By launching a low-cost electric quadricycle, the Ami, Citroën seems to have had a hollow nose. 9,000 copies of this funny cart were sold in Europe during its first year of existence. This little “French” made in Morocco has been helped by the absence of real competition. Its most direct rival, the Renault Twizy, is both much more expensive and less practical. But his first twelve months were not necessarily a long quiet river, for her… as for her clients. At the start of 2021, the Chevron brand even took over all production for nearly three weeks, to subject it to a major “modernization campaign” aimed at correcting various faults.
Sealing still problematic
Despite this commando operation, all the problems were not resolved. Some units even had to return to the workshop after this intervention, because their front doors had been manipulated too much, causing the door stopper to be deformed. But it is above all the various sealing concerns that really remain THE car’s main disease. By the front or rear floor, by the roof, by the door entry seal … water always manages to find many ways to infiltrate. The injection of a component in the roof area and the modification of the adjustment of the doors during the modernization campaign unfortunately did not act as a miracle solution. However, there is progress. As of February 2021, moisture no longer appears to be able to enter the power cable electronics box, causing the AC outlet’s circuit breaker to trip when plugged in for a load.
TO READ. Citroën Ami: first commercial report and launch in the United Kingdom
Reliability that progresses little by little
Problems with charging not starting or showing excessive time on the dash, wiper failure, or unable to start due to an out of service electric motor also seem to be a thing of the past now. Question mechanical reliability, the balance sheet of the Friend is not necessarily more dramatic than that of a “real” car, like the Peugeot e-208, who had also known some faults of youth. But to become fully recommendable, the Citroën chip would have to improve its manufacturing quality somewhat and, above all, finally ensure optimum sealing. An equation not necessarily easy to solve when you want to offer a four-wheel electric vehicle at the lowest price on the market!
Problems fixed at the factory in 2020
Some Ami quickly encountered impossible charging problems, but the brand was able to deploy a fix quickly, in the workshop as well as in the factory.
- Models produced until July 31, 2020: vehicle does not charge. Origin of the problem: electrical harness for normal charging or on-board charger / DC voltage converter assembly. Solution in the workshop: check to determine the origin of the problem and replacement of the element in question. Intervention time: from 55 minutes to approximately 1 hour 35 minutes depending on the case. Factory fix: evolution of the on-board charger as standard.
- Until August 30, 2020: detachment of the movable window seal on the side door. Origin: non-compliant bonding method at the factory. Workshop solution: check the seal on both sides and replace if necessary. Intervention time: less than 20 minutes for one joint, less than 25 for two. Factory fix: evolution of the manufacturing process.
- Until September 29, 2020:malfunction of one or more functions managed by the control under the steering wheel. Origin: control under the steering wheel defective. Workshop solution: replacement of the control. Intervention time: 30 minutes. Factory fix: evolution of the manufacturing process.
- Until November 10, 2020: the movable side window does not hold in the closed position. Cause: fault in the window lock. Solution in the workshop: replacement of the window lock. Intervention time: less than 15 minutes per side. Factory fix: evolution of the serial lock.
- Until November 24, 2020: when the vehicle is charged, the remaining time displayed is 8 hours instead of 3 hours as indicated in the manual. Origin: software for electric vehicle (BVCU) and traction battery (BMS) computers. Workshop solution: download of new software. Intervention time: around 40 minutes. Factory fix: evolution of serial vehicle software.
- Until November 30, 2020:lighting of the “Service” light when loading with the parking brake loose or when driving. Cause: failure of the handset. Solution in the workshop: reading fault codes and replacing the handset. Intervention time: 30 minutes. Factory fix: evolution of the handset.
- Until December 6, 2020: deformation of the front door at the level of the hinge support and door stop. Origin: fragility of the structure at the level of the hinge support and door stop. Solution in the workshop: check and replace if necessary the front door and the door stopper, on each side. Intervention time: approximately 1 hour 20 minutes for one door, approximately 2 hours 25 minutes for two doors. Factory solution: evolution of the structure of the front doors.
- Until December 31, 2020: Door stopper deformed at the level of its attachment to the front door upon return from the modernization campaign. Origin: Excessive handling of the front door during the modernization campaign. Solution in the workshop: replacement of the right and / or left door stop. Intervention time: less than 20 minutes for one joint, less than 25 for two.
Problems resolved in 2021
- From June 15, 2020 to February 2, 2021: absence de passage en mode « Ready ». Cause: failure to download the electric vehicle computer. Solution in the workshop: attempt to resume downloading, replacing the computer if necessary. Intervention time: 30 minutes. Factory corrective: evolution of the computer.
- Until February 8, 2021: AC outlet circuit breaker tripping when plugging in the vehicle for charging. Origin: water entering the electronic unit of the vehicle’s power cable. Solution in the workshop: replacement of the mode 1 charging cable. Intervention time: 1 hour 30 minutes. Factory correction: evolution of the manufacturing process.
- Until April 4, 2021: start not possible with the red triangle lighting up in the instrument panel accompanied by an audible beep and switching to Drive mode impossible. Origin: electric traction motor. Solution in the workshop: replacement of the electric traction motor. Intervention time: 1 h 15 min. Factory fix: evolution of the assembly process.
The real mechanical problems weren’t that many, but some electric motors still had to be replaced. The symptom? Starting and switching to Drive mode became impossible!
- Until April 5, 2021: the steering wheel is shifted to the right or to the left with or without drawdown. Origin: non-compliant steering wheel alignment adjustment at the factory. Workshop solution: checking and adjusting the geometry of the running gear. Intervention time: approximately 1 hour 35 minutes. Factory correction: evolution of the manufacturing process.
- Until May 30, 2021: front wiper motor not working. Origin: insufficient protection of the wiper motor causing its destruction following water ingress. Solution in the workshop: check the type of protection, then replace if necessary the protection and the wiper motor. Intervention time: 30 minutes. Factory fix: evolution of the manufacturing process.
- Until June 13, 2021: water inlet through the door inlet seal. Origin: deformation of the fixing part of the door entry seal due to non-conformity of its factory assembly. Factory solution: replacement of the inlet seal. Intervention time: less than 15 minutes for one side, less than 20 minutes for both. Factory fix: evolution of the manufacturing process.
- Until July 4, 2021: the movable side door window is positioned incorrectly. Origin: Lack of thread lock on the lower hinge screws of the movable window when fitted in the factory. Factory solution: removal and refitting of the fixing screws of the 4 lower hinges of the movable windows with installation of thread lock. Intervention time: 2 h. Factory fix: evolution of the assembly process.
- Until July 7, 2021: the vehicle is cut off while the vehicle is moving with the red triangle “Stop” warning light coming on. Origin: software for electric vehicle and traction battery ECUs. Workshop solution: reading fault codes, then downloading software followed by a fleet management procedure. Intervention time: around 40 minutes. Factory fix: evolution of serial vehicle software.
Problems without factory solutions
On some models, water enters as well through the front or rear floor as through the doors or the roof.
- Water inlet through the door inlet seal. Origin: faulty door seal. Solution in the workshop: re-sealing of the door entry seal on both sides. Intervention time: approximately 1 hour 20 minutes.
- Water inlet through the front or rear floor. Origin: defective sealing of the front or rear floor. Workshop solution: resealing the waterproofing of the front or rear floor. Intervention time: less than 1 hour 10 minutes.
- Water inlet through the pavilion. Origin: sealing of the front and rear roof gaskets. Solution in the workshop: re-sealing of the roof gaskets on both sides. Intervention time: 2 h.
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