The local importer of Citroen in Australia will focus its efforts into shifting Peugeots down under instead.
101 years after Citroen first made its official landing in Australia with the 5CV all the way back in 1923, a recent run of slow sales has since saw the French marque pull the plug selling its cars in Oz.
This twin-chevron brand currently holds the title as the longest continuous presence of any carmaker on the local market over there, but order books for any new Citroens in Australia will close come November 1st 2024. Once it fulfils all orders, it will transition to a service-only operation across its 35 existing service centres.
Australian Citroen distributors Inchcape Australia has stated that it will be refocusing its efforts on the distribution of Peugeot over there, with the French lion marque doing reasonably well commercially down under in recent times. Citroen is incidentally the second brand under automotive conglomerate Stellantis to depart Australia in three years, following Chrysler shutting up shop locally in late 2021.
This decision to pull the plug on Citroen sales in Australia comes amid a sales slump for the brand in recent times, with annual deliveries having fallen from a high of 3,803 in 2007 to just 228 in 2023. Its year-to-date figure of 87 registrations between January and July in 2024 is down 35.6% on the same period last year, with the automaker dishing out discounts of up to $30,000 (RM 88,000) on its models just last month as dealers work to move stock.
Now just to further put Citroen’s recent dismal commercial performance into greater context here, its deliveries in 2024 to date actually places it just ahead of premium brands McLaren and Rolls-Royce in Australia. In fact, the twin-chevron marque shifted less cars than Ferrari and even Lotus this year.
Citroen currently sells C3 hatchback, C4 crossover, C5 Aircross SUV and the C5X jacked-up estate crossover thing down under. The plug-in hybrid of the C5X is due in Australia later this year, and will now serve as the brand’s final new vehicle to arrive in local showrooms.
All Citroen orders placed by customers in Australia prior to November 1 will include the brand’s five-year, unlimited-milage warranty, capped-price servicing and service plans. Incidentally under Australian law, automakers are required to provide up to 10 years of parts and maintenance support after exiting the market.
Funnily enough too on the topic of unlimited milages, the aforementioned 5CV that Citroen first brought into Australia was to be the first vehicle ever to complete a circumnavigation of the continent. 22-year-old Neville Westwood was at the helm of this adventurous feat, and the vehicle currently resides at the National Museum of Australia in Canberra.
Another interesting factoid regarding the brand is that while most of its models were imported, Citroën did locally assemble cars down under. This included the ID 19 back in the 1960s, which was a de-specced version of the iconic DS tailored for local buyers.
“Whilst we acknowledge and celebrate Citroen’s rich history in the Australian market, we must look to the future and consider the rapidly evolving, dynamic, and competitive nature of the industry and local market, alongside changing consumer demands,” said David Owen, Citroen Australia general manager.
“The decision for Citroen Australia to cease new vehicle sales was not made lightly; it was made after careful consideration of the current and future product available for our country, in the context of the local market and the preferences and requirements of Australian new vehicle buyers,” he added. “We know there will continue to be Citroen owners in Australia, with many Citroen vehicles still on the road, and our passionate Citroen Australia team and retailer network are committed to supporting the continued vehicle maintenance needs of our customers”
