ''MacGyver and the New Citan'', is available on the official Citan website, from 18 September. The episodes were shot in
Johannesburg, South Africa
Johannesburg ( , , ; Zulu and xh, eGoli ), colloquially known as Jozi, Joburg, or "The City of Gold", is the largest city in South Africa, classified as a megacity, and is one of the 100 largest urban areas in the world. According to Demo ...
, in July 2012.
Engines list
Second generation (W420; 2021)
![Mercedes-Benz W420 1X7A0301](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/d/d3/Mercedes-Benz_W420_1X7A0301.jpg)
The second generation Citan was introduced in August 2021 in Panel Van and Tourer variants. Based on the third generation
Renault Kangoo
The Renault Kangoo is a family of multi purpose vehicles manufactured and marketed by Renault since 1997, in commercial as well as passenger variants, across three generations. For the European market, the Kangoo is manufactured at the MCA plan ...
, the Citan (W420) rides on the
CMF-CD platform, which also was developed into the T-Class MPV, replacing the existing Citan Traveliner and Citan Tourer.
The T-Class was released in April 2022, initially as the regular wheelbase version with seats for five people. A long-wheelbase variant with seats for seven in three rows is planned.
File:Mercedes-Benz W420 1X7A0298.jpg, Mercedes-Benz Citan Tourer
File:Mercedes-Benz W420 1X7A0300.jpg, Mercedes-Benz Citan Tourer
File:Mercedes-Benz T-Class (W420) Automesse Ludwigsburg 2022 1X7A5899.jpg, Mercedes-Benz T-Class
File:Mercedes-Benz T-Class (W420) Automesse Ludwigsburg 2022 1X7A5983.jpg, T-Class interior
Electric models
eCitan
The Mercedes-Benz eCitan is a battery-electric variant of the Citan LCV, announced in October 2021 alongside the regular Citan, with availability beginning the second half of 2022. The eCitan has an electric traction motor driving the front wheels, developing and , drawing from an eight-module lithium-ion battery carried under the floor forward of the rear axle with 44 kW-hr of usable capacity. The estimated range is under the
WLTP combined driving cycle. The standard on-board charger has a capacity of 11 kW (AC), but as an option, a 22 kW (AC) / 75 kW (DC) charger can be ordered, which gives the vehicle a
CCS Combo 2 port.
EQT
The Mercedes-Benz EQT is a battery-electric variant of the T-Class MPV, first shown as a concept at
IAA 2021.
The production EQT was unveiled in December 2022, equipped with a drivetrain identical to that of the contemporary
Kangoo E-Tech. This includes a 45 kW-hr battery that feeds an electric traction motor which develops and of torque, giving it an estimated range of . It was introduced initially in the short-wheelbase version.
Engines
References
External links
{{Mercedes-Benz timeline 2020 to date
Citan
Vans
Electric vans
Mini MPVs
Front-wheel-drive vehicles
Euro NCAP small MPVs
Cars of Germany
Cars introduced in 2012
2020s cars