Rest, Play, Work. Now take the second letter from each word and you have the name of Citroën’s latest concept car. Convoluted? A little bit. Eerily similar to a British experimental rock band of the same name? Most definitely. Very fun. Oh, 100 per cent.
The compact electric concept is Citroën’s playful rethink of the long-forgotten MPV – suggesting that you don’t need a sprawling SUV or van-derived people carrier to move lots of people in comfort. In fact, Citroën reckons something with the footprint of a regular hatchback can do the job just fine, provided you’re willing to challenge a few conventions along the way.
The ELO is built around a no-yet-existing dedicated electric platform, with the motor mounted on the rear axle, freeing up space where it matters most. Citroën claims the interior makes “efficient use of every cubic centimetre,” which sounds like marketing fluff… until you see how the thing is laid out.
Most striking of all is the driver’s seat, positioned dead centre, McLaren F1-style. The steering wheel has been pushed as far forward as possible, opening up an unusually airy cabin and delivering a wide, panoramic view through the windscreen. It also means the driver can swivel around when parked to chat with passengers – or, perhaps more realistically, supervise arguments in the back seats. Whether this also hints at future autonomous ambitions is left conveniently vague.
To deal with the small footprint, Citroën has devised cleverly hidden seating. Two additional seats fold away neatly when not needed or slide in alongside the driver, while a proper three-seat bench sits at the rear. Crucially, there’s no narrow “punishment seat” in the middle – everyone gets their own proper place to sit.
Sleep easy
Because simply fitting six people inside wasn’t ambitious enough, Citroën has also turned the ELO into a miniature camper. Tucked away in the boot are two inflatable mattresses developed with French sports retailer Decathlon. They inflate like stand-up paddle boards via an onboard compressor and, once ready, suspend from the ceiling above the folded rear bench to create a genuinely usable sleeping area.
Colour-wise, subtlety has been deliberately ignored. The exterior is unapologetically orange – a shade Citroën says reflects the “joyful character” of the concept – although it morphs into yellow depending on how the light hits it. Inside, the orange theme continues, joined by fabrics made from recycled sportswear, again courtesy of Decathlon.
There’s also a projection screen for movie nights on the road, and the driver’s seat features a small desk, turning it into what Citroën clearly hopes is the world’s most cheerful mobile office. Side doors open in opposing directions, making access surprisingly easy, while the huge glasshouse floods the interior with natural light and helps the cabin avoid feeling claustrophobic despite its compact size.
Is it a little eccentric? Absolutely. Will half of these ideas survive the journey to a production car? Almost certainly not. But the point of the ELO isn’t to preview exact features – it’s to show that small cars can still be clever, flexible and genuinely family-friendly.
Citroën CEO Xavier Chardon calls the ELO “totally in tune with the times,” adding that it offers “concrete, innovative solutions to promote freedom of movement and a better life”. We’d put it more simply: it’s refreshingly weird, charmingly optimistic – and proof that the MPV doesn’t have to be boring. Now all that’s left is for Citroën to actually build it.
