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Stellantis has promised a refresh of its 12 North American products — as well as building 11 new models — as part of its global $96 billion (60 billion euros) business plan announced Thursday at an investor summit in Auburn Hills, Mich.
The company says 60 per cent of its global investment from now through 2030 will be made into its North American brands and products because that’s where its greatest opportunity is, coupled with brand strength.
Its entire global fleet will see 60 new car models — from combustion engine to fully electric vehicles — and new investments in technology, joint ventures with other carmakers and better use of its manufacturing capacity. And 50 of those will get significant makeovers.
Auto analyst Sam Fiorini weighs in on a Reuters report that says that Stellantis is favouring brands such as Jeep and Ram rather than Chrysler and Dodge. Both the Chrysler Pacifica and Dodge Charger are made in Windsor.
For North America, the plan is designed to expand the automaker’s hybrid offerings, and offer new pickup trucks, a small van and seven “affordable” vehicles.
Stellantis CEO Antonio Filosa says the deep market penetration made by Jeep, Ram, Dodge and Chrysler historically provides the most significant headroom for growth.
A revenue increase of 25 per cent in North America is what’s hoped for by 2030, with a margin on its adjusted operating income (AOI) seen between eight to 10 per cent.
Filosa also says their goal is expand their North American market coverage from 60 to 90 per cent — along with improving cost competitiveness.
The international automaker is budgeting to create $4.8 million (3 billion euros) in savings within its North American portfolio by 2028.
Tim Kuniskis overseas the North American brands portfolio for Stellantis.
He says while the automotive industry is expected to be flat over the next handful of years, he believes the Jeep, Ram, Dodge and Chrysler brands can continue to gain momentum.
“Without doing anything different, we can grow by just showing up in more segments,” Kuniskis said Thursday.
In the short term, he says, the plan is to strengthen the Pacifica with a mid-cycle refresh that’s launching right now, plus new variants coming soon.
“But the real growth comes from expansion and by adding three new crossovers below the Pacifica. First, a mid-sized crossover … plus two others below that are variants of each other based on shared improvement platforms out of Europe, allowing Chrysler to enter the $25,000 to $30,000 US space where today none of the America brands compete,” Kuniskis said.
As for the Dodge brand, he says a refreshed Durango is on the way, along with an entry-level performance vehicle: “The gateway into the brotherhood of muscle.”
Think of it as the next generation of the Dodge Hornet, he said, but “the way we should’ve done it the first time.”
Where the new vehicles would be built wasn’t released Thursday morning.
Global goals
The Franco-Italian carmaker said it would also refocus its approach to its sprawling 14-brand portfolio, with 70 per cent of brand and product investments going to Jeep, Ram, Peugeot and Fiat, as well as the commercial vehicle unit Pro One due.
The world’s No. 4 automaker seeks to turn its structural disadvantage of having far too much unused factory capacity into a revenue-generating contract manufacturing business for Chinese automakers in Europe and other carmakers like Tata Motors unit JLR in the United States.
Unlike his predecessor Carlos Tavares, who left the automaker’s sprawling portfolio of 14 brands largely untouched and spent heavily to develop new tech, Filosa has shown a willingness to focus on the company’s money-making brands and outsource expensive technology development to firms like self-driving startup Wayve.
As part of its new plan, Stellantis has earmarked billions for investments in global platforms, powertrains and new technologies, while targeting 6 billion euros in annual cost cuts by 2028 versus its outlays in 2025.
For Europe, revenue is expected to grow 15 per cent over the plan period, with an AOI margin seen between three to five per cent.
