PARIS -- Citroen aims to capture more sales in the booming crossover segment in Europe and China with the C5 Aircross, which is scheduled to debut at the Shanghai auto show.
The PSA Group brand released teaser images of the midsize crossover on Thursday, but offered few details ahead of the vehicle's scheduled unveiling on Tuesday.
The C5 Aircross will go on sale in China in the second half of the year, and in Europe at the end of next year, Citroen said in a statement.
It will reportedly be built on PSA Group's Efficient Modular Platform 2, although Citroen has not discussed the vehicle's technical details. That platform underpins the automaker's compact and midsize vehicles, including the Peugeot 3008 and the DS 7 Crossback crossovers.
Slow start
The C5 Aircross was previewed by the Aircross SUV concept first shown at the 2015 Shanghai show. The model will be built at PSA's assembly plant in Rennes, France, and in Chengdu, China.
Citroen's vehicle sales in China fell 17 percent to just more than 250,000 vehicles last year, but China accounted for 20 percent of the brand's worldwide sales. In 2016, overall PSA Group sales fell 16 percent in China to 618,352 vehicles.
Citroen has been slower than rivals such as Renault and even its PSA sibling brand Peugeot to offer a range of crossovers, instead focusing on minivans, a segment that has been losing popularity among European buyers.
Product offensive
The brand says the C5 Aircross and the smaller C3 Aircross crossover mark the start of its product offensive in the segment. Last month, Citroen previewed the C-Aircross concept at the Geneva auto show and the production model will go on sale this fall.
The C3 Aircross will replace the C3 Picasso subcompact minivan. It shares its architecture with the Peugeot 2008 and Opel Crossland X, the first collaboration between PSA and General Motors' Opel unit, which GM is selling to the French automaker.
A revised version of the C5 sedan, which is being discontinued in Europe, will also join the C5 Aircross and the C-Aircross concept on the Citroen stand in Shanghai.
