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Stellantis ready to kill brands and fix U.S. problems, CEO Tavares says

  MILAN — Stellantis is taking steps to fix weak margins and high inventory at its U.S. operations and will not hesitate to axe underperforming brands in its sprawling portfolio, its chief executive Carlos Tavares said on Thursday. The warning for lossmaking brands is a turnaround for Tavares, who has maintained since Stellantis was created in 2021 from the merger of Italian-American automaker Fiat Chrysler and France's PSA that all of its 14 brands including Maserati, Fiat, Peugeot and Jeep have a future. "If they don't make money, we'll shut them down," Carlos Tavares told reporters after the world's No. 4 automaker delivered worse-than-expected first-half results, sending its shares down as much as 10%. "We cannot afford to have brands that do not make money." The automaker now also considers China's Leapmotor as its 15th brand, after it agreed to a broad cooperation with the group. Stellantis does not release figures for individual brands, except for Maserati which reported an 82 million euro adjusted operating loss in the first half. Some analysts say Maserati could possibly be a target for a sale by Stellantis, while other brands such as Lancia or DS might be at risk of being scrapped given their marginal contribution to the group's overall sales. Stellantis' Milan-listed shares were down as much as 12.5% on Thursday, hitting their lowest since August 2023. That brings the loss for the year so far to 22%, making them the worst performer among the major European automakers. Few automotive brands have been killed off since General Motors ditched the unprofitable Saturn and Pontiac during a U.S. government-led bankruptcy in the global financial crisis in 2008. Tavares is under pressure to revive flagging margins and sales and cut inventory in the United States as Stellantis bets on the launch of 20 new models this year which it hopes will boost profitability. Recent poor results from global carmakers have heightened worries about a weakening outlook for sales across major markets such as the U.S., whilst they also juggle an expensive transition to electric vehicles and growing competition from cheaper Chinese rivals. Japan's Nissan Motor saw first-quarter profit almost completely wiped out on Thursday and slashed its annual outlook, as deep discounting in the United States shredded its margins. Tavares said he would be working through the summer with his U.S. team on how to improve performance and cut inventory.

Ralph Gilles publishes futuristic sketch that lampoons yellow spoiler guards

FCA design boss Ralph Gilles doesn't want to see yellow spoiler guards on future Dodge models. He joined the chorus of internet users urging Challenger and Charger owners to remove the protective strips installed at the factory by telling the story behind a futuristic-looking design sketch on his official Instagram account. The stylist explained the coronavirus work-from-home order isn't stopping his team from organizing design reviews. And, while he's not normally allowed to post images of future products on social media, he decided to make an exception. "This experimental design of a Dodge of the future fell on the cutting room floor ... because the designer decided to make the yellow spoiler guards a permanent part of the theme," he wrote. This isn't the first time Dodge has spoken out against owners who decided to keep the yellow spoiler guards on their car. The company even recently decided to make them pink to curb their popularity. This content is hosted by a third party. To view it, please update your privacy preferences. Manage Settings. Looking beyond the spoiler's yellow accents, the sketch depicts what appears to be a coupe with a front end that shares very few styling cues with Dodge's current design language. The round headlights seen on cars like the Challenger are replaced by ultra-thin LED lines, the grille is little more than a gap, and there's a gaping air vent right below it. The entire front fascia is painted black, a look oddly reminiscent of SEAT's Bocanegra models. Sculpted sides, wheels that stick out of the wheel arches, and a glass roof add a finishing touch to the design. Gilles only posted one sketch, so we don't know what the rear end looks like. His team is busily designing the next-generation Challenger, tentatively due out by 2023, but we don't expect it will look like the sketch that surfaced on Instagram. Mark Trostle, Dodge's head of design, previously affirmed the retro lines are here to stay. The four-door Charger is due for a makeover, too, and its design isn't as firmly anchored to tradition as the Challenger's. Time will tell whether the sketch subtly previews the direction Dodge is taking the model in. Related Video: This content is hosted by a third party. To view it, please update your privacy preferences. Manage Settings.    

Dodge Viper production to end after 2017

We can't say we're surprised, but we're still saddened to report that the Dodge Viper will not live on past the 2017 model year. It's had a solid 25-year run, though, and that's worth celebrating. Fiat Chrysler Automobiles does just that for the Viper's final model year, with five special editions (some of which seem less special than others, admittedly): The 1:28 Edition ACR, GTS-R Commemorative Edition ACR, VoooDoo II Edition ACR, Snakeskin Edition GTC, and Dodge Dealer Edition ACR. Instead of running through what makes each of these 2017 Vipers special, we'll direct your attention to the press release below and the images above. All but the Dodge Dealer Edition commemorate memorable Viper models of the past 25 years, and the GTS-R is probably the pick of the litter with its classic blue-on-white paint scheme. Unless you prefer to err on the side of gaudy, in which case Dodge has you (and your car) covered with Snakeskin Green. If none of these special-edition Viper models strikes your fancy but you'd still like to park a 2017 Viper in your garage, fret not. Dodge is still offering its "1 of 1" customization program for the Viper's final year of production. Finally, instead of dwelling on the past, even when that past is as exciting as the Viper's, let's choose to look to the future with the only logical question left unanswered: What's next? Related Video: This content is hosted by a third party. To view it, please update your privacy preferences. Manage Settings.