This might be one of the most unfair Morning Dumps I’ve ever written, and if you are a Stellantis executive allow me to apologize in advance. I was extremely critical of the previous leadership of the company that owns Chrysler, Dodge, Jeep, and Ram for not respecting the engineering and product-planning expertise of its own American arm. To the credit of the company’s new leadership, this is a trend that’s being reversed.
The Paris Motor Show is usually a sleepy affair, but this year’s show featured a football field-sized display of the European arm’s vehicles and, yeah, I’m a little jealous. Maybe covetous is the right word. Stellantis, I have seen what you have done for other consumers, and I want you to do that for me. Does that include a new Jeep Renegade? Probably. Not that it’s bad for Stellantis to focus on Europe; deliveries were down in North America, though it was apparently planned.
Also, Nissan and Renault are still semi-related, and it would be great if Nissan somehow was the vector by which Alpine came to America given how cool the new A310 concept looks.
Is Stellantis A European Or An American Company?
Stellantis is the strange alliance of a bunch of American brands (CDJR), French brands (PSA), and Italian brands (Fiat, Lancia, Maserati), with a new Chinese JV (Leapmotor) tossed in just to make it interesting. It is the combination-Pizza Hut-Taco Bell of carmakers.
It’s also had an almost historically bad run, as the last CEO used the pandemic to temporarily squeeze profits and suppliers in an attempt to make his company look better for an EV transition that never happened. I argued, back in 2024, that if Stellantis was to save the company it had to, in part, be more American:
In the impending Trump era, it’s clear that there’s going to be an industrial policy here that favors American production. Honestly, even if Harris had been elected, I think this was going to be the case. Rather than fight it, Stellantis needs to embrace it with vehicles and concepts that make the various brands fit within an American portfolio and not a ‘House of Brands’ that also includes Alfa, Fiat, and Maserati.
In fact, Fiat, Alfa, and Maserati have to leave North America. It was a fun experiment and it didn’t work. Oh well.
Wow, I got a lot of things right. Stellantis, to its credit, has gotten more American, hired back some good people, and introduced exciting new products that are extremely ‘murican.
Now let me completely contradict myself.
The 2CV Fourgonnette, the 2CV Concept, and the Fiat Multiplay are all so exciting as concepts I’m sort of thinking they need to come to the United States. Fiat did decently well in the United States when the Fiat 500 first came here, and while it’s sucking wind now, why not turn Fiat dealers into Fiat/Citroën dealers that import cheap, fun, electric cars? Obviously, some crossover between the European and American arms is coming, as Stellantis already teased a lot of vehicles for North America based on European platforms.
The underlying tension between Europe and America may not even be tension at all, as nnew-ish CEO Antonio Filosa told Bloomberg Television:
Stellantis CEO Antonio Filosa rejected the notion of separating the group’s European and U.S. brands, saying the company’s strategy is based on all 14 of them “playing their unique role.”
“It is not plausible at all,” Filosa told Bloomberg Television Oct. 12 at the Paris auto show when asked about the idea of separating brands such as Citroen and Fiat from Jeep and Ram. Stellantis develops technologies globally for all its models, including powertrains and computing architecture, and each brand will use that as a base, he added.
Filosa also said that Maserati wasn’t for sale, which is interesting.
The best example of the two sides of the company working together was probably the Jeep Renegade, which was an Italian-made, Fiat-based product that still felt Jeep enough and filled an important niche in the market. Oh, hey, it’s coming back.
Will America Get The New Jeep Renegade?
Here’s an amusing quote from a Stellantis press release from yesterday:
At the Paris Motor Show, Xavier Peugeot, Head of Jeep Brand Europe, outlined the next steps for the brand, combining a strong product plan to expand its European line-up with a vision for the future.
Xavier Peugeot? I wonder how he got that job…
There’s more. The Jeep Renegade will be back by 2030. What else?
Jeep is strengthening its presence across the B-, C- and D-SUV segments, with its European line-up set to grow up to six models by 2030.
The Jeep Avenger has established a strong presence in the B-SUV segment, with nearly 300,000 units sold since launch, while the new Jeep Compass reinforces the brand’s position in the C-SUV segment.
In the D-SUV segment, the Jeep Recon will mark the brand’s return, followed by an additional new model in 2028.
I wonder if this means that the Renegade will be coming back to the United States at some point. The company is being mum on this point.
Stellantis Deliveries Down In Q3, Mostly Because Of North America
Here’s a not-great chart if you’re a Stellantis investor. The company’s consolidated shipments were down 1% globally, dragged down by a big drop in North America.
What’s going on here?
In North America, Q3 shipments declined by approximately 47 thousand units, or 12% year-over-year, primarily due to planned production downtime largely affecting certain Jeep® models, including the Grand Cherokee and Compass, each decreasing by approximately 25 thousand units year-over-year. The decrease in shipments was partially offset by stronger Ram performance, with shipments increasing by approximately 17 thousand units year-over-year, driven by demand for new and refreshed products and expanded powertrain offerings, including the Ram 1500 light-duty HEMI® V8 and the new Ram 1500 TRX.
Well, as long as it was planned.
The Alpine A310 Looks Gooooooood
It’s been 55 years since the Alpine 310 was unveiled, and the company is celebrating with an EV concept that looks pretty great. It’s called the Alpine A310 Vision, and it gets all the proportions just right. How did the company achieve this?
The Alpine Design teams worked from an Alpine A310 positioned at the heart of the studio, as a living reference. Hand-drawn sketches, observation of volumes and analysis of lines: the objective was to capture the essence of a very seventies design — simple, expressive and timeless — and offer a contemporary interpretation of it.
There we go.
Get in the EV, Shinji!
What I’m Listening To While Writing TMD
I’ll be your morning-bright good-night shadow machineI’ll be your record player, baby, if you know what I meanI’ll be a real tough cookie with the whiskey breathI’ll be a killer and a thriller and the ’cause of our death
-Big Thief, “Paul”
The Big Question
Which Stellantis product do you most want to see here?
Top photo: Stellantis
You missed out a British brand (Vauxhall) and a German brand (Opel)
Oh, I didn’t realize the Grizzly is going to be one of the rebadged Chryslers. Wonder if they’ll also sell the Fiat version here to get people into Fiat dealers again, or cut them loose?
https://www.wsj.com/video/could-this-grizzly-fiat-save-stellantis/753E430B-BA7A-4F3C-BE74-243B3C383735
Maserati isn’t for sale because the CEL is on. Stellantis just needs to make sure it’s nothing serious and clear it, then detail it up a little, and it’s absolutely going facebook marketplace. Also Stellantis has a buddy that is still interested, probably. Anyway, it’s not for sale yet.
TBQ:
A production version of the Citroen ELO or FIAT Multiplay. Bonus points if the ELO keeps the double sliding doors or the Multiplay gets sliders for the rear instead of the coach doors.
If it has to be something actually in production, I’d take a FIAT Grande Panda EV or Opel Astra EV. I think if they offered all the drivetrain options on those stateside, they’d move more units though.
re TBQ: V8 charger NOW!!!!!
also would love to see some Leapmotors here in Canada but i wish they still made the S01 though… that was a lovely looking car.
TBQ: Almost anything, at this point.
Dodge has two models – a big SUV that debuted when Obama was President and is somehow still doing well despite the odds, and a large car that sells at 5% of the volume of the three aging models it directly replaced (yeah, that’s right, the new Charger’s sales figures are 5% of the volume of the old Charger, Challenger, and 300 combined in their final model year). Chrysler has one model, an aging minivan that is somehow still doing well despite the odds. RAM sells a big van and a big truck, in a market where midsize and smaller trucks are having a moment, they have nothing smaller than full-size, despite the “Just-Right Sized” Dodge Dakota almost defining the concept of a midsize pickup truck in the first place
Jeep has three models that, frankly, start at prices above Jeep’s league in terms of what its brand equity justifies, while most of the others are just sort of there. In a world where so many established, mainstream auto brands are turning themselves into SUV-only lineups and embracing faux rugged styling, Jeep’s unique identity is getting kind of diluted, they can’t take their old image for granted anymore, because everyone else is copying it.
Dodge really needs a Journey replacement – a cheap, 3 row family crossover, and a redo of the Hornet, as an affordable small crossover this time. And the Charger does need to be reshuffled, the upcoming V8 version is one part of that, but they also need to shore up the other end of the lineup and offer a decontented RWD-only base model with an NA ICE engine, maybe the Pentastar. Unfortunately, the time when everyone really pays attention is when the new model is launched in the first place, later updates and revisions don’t command as much attention, so the early stumbles on launch may be irreparable. Perhaps they could improve economies of scale by spinning off a new Chrysler 300
I think the upcoming strategy for Chrysler makes some sense, the Arrow, Arrow Cross, and Airflow seem like decent enough products at very aggressive pricing, but the timeline for introduction is ridiculously long, they need to be here now, not in two years, and I question how well producing in Morocco is going to work out, since the President seems to decide tariff policies based on whether or not he wakes up with a sore lower back in the morning
TBQ: A smaller Dodge than the Charger Daytona. Something more like the car that went by the latter part of the name than the former.
But that probably wouldn’t be seen as tough and manly enough for Dodge’s current image.
GLH is supposedly on the way?
TBQ: the RAM 700 from South America. You never said it had to be a Euro vehicle.
This has got to set the record for the “Least Answered TBQ” in a long time if not all time. I guess the Opel Astra and Corsa, and Peugeot 308 might be OK?
I really like the Astra. I kinda hope the GLH will be based on it.
Kinda awkward if the Astra showed up as a Mopar when it was a Saturn back when those existed. It fills that Focus/Cavalier hole that no one makes domestically anymore.
Just sell them under the Chrysler umbrella.
Plymouth and Eagle are also available
Airflow… mixing a few art deco touches with a really kick-ass modern aerodynamic EV or hybrid.
How about some Peugeots to sell alongside the Pacifica in Chrysler showrooms?
Make mine a 508 SW, please. Heck, with the new nose on the Pacifica, they already look like stablemates.
Want the Renegade in America? Simply rename Europe “America East” and abracadabra Renegade in America. Next…..
Leapmotor PHEV minivan, built in Brampton, at least for Canada, possibly rebadged as a Chrysler. The Pacifica PHEV used to sell decently in British Columbia and Canadians are ready to buy Chinese vehicles.
I don’t know what cars they sell in Europe and there is no way to find out without going all the way over there!
Autopian field trip! My last visit to the Continent, I saw mostly VAG product in daily use.
Panda Panda Panda.
Love Big Thief. Excited for their new album.
The Grande Panda looks like a get little car.
In order to answer TBQ, I would need to ask any of the global readers if there are cars from Peugeot/Vauxhall/Citroen/Lancia/Abarth etc any good? The US cars have a… reputation at this point that gives me pause before looking.
I’d really like a Peugeot 308 SW GTI trim spec please but what is the word in the lands where these exist? Are there quality concerns as we see from Jeep and Dodge? Or are the home markets able to maintain their quality better?
UK here. Stellantis cars of all brands are known to be awful, especially the petrol models. Wet belts, poor reliabilty, no meaningful difference between each brand’s car (an Astra is really no different to a 308 etc) and they are all “bought” by non-enthusiasts who have no interest in what the car is underneath. I know of mechanics who hate them, especially once they hit about 3 years old. Don’t go thinking the grass is always greener on this side of the pond guys!
We don’t actually need Fiat or Citroen or Pug dealers here. Just rebadge them as Dodges and Chryslers.
There are just already 300 Fiat dealers with nothing to show for it.