Electric Citroën Ami challenges century-old record

Over a hundred years ago, in 1924, the founder of an automobile manufacturing company embarked on an incredible journey to prove the reliability of his vehicles. André Citroën’s goal? To leave Paris, and make the journey from the north of Africa to the southernmost tip through the Sahara desert.

It was the first time ever anyone had attempted this venture by car.

A century later, in October 2024, Eric Vigouroux and three other adventurers took on a similar expedition, albeit with a much smaller electric vehicle – the Citroën Ami.

Despite the passage of time, the goal remains the same: to prove the reliability of the vehicle and display Citroën’s technological advancements.

Vigouroux is an adventurer and motorsport legend, having completed the Paris to Dakar rally 15 times among other gruelling competions. Now, he’s switching from high-speed V8 vehicles to the Ami, which has a maximum speed of 45 kilometres per hour. But the 50 year old seems to live his life to the fullest to keep his grandfather’s legacy alive; he discovered that his grandfather worked at the Citroën branch in Lyon in 1929.

Top Revs took to the roads and followed up on the crew’s whereabouts, and on Saturday morning they were spotted on their way to the Franco-Namibian Cultural Centre (FNCC) in Windhoek before departing to the Omaheke region. Their final destination is Cape Town. But at the Ami’s top speed, there are still a few weeks on the road to look forward to.

Speaking to Top Revs during the crew’s pitstop, Vigouroux said electric mobility makes more sense if the cars are lighter.

“The less weight, the less energy, the less battery power. So the key for this expedition was to use light electric cars. Not only are they electric, but we want to charge them only with renewable energy, which is mainly solar,” Vigouroux said.

While the crew normally stops at places with solar charging stations, they are prepared if there are none nearby as each car carries solar panels for this exact purpose. “If it is the middle of nowhere, we can charge our vehicles … this is the key of the entire expedition,” Vigouroux said.

The vehicles the crew are using have been upgraded for this exercise to cover at least 250 kilometres on a full charge, substantially more than the 70 kilometre target of the orginal Ami build.

But despite these upgrades, packing light is crucial. The team of four is escorted by a fifth team member on a motorcycle, who serves as their media representative, but they have to carry all their gear for the expedition. Spare parts, personal belongings and a full solar kit must fit into each car, so every spot is utilised. This means each car carries only one person – the driver.

The expedition departed from Morocco, where the Ami is also manufactured.