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Stellantis reports $15B profit in first year of merger

FRANKFURT, Germany — Automaker Stellantis said Wednesday that it made 13.4 billion euros ($15.2 billion) in its first year after it was formed from the merger of Fiat Chrysler Automobiles and PSA Group. The earnings nearly tripled profits compared with its pre-merger existence as two separate companies, as the maker of Jeep, Opel and Peugeot vehicles exploited cost efficiencies from combining the businesses. The result compared to a combined 4.79 billion euros for the separate companies in 2020 before the merger, which took effect on Jan. 17, 2021. Revenue for the combined business rose 14%, to 152 billion euros. CEO Carlos Tavares said the results “prove that Stellantis is well positioned to deliver strong performance" and had overcome “intense headwinds” during the year. Automakers have struggled with shortages of key parts such as semiconductor electronic components and rising costs for raw materials as the global rebound from the worst of the coronavirus pandemic brings more demand. The company said the benefits of the merger were worth some 3.2 billion euros during the year. Mergers can lead to streamlined costs as companies combine functions and spread fixed costs over a larger revenue base. The company accelerated its rollout of battery-powered vehicles, with sales of low-emission vehicles reaching 388,000 — an increase of 160%. Stricter environmental regulations in Europe and China are pushing automakers to roll out more electric vehicles with longer range. Stellantis started production of a hydrogen fuel cell commercial van under its Opel brand in December. Stellantis' other brands include Chrysler, Citroen, DS, Fiat, Maserati, Ram and Vauxhall. Related video: Earnings/Financials Chrysler Dodge Ferrari Fiat Jeep RAM Citroen Opel Peugeot Vauxhall

Speedkore AWD twin-turbo Carbon Charger, best birthday gift ever

The backstory the Speedkore Performance AWD twin-turbo Carbon Charger teased a couple of weeks ago might be cooler than the car itself. Alan Palermo commissioned the carbon-fiber-bodied Dodge Demon Speedkore brought to SEMA last year, the one that supplanted the 6.2-liter Hellcat V8's supercharger with twin 6875 Precision Billet T4 turbos. That blasted the Demon's usual 840 horsepower up to 1,400 hp at the flywheel, 1,203 hp at the rear tires, good for an 8.77-second quarter-mile time at 162 miles per hour. Palermo's older brother remarked, "He liked the car but was more of a four-door guy," so Alan commissioned the AWD Carbon Charger as a 65th birthday gift for his sibling. Speedkore worked with Magnaflow on the sedan, starting with a 2019 Charger Pursuit as a base. The Wisconsin tuner secured a 2020 widebody Charger from Dodge, then 3D-scanned the bodywork to create the molds reproducing most of the sheetmetal in pre-preg carbon fiber. The hood, bumpers, fenders, rockers, rear spoiler, and rear diffuser are all fashioned from the lightweight stuff.  Beyond those Precision turbos laid in by Gearhead Fabrications, Speedkore installed a custom upper plenum, Boost Leash C02 progressive boost controller, custom Thitek heads, a Fore Innovations triple-pump fuel system feeding Injector Dynamics 1,700-cc injectors, and custom HP Tuners engine software calibration. Test results showed 1,525 hp at the crank when running 26 pounds of boost.  Hellraiser Performance engineered a new transmission working an FTI torque converter at one end and a carbon fiber driveshaft at the other. Instead of fortifying an off-the-shelf AWD system, Traction Products supplied a custom transfer case machined from billet shunting power to a set of Bogart Competition Series wheels wearing Mickey Thompson ET street rubber.  Speedkore fitted last year's Demon with a front-exit twin exhaust, with a single opening on each front fender, and left the rear bumper cutouts for the traditional exhaust empty. With the Carbon Charger sedan more of a family guy, Magnaflow sorted out a quad-pipe front-exit exhaust with two openings on each front fender, and ran a three-inch stainless steel Competition Series exhaust to the rear. The driver can switch between the two, the latter version providing a "moderate interior sound."  The folks at Speedkore say they'll keep tweaking the Carbon Charger after the show to get it right for the senior Palermo. We say, "Happy birthday, sir. Enjoy."

Tempted by the Demon, dealers find way to thwart Dodge, jack up prices

It's the eternal story of short supply, big demand - and car dealers eager to exploit that dynamic, especially when it involves a hot car. A few weeks ago, when Dodge announced that it devised a way to attempt to prevent price-gouging on those 840-horsepower 2018 Dodge Demons, you just knew the dealers would dream up some devilish end-run. And sure enough, despite the manufacturer's best intentions, Demon order slots are being offered with five-figure markups. Here's how things were supposed to work: With a run of just 3,000 cars, Dodge knew it had to do something to address dealer greed, so it announced an allocation system: Cars purchased at or below the $86,090 MSRP would be the first orders filled and delivered. If a dealer sells an allocated Demon for more than sticker, that car goes to the end of the line for production and delivery. Dodge also ensured dealers wouldn't stockpile or hoard Demons by limiting the number of orders a dealer can submit and allocating cars to dealers based on how many Challenger and Charger Hellcats the dealer has sold. But Automotive News reports that some dealers are using intermediaries to auction off their Demon allocations on eBay. Three sellers last week said they were representing dealers in South Carolina, Tennessee and Louisiana, and auctioning off the right to buy a car in one of the priority spots at MSRP. The minimum bid for the right to buy the car at sticker? From $10,000-25,000. And previous transactions on eBay might have run as high as $75,000. So early buyers are definitely paying an upcharge - but it's a thing apart from the bottom line on the order form, where it appears they are paying MSRP. In other words, a scheme that violates the spirit of what FCA tried to do. A source at FCA told Automotive News the automaker was monitoring the practice but could do little to stop it. And the report quoted a Hellcat owner who said his dealership was ignoring Dodge's strictures altogether and offered him a Demon at MSRP plus $60K. But take heart. Not all car dealers are cynically opportunistic - or rather, some see an opportunity for doing good, not making buck. Automotive News says Bill Marsh Chrysler in Traverse City, Mich., plans to sell its single allocated Demon for $1 under MSRP - and is auctioning off the right to buy it, with the dealership's existing customers eligible to bid. The auction's proceeds will benefit four Traverse City charities.