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Stellantis announces ‘Circular Economy’ business to drive revenue, decarbonization

Stellantis has already announced its plans to reach net-zero carbon emissions by 2038. Today, the automaker has announced a new business unit to help it reach that goal while generating 2 billion euros per year in revenue by 2030. The “Circular Economy” business will help make revenue less dependent on finite, rare and ecologically problematic materials. The Circular Economy model features what Stellantis calls a “4R” strategy, comprising remanufacturing, repair, reuse and recycling. The goal is to make materials last as long as they can, reducing reliance on the acquisition of those precious new materials in the future by returning them to the business loop when theyÂ’ve reached the end of their first life. Through these processes, Stellantis says it can save up to 80% raw material and 50% energy compared to manufacturing a new part. Remanufacturing, or “reman” in Stellantis shorthand, means dismantling, cleaning and rebuilding parts to OEM spec. Nearly 12,000 remanufactured parts are available for customers to purchase. Some remanufacturing is done in-house, and some with partners and through joint ventures. Repair is pretty obvious — fixing parts to put back into vehicles. This also consists of reconditioning, to make a vehicle feel like new. Stellantis boasts 21 “e-repair” centers for repairing electric vehicle batteries.  Reuse refers to parts still in good condition from end-of-life vehicles sold as-is. Stellantis says it has 4.5 million multi-brand parts in inventory. These are sold in 155 countries through the B-Parts e-commerce platform. Reuse also refers second-life options, such as using batteries outside of automotive purposes. Recycling involves dismantling parts and scraps back into raw material form that is then looped back into the manufacturing process. Stellantis says it has collected 1 million parts for recycling in the past six months. Recycling doesnÂ’t get counted in that aforementioned 2 billion euros of revenue, but it does save the company money on acquisition of raw materials. As for batteries, specifically, Stellantis expects this recycling business to ramp up after 2030, when the packs currently in service begin to reach the end of their lifecycle. Stellantis will use its new “SUSTAINera” label to denote parts that are offered as part of its Circular Economy business.

FCA's Pentastar V6 gets more power, efficiency for 2016

Already a vital member of FCA's powertrain lineup, the 3.6-liter Pentastar V6 is receiving major efficiency improvements for 2016. Thanks to a massive amount of new tech attached to the mill, fuel economy is up six percent, and torque below 3,000 rpm jumps nearly 15 percent. The updates arrive first in the 2016 Jeep Grand Cherokee, but they should proliferate to other models eventually. At least in the Grand Cherokee, the tweaks push power up five horsepower to 295 ponies. FCA's engineers went through the Pentastar from top to bottom to eke out as much efficiency as possible. For example, there's now a two-speed variable-valve lift system that can run in low- or high-lift modes. This upgrade is responsible for 2.7-percent better economy, the company claims. A new intake manifold with longer runners and updated variable-valve times also helps boost the torque output. Further improvements come from pushing the compression ratio to 11.3:1, from 10.2:1 before. Perhaps most impressive is that despite all of the innovations, the latest Pentastar actually weighs four pounds less than the current version. Beyond the Pentastar improvements, all of the FCA US gasoline engines, except for the Viper's 8.4-liter V10, will be E15-compatible for 2016. The company says that it wants to be ready for the higher ethanol content fuel's greater use in the near future.

Fiat Chrysler pleads guilty to paying off Detroit union officials

DETROIT — Fiat Chrysler pleaded guilty to conspiracy Monday, admitting that it paid off leaders of the United Auto Workers to try to win concessions in negotiations covering thousands of factory workers. FCA's conviction follows a series of guilty pleas from UAW officials who were showered with more than $3.5 million in cash and items of value from a jointly run training center over an eight-year period. FCA stands for Fiat Chrysler Automobiles, which now is part of Stellantis, a company created by the merger of Fiat Chrysler and PSA Peugeot. “FCA violated federal labor law and undermined the collective bargaining process and the faith of the UAWÂ’s membership in their leaders,” said acting U.S. Attorney Saima Mohsin. The head of FCA labor relations, Al Iacobelli, executed the scheme with five UAW officials and a spouse, especially General Holiefield, who was a union vice president. He eliminated a $262,000 home mortgage in 2014 with training center money. Union officials used credit cards for spending sprees. “Your honor, we plead guilty,” FCA general counsel Chris Pardi told U.S. District Judge Paul Borman. Iacobelli was sentenced to 5 1/2 years in prison in 2018, but the sentence was recently reduced by 18 months due to his cooperation. Holiefield died in 2015; his wife pleaded guilty to a tax crime three years later. Holiefield's successor, Norwood Jewell, was sentenced to 15 months in prison. His plea deal listed $60,000 in meals and golf paid with training center credit cards. FCA will pay a $30 million fine to the government. An independent monitor will be appointed to oversee the end of the training center as well as handle other tasks. The government's investigation became public in 2017, but agents soon were uncovering other corruption at the UAW. Union dues were used to pay for golf, booze and vacation villas in California, and contractors were giving kickbacks for union business. Eleven officials have been convicted, including former presidents Gary Jones and Dennis Williams. They are awaiting their sentences in Detroit federal court. Related Video: This content is hosted by a third party. To view it, please update your privacy preferences. Manage Settings. Earnings/Financials Government/Legal UAW/Unions Chrysler Fiat