PARIS (Reuters) - A limited edition of 50 Citroen mini electric cars sold out in less than 18 minutes, parent company Stellantis said on Wednesday, prompting the French brand to post a cheeky message to electric car pioneer Elon Musk.

Sorry Elon, the only way to get one is to buy us, Citroen wrote on a billboard at Paris' Gare de L'Est train station, referring to the Tesla CEO's appetite for deals, which has recently included a $44 billion bid for Twitter.

Since the Ami's launch in April 2020, Citroen has sold 22,000 of the small electric model in Morocco, Europe and Turkey. The car is produced in Morocco and does not require a driving licence. It is only sold online.

For the limited edition My Ami Buggy version, the roof is replaced with canvas that can be rolled back and metal tube gates replace the doors. It is sold from 9,790 euros ($10,361).

The fastest customer managed to complete the whole purchasing journey and get his 'My Ami Buggy' in only 2 minutes and 53 seconds, Citroen said in a statement.

($1 = 0.9449 euros)

(Reporting by Gilles Guillaume; Writing by Dominique Vidalon; Editing by Mark Potter)