Tag Archives: Stellantis

News

The future of Maserati is uncertain

Lately, Maserati has been fighting a tough battle to survive, and now comes another bad news that could further complicate the future of the Italian brand. According to the latest information, Stellantis gave up an investment of 1.5 billion dollars, which would have been a large injection and a possible way out of the current crisis.

In an interview with Autocar, Stellantis’ chief financial officer Doug Ostermann said that the company must review its plans, which includes abandoning investments. “We have to recognize the dynamics in this business, especially in the Chinese market, and our expectations in terms of how quickly the luxury market will switch to electrification,” Doug Ostermann said.

This decision will particularly hit Maserati, whose sales are not at the expected level, and sales results for 2024 show that the brand is recording large losses. In 2024, Maserati sold only 11,300 cars (- 57.5%) and made a financial loss of 260 million euros. This situation could put a large number of jobs at risk, so the FIM union has scheduled a meeting with Maserati management for March 11.

“Maserati is in one of the most critical situations. Despite its quality and high-performance models, the brand is suffering from marketing mistakes and negligence. We can no longer waste time,” said FIM Secretary General Ferdinando Uliano.

It remains to be seen whether Maserati will survive the current crisis or become another Italian brand that has become a thing of the past.

Source: Autocar

News

STLA AutoDrive is Stellantis’ first automated driving system

Stellantis has developed its first automated driving system that enables hands-free and eyes-off driving (SAE Level 3), STLA AutoDrive. This system operates at speeds up to 60 km/h and is designed primarily for city traffic.

STLA AutoDrive is Stellantis’s response to similar competitor systems, which allows the driver to enjoy driving more because the car can now steer, brake and monitor traffic independently thanks to an advanced sensor system and automatic sensor cleaning that ensure stable operation. The driver can use this time for other tasks, such as answering emails or simply relaxing.

The system is designed on a flexible platform and supports cloud-based software upgrades, which will enable incremental functionality. At higher speeds, the system operates in Level 2 and 2+ modes (adaptive cruise control and lane positioning). At that moment, the driver’s attention is required so that he can intervene in time if necessary.

Also, Stellantis announced that in the future, some models could receive Hands-Free and Eyes-Off upgrades, which enable independent driving at speeds of up to 95 km/h and off-road autopilot.

Source: Stellantis

News

SUVs were the best-selling cars in Europe in 2024

Although the demand for SUVs has been slowing down in recent years, this type of vehicle remains the most sought after in Europe. According to sales data, 6.92 million SUVs were sold in Europe in 2024, which is four percent more than in 2023.

Compact SUVs (C-SUV segment) were the most popular type in the category, and the top seller was the Kia Sportage. This segment accounted for 42 percent of total SUV sales last year, followed by smaller models (B-SUVs), with a 36 percent market share. The biggest demand was for the VW T-Roc. However, the greatest growth was achieved by luxury SUVs, whose sales increased by 13 percent (56,300 units).

SUVs were significant for a number of carmakers last year, including Jaguar Land Rover, Geely, Honda and SAIC Motor, while the segment accounted for less than half of total sales at Stellantis, Renault Group, BMW Group, Mercedes-Benz and Mitsubishi.

If we look at individual manufacturers, the highest demand was for SUVs from the VW Group. They accounted for almost 1/4 of the total number of new SUVs sold in Europe last year, and the T-Roc and Tiguan are among the ten best-selling models in the category. Stellantis was the second best-seller with almost 800,000 units (-7% compared to 2023), while Hyundai and Kia finished third with more than 705,000 units sold (-1%).

Source: Reuters, Photo: VW