Here's the Plan to Save Chrysler and Alfa Romeo Brands in the US
Christine Feuell's focus is on two iconic brands that have become increasingly marginalized, either by way of corporate product decisions or reduced showroom traffic.
Chrysler will refresh its Pacifica minivan in 2026, followed by a new, affordable two-row crossover, and then a product to be named later that will be inspired by the dramatic Halcyon concept.
Alfa Romeo will replace the Stelvio crossover and Giulia sedan next year. And no longer planning to go all-electric, Alfa Romeo and Chrysler will offer gas, hybrid, and battery-electric powertrains in the US.
Does Christine Feuell have the least envied job in Detroit? She's in charge of both the Chrysler and Alfa Romeo brands within the multi-national Stellantis automotive collective that is currently rudderless after the recent departure of Carlos Tavares as CEO.
If US sales were humming for the Stellantis brands active in the US (Alfa Romeo, Chrysler, Dodge, Fiat, Jeep, Maserati, and Ram), then maybe Tavares would still have a job and maybe Larry Dominque would not have quietly departed as head of Alfa Romeo in North America as a tumultuous 2024 ended for the company.
Instead, six out of the seven Stellantis brands sold on average 15% fewer vehicles than in 2023 in a US market that grew 2.2%. Even Jeep and Ram lost significant volume.
But Feuell's focus is on two iconic brands that have become increasingly marginalized, either by way of corporate product decisions or reduced showroom traffic.
Alfa Romeo sold a miniscule 8,865 vehicles in the US last year (down 19% from 2023), and that's including the new Tonale compact crossover, which barely outsold the aged Giulia sedan and larger Stelvio crossover.
There is little chance Alfa Romeo can catch Acura, Cadillac, or Volvo in the sales race anytime soon, not to mention the absolutely unreachable BMW, Mercedes-Benz, and Lexus.
The story is barely more upbeat for Chrysler, which sells nothing but the Pacifica and Voyager minivans after the 300 sedan was discontinued at the end of 2023.
Twenty years ago, in addition to the 300, Chrysler also sold the Crossfire coupe, PT Cruiser compact crossover, Sebring sedan, Sebring GTC convertible, and the Pacifica crossover that looked nothing like today's Pacifica minivan. Let's not forget the Chrysler Aspen SUV, which was so shortlived that it doesn't even have its own Wikipedia entry.
Despite a mountain of adversity, Feuell finds reasons to be optimistic as she leads both Alfa and Chrysler into an increasingly uncertain future. She's especially psyched about the plans for Chrysler.
'We've got three new products coming in the (Chrysler) portfolio,' Feuell told Autoweek during the recent Detroit auto show. A refreshed Pacifica minivan will launch in 2026 with a new exterior and updated interior on its existing platform.
That will be followed by a new, affordable two-row crossover, 'and then a third product to be named later that will be inspired by the Halcyon,' she says.
The Halcyon is a dramatic, low-slung, all-electric concept that was unveiled a year ago with far-reaching future technology. It was displayed at the 2025 Detroit auto show, incongruously parked next to the Pacifica minivans.
This unconstrained concept represents a chance to attract millennials and Gen Z customers who have no experience with Chrysler. 'So the brand's now on their radar because it's a contemporary looking product. It's got technology that's purposeful and seamless and intuitive, rather than difficult and complicated,' Feuell says.
The Halcyon would make a beautiful, desirable halo for the Chrysler brand, positioned over the refreshed minivan and new two-row crossover, if they indeed arrive. But count on the production car inspired by the Halcyon to have considerably less swagger—and more than four inches of ground clearance.
While Chrysler has a history of playing in the near-luxury space, Feuell says the brand has no premium aspirations today. 'Our competitive set today includes Toyota, Honda, and Kia, and with the new product that's coming out, we'll add Tesla to that competitive list,' she says, referring to hometown rivals General Motors and Ford for cross-shopping as well.
Even though minivans are not as popular as higher-riding crossovers, the minivan sector is doing pretty well, with the Toyota Sienna, Kia Carnival, Honda Odyssey, and the Pacifica all growing 2024 sales by at least 7%.
And No. 1 in the segment in 2024, with nearly 108,000 units, was the Pacifica, followed by the Odyssey (80,293 units).
Feuell says the minivan segment has been growing consistently since 2020. 'And we've certainly read about some of our competitors increasing their capacity. So there's a lot of growth potential in the segment.'
The Pacifica is offered as a plug-in hybrid, and that model ended 2024 as the fourth best-selling PHEV in America.
On the Alfa Romeo front, Feuell admits the Stelvio crossover and Giulia sedan are 'dated' and will be replaced next year with new models on a new platform, STLA Large, which will also underpin the Chrysler crossover and other vehicles from Jeep and Dodge. Recent reports also suggest the Giulia makeover could be quite extensive.
But she views her work ahead with Alfa Romeo as an opportunity. 'I am really excited to help revitalize and restore this iconic Italian brand in North America,' says Feuell, who was assigned Alfa Romeo barely a month ago after Dominique's departure.
'I've spent the last three weeks talking to employees and dealers, and there's just upside potential from here,' she says. 'Our priorities right now are really focusing on getting the sales momentum going again, updating our marketing and sales support in the market, and preparing for the new products that we're launching in 2026.'
As for powertrains, neither Alfa Romeo nor Chrysler will be ditching internal combustion on their way to all-electric lineups, which had been planned by 2028.
Now, both Alfa Romeo and Chrysler are pursuing a multi-energy strategy in the US that includes gas, hybrid, and battery-electric powertrains.
Are you hopeful that the Alfa Romeo and Chrysler brands can be revitalized and sustained in the US? Please comment below.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Yahoo
an hour ago
- Yahoo
Toyota Industries' $33bn deal faces shareholder criticism
Shareholders of Toyota Industries have voiced their disapproval of a $33bn buyout offer from Toyota Motor, suggesting the bid may undervalue the company and unfairly benefit the Toyoda family. The proposal, criticised for undervaluing Toyota Industries, has drawn international and domestic disapproval, including from Zennor Asset Management and Oasis Management, reported Reuters. Toyota Motor plans to privatise Toyota Industries through a complex deal, offering Y16,300 per share. This price has been contested by shareholders who believe it does not reflect the supplier's true worth and could increase the founding Toyoda family's influence over the group. During the meeting, one shareholder stated: "I don't think I am the only one who feels the price is too low." Another raised concerns about the potential "domination" of Toyota Industries by the automaker. The session, which lasted nearly two hours, saw executives fielding an unprecedented number of questions. Toyota Industries' chairman Akio Toyoda may encounter similar scrutiny at Toyota Motor's upcoming annual general meeting. Toyota has defended the acquisition, stating it would foster deeper collaboration within the group as it transitions into a "mobility company." The transaction involves creating a new holding entity, with investments from unlisted Toyota Fudosan and Akio Toyoda, the founder's grandson. Toyota Motor will contribute Y700bn for non-voting preferred shares. Oasis, holding stakes in both companies, has publicly sought a higher offer price. Zennor and others have pointed to the undervaluation of Toyota Industries' substantial real estate assets, which are recorded at 1.5tn yen on the balance sheet. With Toyota Group companies owning at least 39% of Toyota Industries, the deal is anticipated to proceed, with shares closing at the offer price of Y16,300. "Toyota Industries' $33bn deal faces shareholder criticism" was originally created and published by Just Auto, a GlobalData owned brand. The information on this site has been included in good faith for general informational purposes only. It is not intended to amount to advice on which you should rely, and we give no representation, warranty or guarantee, whether express or implied as to its accuracy or completeness. You must obtain professional or specialist advice before taking, or refraining from, any action on the basis of the content on our site. Erreur lors de la récupération des données Connectez-vous pour accéder à votre portefeuille Erreur lors de la récupération des données Erreur lors de la récupération des données Erreur lors de la récupération des données Erreur lors de la récupération des données
Yahoo
15 hours ago
- Yahoo
Waymo leads in self-driving: Can Tesla's robotaxi take its crown?
Waymo, a subsidiary of Alphabet (GOOG, GOOGL), has been working on self-driving cars for years. But now rivals, such as Tesla (TSLA), are starting to catch up. Yahoo Finance Senior Autos Reporter Pras Subramanian takes a closer look at Waymo's rise and the competition. To watch more expert insights and analysis on the latest market action, check out more Market Domination here. Well, Waymo has emerged as a leader in autonomous vehicle technology and robotaxi services. Its roots, of course, are with Google, as its self-driving car project, and Waymo has come a long way. Our senior autos reporter, Pras Subramanian, joins us now to talk about its success as a leader in this sector, Pras. Hey Josh, yeah, you mentioned, yeah, so it started off as a as a as an offshoot of Google, uh, Google X in the X division issue back in those days what they used to call autonomous nine, and after some testing and trying to get permits off the ground in 2016, the project became Waymo. Uh, started testing its Pacifica hybrids and took off from there. 2018, Waymo, uh, worked with Jaguar, paired up with them to get their i-Pace EVs in for testing. You see these now in the streets in LA and places like that. Uh, you know, Waymo uses a combination of vision, radar, lidar, what they call multimodal. They claim this is the safest solution. Now they have the most robotaxi miles driven. They perform around 250,000 trips a week, right? So other rivals like GM's Cruise and AV tech companies like Argo AI are they're gone. Leaving only a few competitors like WeRide and and Zoox in the space. Now, challenges, they need to scale up. They have around 700 to 1000 vehicles in in major markets and can produce at their factory around 1500 a year. An expert tells me that that could be a bottleneck for them in the future, whereas Tesla, right, Tesla with their big test coming up on on I'm sorry their start of their test unofficially on the 12th, if their hardware is sufficient, I have millions they have millions of vehicles on the road already, and when you pair that with their robotaxi software, you could see them easily overtake Waymo. That's a big if. Tesla service is just beginning, years behind Waymo, and if Musk's big bet on a vision-only system paired with the neural network that Tesla built can take on and possibly surpass Waymo, uh, there's still a lot to prove to see whether that can actually happen. Now Pras, have you taken a Waymo? And if so, what did you think of the experience? I ask because I haven't. I did, about a month ago, I was in LA and I took a Waymo, uh, in the western part of the city to to a friend's place and I I was actually deeply impressed by it. I thought that it was a very slick. I used the app to order the the Waymo. It comes to you. It has your it has your initials on the top and little screen so you know it's yours. You open the door with the app. You close the door, get inside, and you and then you start the ride when you're inside the car, hit the button on the app. All of a sudden it pairs your phone, it it says you can stream music, it you can you can change the temperature to your to your liking. It's very pleasant. The car is actually whipped around. I think at a decent pace, not a slow thing in my opinion. Uh, got to me, got me where I need to be and at a competitive rate to Uber. Error in retrieving data Sign in to access your portfolio Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data
Miami Herald
15 hours ago
- Miami Herald
Chrysler to launch 3 new vehicles by 2026 in bid to save struggling brand.
When Chrysler threw a party for itself to celebrate its 100th birthday this month, it rolled out an assortment of classic models, from the 1930s-era Airflow sedan to recent concepts like the 2004 ME Four-Twelve and 2022 Halcyon. But there was something missing from the field: new product. The closest the automaker could come was a "special edition" Pacifica minivan. Chrysler is a brand in trouble. Since the last 300 sedan rolled off the assembly line in December 2023 it has had just one product line in U.S. showrooms: the Pacifica minivan. Plans to bring out a production version of the well-received Airflow concept of a few years back have been scuttled. With sales totaling just 119,389 last year, former Stellantis CEO Carlos Tavares was reportedly questioning whether it might be time to pull the plug on the brand. That's something his successor, Antonio Filosa, will now have to consider. But Chrysler officials insist they're entering their second century from a position of strength, with the brand finally getting ready to start filling up showrooms with new products starting next year. And that Halcyon show car, they told Autoblog, gives us a good sense of what's coming. Ironically, the widely acclaimed Airflow show car may have been too successful for its own good, according to Christine Fuell, Chrysler's CEO. First shown at the 2022 Consumer Electronic Show in Las Vegas, it harkened back to the cutting-edge aerodynamics of the original, production Chrysler Airflow which was built between 1934 and 1937. The all-electric show car was widely expected to go into production about now, but the "very favorable response" it got from the public was something that actually worried Chrysler executives who questioned whether the design would seem dated by the time it got into production. "Maybe we're not being innovative and creative enough," Feuell said during an interview at the Chrysler 100 birthday bash. "We felt we needed to take more risks," Feuell said. The Chrysler management team decided to send Stellantis global design chief Ralph Gilles and his team back to the drawing board. For his part, Gilles felt it was fortuitous timing. Airflow was designed to be all-electric. But as the product development team started over, parent Stellantis was just finishing up development on a series of new "architectures." The STLA Large platform was designed to be "multi-energy," meaning it could use a variety of different powertrain technologies, from conventional internal combustion to battery-electric, and an assortment of "hybridized" options in between. It was "perfect for the market," said Gilles. Now, they just needed to push the design envelope ever further. They did it with Halcyon, a concept that made its debut in February 2024. Like Airflow, the four-door Chrysler Halcyon Concept put a premium on range-extending aerodynamics. But it was designed to push the comfort level with features like its ""air blade" front end literally knifes through the air, reducing turbulence as air flows over the show car's steeply raked windshield. Narrow side mirrors further reduce drag. At highway speeds, Halcyon rides just four inches off the road surface, another aero-enhancing feature. Air curtains reduce turbulence around the front wheels. The show car has been clearly polarizing, though it seems to be growing on reviewers, and the public, according to both Feuell and Gilles. Clearly, the concept pushes things a little too far for most applications to go into production – with features like its rear "suicide" doors, camera mirrors and a yoke replacing the conventional steering wheel. But the basic design theme is the model for an upcoming wave of new Chrysler products. That will start with a complete makeover of the Pacifica coming in 2026. The new minivan is "inspired by Halcyon," said Feuell, noting that Chrysler obviously had to hew to the unique customer needs that define a modern family-mover. But the new Airflow will utilize key design cues from the concept vehicle to deliver greater energy efficiency than the outgoing model. While the CEO wouldn't discuss specific details, she confirmed that the next-gen Pacifica Hybrid package will get an upgrade to its plug-in drive that will yield more than the current PHEV's 32 miles per charge. That will be helped by a planned switch from today's 400-volt electrical system to an 800-volt architecture that should also quicken charging times, several insiders suggested. At least two other new Chrysler products are in the works, said Fuell. "We need to be in at least three segments for the Chrysler brand to continue to grow and thrive." That's on top of other potential variants on those three product lines. What Feuell described as "our first new model in more than 10 years" will be a D-segment crossover also based off the STLA Large – pronounced "Stella-Large" – platform. Think of products like the Hyundai Santa Fe or BMW X5, among many others, though the Chrysler CEO stressed that the design will "be a vast departure from the sea of sameness" that has become the norm with today's EVs and crossovers. "It has to be gorgeous and compelling," added Gilles, "a vehicle that ages well." As for the third Chrysler product, final development is still underway, but the Stellantis brand is clearly aiming for a "segment-buster" that won't fall into any easy niche. This one very well could come closer to a production version of the Halcyon Concept. There's "a lot of white space (Chrysler) can serve" that fellow Stellantis brands Jeep, Dodge and Ram "can't" said Gilles, because of their narrowly defined missions. "We're looking for the gaps that aren't being served and which may not fall into current segments." When the Airflow concept first appeared, Chrysler laid out a course that was expected to transform it into an all-electric brand by the end of the decade. As we're seeing across the industry, management is backing away from that commitment, and STLA Large and other new Stellantis platforms give it more flexibility to meet shifting market demands. A year ago, Filosa – then head of the Jeep brand – told me that Stellantis was working up six distinct powertrain technologies: ICE, mild, conventional and plug-in hybrids, range-extenders and pure battery-electric. Future products, he said, would be offered with as many as three of those options. That, said Feuell, is the approach going forward, now that Filosa is running the whole show. The upcoming, Halcyon-based SUV, for one, initially will launch with some sort of hybrid drive package, Feuell revealed, followed by a gas-only model. Later on, Chrysler will add an all-electric package. In the months after Stellantis was formed by the merger of Fiat Chrysler Automobiles and France's Groupe PSA, Tavares insisted the Euro-American automakers had the resources to support all 14 of its global brands. As its sales and earnings tumbled last year, he began having second thoughts. "We cannot afford to have brands that do not make money," Tavares said during a second-quarter 2024 earnings call. "If they don't make money, we'll shut them down." Tavares unexpectedly handed in his resignation last December, following a dispute with the Stellantis board over his proposed turnaround plan. Now, with Filosa stepping into his shoes, there's been speculation the new CEO might have to serve as brand executioner. Among the marques most frequently cited are Fiat, Lancia and Chrysler. For her part, Feuell puts on a brave face. "There's never be one conversation among our executive teams about Chrysler going away," she said last week, insisting, Filosa "has been an enthusiastic supporter of Chrysler." Whether the brand retains the new CEO's support will be put to the test in short order as Chrysler finally starts rolling out its much-needed new products. Copyright 2025 The Arena Group, Inc. All Rights Reserved.
