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Stellantis won't race to split electric vehicles from fossil fuel cars

MILAN - Stellantis is not considering splitting its electric vehicle (EV) business from its legacy combustion engine operation, its finance chief said on Thursday, as the carmaker presented above-expectation revenue data for the first quarter. Chief Financial Officer Richard Palmer told analysts he did not see huge benefits in the kind of separations pursued by rivals such as France's Renault and U.S. Ford. "We need to manage the company and the assets we have through this transition," he said. "There are benefits to having the cash flow being generated by the internal combustion business for the investments we need to make." Palmer said the group, formed by a merger last year of Fiat Chrysler and Peugeot maker PSA, was not averse to considering adjusting its structure "but we aren't anticipating any big changes." Palmer's comments came after the world's fourth largest carmaker said its net revenue rose 12% to 41.5 billion euros ($44.1 billion) in the January-March period, as strong pricing and the type of vehicles sold helped offset the impact of the semiconductor shortage on volumes. That topped analyst expectations of 36.9 billion euros, according to a Reuters poll. Milan-listed shares were up 0.5% by 1415 GMT, in line with Italy's blue-chip index. The impact of the chip crunch was evident in the decline in shipment figures which fell 12% in the quarter to 1.374 million vehicles. It was a similar story for Germany's BMW which posted higher revenues on Thursday and a decline in car sales. Riding the Recovery Stellantis, whose brands also include Citroen, Jeep and Maserati, confirmed its 2022 forecasts for a double-digit adjusted operating income margin, after 11.8% last year, and a positive cash-flow despite supply and inflationary headwinds. Morgan Stanley analysts said after the results that Stellantis had better management than many peers and benefited from its significant exposure to a stronger U.S. economy and a European recovery from the COVID-19 pandemic. They also said it was less affected by a slowing Chinese economy. Palmer said it was important for the group to maintain double-digit margins and keep delivering positive cash flows. "A 12% increase in revenue with a 12% decrease in volumes indicates a very strong performance on price and mix, which augurs well for our margin performance," he said. He said semiconductor supply problems were expected to ease this year with continued improvements in 2023.

Mahindra fights FCA's Jeep infringement claims

The Indian manufacturer Mahindra is fighting tooth and nail to keep building its Roxor off-road vehicle to sell in the United States. In early August, Jeep mother company FCA filed a complaint with the U.S. International Trade Commission to stop Roxor sales in the U.S. FCA claims the Roxor design is an intellectual property infringement on Jeep design, meant to undercut FCA's own Jeep products on the market. Now Mahindra has released a statement to the commission saying that FCA's complaint is without merit. While FCA stated in its claim that the Roxor is "an imported low-quality knock-off kit car," Mahindra points out that the vehicle took several years to develop and is manufactured in Michigan. Mahindra intends the Roxor to be an off-road vehicle only, and says it does not compete with Jeeps. The Roxor isn't road legal, only comes with a diesel engine and reaches a top speed of only 45 mph. However, it has to be said that the uncomplicated Roxor is far closer to the original ethos of WWII-era Jeeps than the Jeeps FCA currently manufactures. Mahindra also states that FCA agreed in 2009 not to bring about infringement claims as long as Mahindra used a grille design that FCA approved — going with a grille design that clearly differs from the classic Jeep trademark grille. The matter might partially muddled by the fact that the grille agreement was made with 2009's Chrysler instead of today's FCA. Looking back several decades, the entire Mahindra Roxor appearance is at its core based on a 1940s license agreement made with Willys, the original Jeep manufacturer. Mahindra's statement addresses FCA as "Fiat," and it should not be forgotten that Fiat itself manufactured a Jeep lookalike, the Campagnola, from 1951 to 1973 — also with a different grille. Fiat Industrial subsidiary Iveco's history page says the 1951 Campagnola was constructed "according to the Willys mould". Mahindra claims that FCA is using the complaint to create negative publicity to damage Mahindra's reputation. The Indian manufacturer reminds us that it is the first automotive OEM to set up a new manufacturing operation in southeast Michigan in over 25 years — in Auburn Hills, not far from FCA's U.S. headquarters. Related Video: Featured Gallery Mahindra Roxor Image Credit: Mahindra Design/Style Government/Legal Fiat Jeep Automotive History SUV Diesel Vehicles Off-Road Vehicles FCA mahindra

FCA UConnect fiasco could set over-the-air updates back years

Since cars have become more software dependent, most major automakers have been inching toward enabling over-the-air updates to keep vehicle electronics, ranging from infotainment systems to safety features, current. But there are only two car companies — Fiat Chrysler and Ford —± currently doing OTA updates, and on a limited basis. GM CEO Mary Barra announced last summer that the automaker will launch a new EV architecture and infotainment system capable of over-the-air updates "before 2020." The one exception, per usual, is Tesla. Since the release of the Model S almost six years ago, the maverick EV automaker has made routine OTA software updates a core part of its vehicle platforms and value proposition, and has sent out updates for everything from adjusting ride height to enabling Autopilot, largely without incident. When I've asked automakers why they can't do the same thing, I've heard reasons ranging from running afoul of their dealers (and archiac regulation) to security concerns. Automakers like Ford and General Motors say they want to act like tech companies, which routinely send out OTA updates for a wide range of devices, but overall the car industry still moves at a very cautious snail's pace. And when automakers do try to move faster and take more risks — unlike with a smartphone update, which people bitch about but live with — the consequences can be significant when things go wrong. That's the case with Fiat Chrysler America and its recent public-relations nightmare when an OTA update went awry. The update went out at the end of last week for the Uconnect system in late-model vehicles, and it made head units go into a near continuous reboot, which caused owners to not only lose access to entertainment features, but also critical functions like emergency assistance. Almost immediately, owners took to Twitter to express outrage, and FCA was caught flatfooted. A tweet went out on Monday on the UconnectCares Twitter account that read, "Certain 2017 & 2018 Uconnect systems may experience a reboot every 45-60 seconds. Our Engineering teams are investigating the cause and working towards a resolution.