Stellantis: the facts & brands behind the world's newest car giant

The merger of the PSA and FCA car groups was completed on January 16th, and its shares are now trading in New York.

PSA Group

PSA competes in every mainstream segment of the new car market but it’s largely absent from the upper echelons of the industry. While the conglomerate orbits around Peugeot, it also owns Citroën, DS, and it purchased Opel/Vauxhall from General Motors in 2017. Its annual global sales in 2020 were 2.5 million vehicles, down 28% from 2019, hit by Covid-19. PSA's well-regarded boss Carlos Tavares is now the CEO of Stellantis.

PSA brands remains dependent on the European market, where the vast majority of the cars it built in 2020 were registered. PSA sales in China fell 55% to just 117,084 vehicles - a harsh comparison with the 1 million-a-year target it set itself a few years ago. Tavares is setting up a new internal working group to tackle the China market. 

Finally, PSA brands are absent from the United States and Canada but Tavares was already working on a comeback plan, which will be much easier now that it has the well established dealership network of FCA's American brands like Jeep and Ram to potentially work with.

PICTURE: Peugeot 508

Peugeot

48% of PSA’s global sales in 2020 came from Peugeot, a heritage-laced brand that has gone through many ups and downs over the years. It spent years in the doldrums before entering a period of rejuvenation characterised by sharp, sporty designs, significantly improved build quality and a stronger focus on in-car technology, as well as some well-regarded SUVs like the 5008. The reboot is on-going.

The second-generation 208 unveiled in 2018 was named the Car of the Year for 2020 and is selling well, and benefits from economies-of-scale, sharing a platform with the latest Opel/Vauxhall Corsa. Peugeot jumped into the SUV class before many of its rivals and it’s reaping the rewards of its foresight. It’s well positioned to tackle the 2020s in Europe but it needs to increase its footprint in every other international market to credibly call itself successful.

Citroën

Citroën has always been far smaller than Peugeot; it sold just over 700,000 cars in 2020, seeing a 27.5% drop year-on-year. And, like Peugeot, it went through an extended period of anonymity during which executives were regularly asked when they were going to close the brand. Luckily, they never did.

Decision-makers instead figured out they needed to differentiate Citroën from Peugeot to make it successful. This gradual process involved injecting an acceptable dose of quirkiness into each model released during the 2010s. Unusual designs and eccentric styling cues like Airbump panels on the C3 Cactus helped the company forge itself a new identity that lured buyers back into showrooms.

At 102 years of age, Citroën is a few nameplates away from being in tip-top shape. But, once again like Peugeot, its high reliance on the mature European market could create difficulties in the 2020s.

DS

Created before Carlos Tavares took over, DS is PSA’s problem child. It was spun off from Citroën’s range of DS-badged models in 2014 to blossom into a premium car-maker aimed at the likes of Audi and BMW but it's been tough going. The company suffered from a range of anonymous-looking products that felt too much like the cheaper models they were based on and, more recently, it hasn’t expanded its range quickly enough. It also made the mistake of putting too much emphasis on the Chinese market.

Just over 40,000 motorists bought a DS in 2020, a fall of 29.5% year-on-year, a statistic which represents a rounding error in PSA’s annual sales reports. The company is slowly learning that head-turning concepts don’t sell cars and it’s putting a bigger focus on SUVs than ever before. The DS 3 Crossback (pictured) released in 2019 is a step in the right direction but it will need time and some very successful new cars for the firm to become a credible alternative to Germany’s luxury brands.

Opel/Vauxhall

Sister companies Opel and Vauxhall represented 25.2% of PSA’s unit sales in 2020, selling 630,000 cars, a sharp 35% drop year-on-year. At first glance, it looks like there is a lot of overlap between Opel/Vauxhall, Peugeot and Citroën but both firms are strong where PSA has historically been weak, like in Germany and the United Kingdom. The pieces fit together nicely, then.

While both firms lost a dramatic amount of money when they were part of GM, they reported a surprising 3.7% profit margin for the first half of 2020. The new Corsa (pictured) unveiled in 2019 spearheads the product offensive that will carry Opel/Vauxhall into the 2020s, including a new all-electric variant which promises a useful 211-mile range on the European WLTP cycle. 

That’s PSA as it stands – what about FCA?

Fiat Chrysler Automobiles

Fiat began investing in Chrysler after the latter filed for bankruptcy in 2009. The two companies merged to form Fiat Chrysler Automobiles (FCA) in 2014. The group’s vast portfolio of brands includes Fiat, Chrysler, Ram, Dodge, Jeep, Alfa Romeo, Maserati and Lancia. In 2019, these car makers collectively sold 4.3 million cars; full year unit sales figures for 2020 are not yet available, but are expected to have dropped sharply because of the pandemic.

FCA is strong in the United States, where Ram, Jeep and to a lesser extent Dodge helped it sell 1.82 million vehicles in 2020, a 17% year-on-year decline, which is a slightly sharper decline than the expected 15% dip in the overall US car market in 2020, hard hit by the pandemic. It has not made the investments in electric vehicles of some of its competitors, which has put the company at risk of receiving very expensive fines for not lowering its CO2 fleet average in Europe; it has notably spent hundreds of millions of euros buying emissions credits from Tesla. But it now at least has access to PSA's electric vehicle resources.

People-wise, FCA's chairman and Agnelli family scion John Elkann becomes chairman of Stellantis and his family's holding company Exor NV becomes the company's single largest shareholder with a stake of 14.4%. The British-born FCA CEO Mike Manley is now the leader of Stellantis in the Americas.

PICTURE: Abarth 500

Fiat

On the surface, FCA looks like it’s doing alright. However, a closer look reveals its strong brands are getting stronger and its weak brands are getting weaker.

Fiat is today mainly a European brand in terms of sales, along with certain other countries like Brazil and Turkey. While its 500 and Panda (pictured) remain popular, its other cars are often also rans in their classes. It’s re-entry to the US market has been a disaster; it sold just 4303 cars there in 2020, 53% down year-on-year. The range there is now down to the 500X, a re-skinned Jeep Renegade, and it has been slow to build momentum in China.

Chrysler

How Chrysler has survived this long is an enigma. Its line-up consists of the Pacifica minivan, which is a competent car positioned in a shrinking segment, and the ancient 300, the sales of which dipped a crushing 43% in 2020. The US is Chrysler's largest market, where total sales in 2020 were 110,464 units, down 13%, but it’s also present in Mexico and in Canada. It no longer sells cars in Europe, but it sends a small handful of cars to Australia and the Middle East.

On the bright side, Chrysler is at the centre of FCA’s partnership with Google's Waymo. In 2018, the tech giant announced plans to add up to 62,000 examples of the Pacifica (pictured) to its fleet of experimental self-driving cars. At the time, they also pledged to explore ways to bring Waymo’s autonomous technology to cars that consumers can buy – or at least share via an app. Putting Waymo technology into its products would allow Chrysler to leap well ahead of its rivals in the race to release self-driving vehicles.

Ram

Spun off from Dodge in 2010, Ram is a key part of FCA because it builds high-profit vehicles like the 1500 pickup truck (pictured). And while that model has historically occupied the third spot on America’s pickup podium, it often vies with the the Chevrolet Silverado for second place too. Ram's total US sales dipped 11% to 624,642 units in 2020.

Ram’s main problem is that it’s nearly non-existent outside of North America. It’s designing an entry-level pickup to fill the void created in 2011 when the Dakota retired. Autocar understands the yet-unnamed model is being developed with global markets – including Europe – in mind, and that it will be a sister vehicle to the Jeep Gladiator, to be built on the same line in Toledo, Ohio. It could easily be twinned with a Peugeot pickup aimed at the Volkswagen Amarok, the Ford Ranger and the Toyota Hilux.

Dodge

Dodge is another one of FCA’s America-focused brands in need of new products which showed in a grim sales story for 2020: US unit sales collapsed by 37% to 267,328 vehicles, including a 13% dip for the Challenger muscle car (pictured).

Dodge’s international presence is largely limited to the Middle East. There’s no indication the company wants to expand into markets like Europe; its last attempt there was a disaster and ended a decade ago. 

Jeep

Jeep has taken full advantage of the rising global demand for SUVs in recent years to morph into FCA’s crown jewel but, as with nearly all car companies, 2020 was tough. In the United States, its annual sales fell by 14% to 795,313 units. After the Cherokee, its best-selling model was the Wrangler (pictured), which had no direct rivals until the new Ford Bronco arrived. The new Wrangler-based pickup, the Gladiator, was a rare star of 2020: its sales soared 94% to 77,542 units.

FCA has taken significant steps to expand Jeep’s presence outside of North America and its efforts have mostly paid off with strong sales for smaller, more accessible models like the Renegade.

Alfa Romeo

FCA began resurrecting Alfa Romeo when it released the enthusiast-friendly 4C in 2013. Executives made lofty promises of sky-rocketing sales (they predicted 500,000 annual units by 2014) and a full range of models to take on BMW’s best but, as of 2020, its line-up consists only of the Giulia (pictured), the Stelvio SUV and the ancient Giulietta.

Alfa Romeo’s American sales actually grew 2% in 2020, albeit to a relatively small 18,586 vehicles, driven by a 9% hike in Stelvio sales. And while the Stelvio is now the brand's best-seller, it hasn't been the breakout success the company hoped for, and sales actually dipped from 2018 to 2019. All hopes now are on the Tonale compact SUV, which is due to be unveiled in 2021.

Maserati

Maserati competes in a segment of the market that Peugeot has never been present in. Its cars are positioned higher than Alfa Romeo’s and ostensibly marketed as Italy’s answer to Porsche. But despite grandiose aims, the brand has never come close to being on the German brand's radar in recent decades. Today the plan involves the launch of the MC20 supercar, the new V6 Nettuno engine that powers it, a new line of 800V tri-motor electric powertrains, the Grecale small SUV, and forthcoming Granturismo EV.

PICTURE: Maserati Quattroporte

Lancia

Lancia is the most insignificant part of FCA by a long shot. The cadaverous brand has been reduced to selling a single model – the aging Ypsilon (pictured) – in its home country of Italy. Most had long assumed that FCA plans to shutter the brand, but apparently now Stellantis sees it as one of its premium brands on a par with DS and Alfa Romeo, though it'll be interesting to see if it puts its money where its mouth is in terms of much needed new models. 

Do the two companies have a history together already? Yes indeed…

The Peugeot-Chrysler connection

Those well-versed in automotive history will remember that we’ve been here before. Peugeot purchased Chrysler’s European division for $1 in 1978 and renamed it Talbot the following year, retiring the decades-old Simca name. PSA entered the 1980s with three overlapping brands: Peugeot, Citroën and Talbot.

The Talbot range gradually grew with models like the small, 104-based Samba (pictured as a convertible), the mid-range Solara and the flagship Tagora but sales consistently disappointed, partly because the firm sorely lacked an image and its dealers had little interest in selling its cars. The last model it developed, a successor to the Horizon named Arizona, was re-badged Peugeot 309 mere months before its launch. Talbot disappeared from the French market in 1986 but it survived until 1990 in the UK by selling a van named Express.

SEVEL

Fiat and Peugeot have worked together in the past, too. In 1978, they formed a joint-venture named SEVEL to design and build light-duty commercial vehicles and, later, minivans. The original Fiat Ducato (pictured) released in 1981 was the first product spawned by the alliance. It was also sold as the Alfa Romeo AR6, the Citroën C25, the Peugeot J5 and the Talbot Express in various markets.

The Peugeot 806, Citroën Evasion, Fiat Ulysses and Lancia Zeta were SEVEL products and all four traced their roots to the same commercial van. The second-generation models were called 807, C8, Ulysses and Phedra, respectively, but production ended in 2014 without a successor in sight.

The Ducato is in its third generation as of 2021 and it’s still made by the Peugeot-Fiat joint-venture. Its Citroën- and Peugeot-badged siblings are known as the Boxer and Jumper, respectively, though the latter goes by the name Relay in some markets. It’s known as the Ram Promaster in the United States. Smaller vans are made by Sevel as well and Fiat’s Turkish division manufactures Panda-based people- and cargo-hauling vans for Peugeot and Citroën. FCA and PSA have strong ties in the commercial vehicle segment and both sides stand to save a lot of money by combining their operations.

What will PSA-FCA do with this many brands?

The merged company will have 14 vehicle brands (plus the Mopar parts brand) under the same roof, creating the industry’s biggest group. Volkswagen, one of the industry’s giants, runs 11 badges but its diverse family includes motorcycle manufacturer Ducati as well as truck makers Scania and MAN. Stellantis would operate Abarth, Alfa Romeo, Chrysler, Citroen, Dodge, DS, Fiat, Jeep, Lancia, Maserati, Peugeot, Opel, Ram, and Vauxhall - all operating in the consumer or light-commercial vehicle spaces. 

These are far from the only brands that the newly merged company has the trademark to - join us for a tour of the rest:  

Panhard (1891-1967)

Panhard’s story proves being a pioneer doesn’t always guarantee success. It entered the automotive industry early and immediately stood out as one of the most innovative and prestigious companies. It notably spent decades experimenting with valve-less engines and it saw the merits of reducing a car’s drag coefficient before most of its rivals. The flat-twin-powered Dyna Z (pictured), PL17 and 24 were an automotive engineer’s dream but they couldn’t keep the company afloat on their own. Citroën purchased Panhard in 1965, by which point it was facing an uphill battle for survival, and closed it two years later.

Chance of a brand revival: Peugeot acquired the Panhard name when it purchased Citroën in 1976 and nearly resurrected it several years later but it chose to bring back the Talbot name instead. It still owns the rights to the name but the odds of once again seeing it affixed to a car are nearly zero.

Rootes Group (1915-1967)

Chrysler merged Simca, Rootes and Spanish truck manufacturer Barreiros into a subsidiary named Chrysler Europe in 1967. Its portfolio covered most segments of the European market in 1970 but none of these brands lived to see 1980. After PSA purchased Chrysler Europe in 1978 it closed the car makers that had survived until then. Simca became Talbot and commercial vehicle specialist Commer survived until 1979.

Chance of a brand revival: The numerous Rootes brands are very likely dead for good; we can’t imagine anyone getting excited about a modern-day Humber. Singer is more often associated with resto-modded Porsches and sewing machines than cars and Hillman doesn’t have much equity left, though the rear-engined Imp (pictured) is becoming increasingly popular as a collector's car. That’s a little ironic considering the role it played in the Rootes collapse. Not enough people remember Sunbeam, Commer or Karrier to justify a comeback. Simca is dead for good too, and we suspect Talbot along with it. 

DeSoto (1928-1960)

Walter P. Chrysler founded DeSoto in 1928 to give his growing group an entry into the mid-range segment, which was below Chrysler’s price point. This strategy worked remarkably well; DeSoto sold a record-breaking 81,065 units of the Model K (pictured), its first car, during its first 12 months on the market. Chrysler’s purchase of Dodge made it redundant and the two car makers often overlapped. Its share of the American car market gradually eroded until it closed in 1960.

Chance of a brand revival: Few motorists remember DeSoto and the ones that do aren’t part of the Stellantis primary target audience. While a fantastic lack of brand awareness hasn’t stopped investors from pulling Borgward out of the grave, we think Stellantis is business-savvy enough to let DeSoto stay dead.

Plymouth (1928-2001)

Once a significant part of Chrysler, Plymouth declined during the 1980s as its portfolio became overloaded with badge-engineered cars that lacked personality. The original Neon revealed in 1993 could have helped relaunch the brand but it was also sold as a Dodge in the United States and the two models filled the same space. The Hot Wheels-esque Prowler (pictured) looked like a UFO in its showrooms next to a range of cars best described as insipid. Three’s the charm; the PT Cruiser was designed to finally spearhead Plymouth’s revival. It arrived on the market as a Chrysler after executives concluded the firm was better off dead because its troubles were too deeply rooted.

Chance of a brand revival: Chrysler closed Plymouth because it wasn’t relevant anymore and spending 20 years in the pantheon of automotive history hasn’t helped its cause. Don’t expect to see another Plymouth showroom.

Imperial (1955-1975, 1981-1983)

The Chrysler Imperial spawned a standalone brand in 1955. The firm’s early cars shared mechanical components and styling cues with Chrysler’s models but they were nicer inside, better equipped and correspondingly more expensive. In the 1960s, product planners gradually hid Imperial’s Chrysler roots to better compete against Lincoln and Cadillac, its main rivals. The firm sold 17,719 cars in 1960.

Imperial’s four-door models grew to outstanding dimensions during the 1970s; the 1973 Imperial LeBaron (pictured) measured 235in (5969mm) from bumper to bumper, a figure that made it the longest car sold new in America. These jumbo dimensions also made it shockingly ill-prepared to survive the oil embargo that rocked the global economy that year and production ended for the first time in 1975.

Chrysler resurrected Imperial in 1981 for a coupé built on its J platform. Frank Sinatra helped market the car but it struggled, partly because of the brand’s stale image. Imperial shut down for the second and last time in 1983.

Chance of a brand revival: It’s not difficult to imagine a born-again Imperial positioned as a Stellantis flagship brand in the United States. The heritage is there and it could rival Tesla by making high-tech luxury EVs, say. Stellantis already has enough brands to fix and relaunch, however, and it likely doesn’t have the time or the resources to properly build up Imperial as a player in the luxury car market. It could certainly work if done right but we don’t see it happening anytime soon.

American Motors Corporation (1954-1988)

American car makers Nash and Hudson merged to become American Motors Corporation (AMC) in 1954 to reap the rewards of economies of scale and challenge Detroit’s Big Three. Both names retired in 1957 as executives decided to focus on the Rambler line of cars, a strategy which paid off in the short term.

Renault purchased a controlling stake in AMC in 1980, a year after the forward-thinking four-wheel drive Eagle (pictured) made its debut, but it sold its shares to Chrysler when its American adventure ended in 1987. The good parts of AMC (Jeep, mainly) were rolled into Chrysler and the rest was consigned to the attic.

Chance of a brand revival: Chrysler’s arsenal of dead brands includes Nash, Hudson, Rambler and AMC. There wouldn’t be room in the FCA portfolio for any of them to make a comeback but we wouldn’t be entirely surprised to see some of the better-resonating model nameplates such as Rambler and Eagle return, especially as good new names are becoming hard to find now.

Eagle (1988-1999)

Eagle was Chrysler’s haphazard attempt at salvaging AMC’s more marketable morsels while keeping up with rival General Motors, which launched the value-focused Saturn brand in 1990. Early cars like the Medallion traced their roots to the Renault-AMC tie-up while later models were re-badged variants of Chrysler or Mitsubishi products, like the Talon (pictured). Eagle stood apart as Chrysler’s black sheep during most of the 1990s and the company closed in 1999.

Chance of a brand revival: Chrysler didn’t want Eagle to begin with and there’s little reason to believe that has changed over the past two decades.

Autobianchi (1955-1995)

Autobianchi’s claim to fame is the A112, a pocket-sized model developed as Italy’s answer to the Austin Mini and built from 1969 to 1986. While the Abarth-tuned model was the world’s first hot hatch, and it’s hugely desirable in 2019, it’s important not to forget Autobianchi’s role as Fiat’s lab rat during the 1960s. It’s the firm that tested new ideas – like front-wheel drive – before its parent company to gauge the public’s response and preserve Fiat’s excellent image.

Developed by Dante Giacosa (1905-1996), the Primula (pictured) introduced at the 1964 Turin auto show was the Fiat group’s first series-produced front-wheel drive model. Encouraged by its relative success, Fiat began moving most of its range away from rear-wheel drive when it released the 128 in 1969.

Chance of a brand revival: Autobianchi ended its life unceremoniously by selling a single model, the Lancia-based Y10, in a single market, its home country of Italy. Fiat simply gave up on it. Breathing new life into Autobianchi while Lancia is in the state it's in wouldn’t make the slightest amount of sense.

Stellantis: key facts