I was talking with a friend at Stellantis a while back, and they straight-up said they were looking forward to the next regime, whatever may come. With the surprise announcement from Stellantis that CEO Carlos Tavares is resigning, it’s time to consider what can be done to save the American brands of Chrysler, Jeep, Dodge, Eagle, and Ram. Well, maybe not Eagle.
And what of Europe? What should the rest of the brands (Fiat, Lancia, Alfa, Maserati, et cetera) do? I’ve got some thoughts about how new interim boss John Elkann can start to piece the company back together if that’s what he wants.
Why did Tavares leave? Yesterday, I didn’t have an answer, today it’s becoming a little clearer how the final moments played out in the Stellantis bunker somewhere in Amsterdam. It’ll give me a chance to review his term as CEO and make an offer to any other brand that might be interested in picking up his term.
Stellantis Should Move Its Headquarters To Detroit Or Drop North America All Together
When Fiat picked up the various Chrysler brands for a song, the newly merged Fiat Chrysler (FCA) made sure people knew and understood that it was still an American company. Reeling from two failed wars and an economy that was made out of soggy gingerbread, America in the late aughts could be a depressing place. The young company embraced the new administration’s message of hope and Detroit’s underdog spirit to create the “Imported from Detroit” campaign.
It worked. We believed Eminem when he said the vehicles would reflect American attitudes and tastes, even if the guy who ran the company was suddenly a chainsmoking, sweater-wearing Italian. In fact, then-CEO Sergio Marchionne was a constant fixture in North America who was largely liked and accepted by American journalists, execs, and employees.
Carlos Tavares never found that acceptance. A successful CEO in Europe, Tavares stayed mostly European. As head of Opel and Peugeot, Tavares was seen as a smart guy who saw the coming changes to the global car market and began to make the hard decisions necessary to keep those brands afloat long enough to eventually merge with FCA to create Stellantis.
In fairness to Tavares, this was Marchionne’s dream as well. Fiat always wanted to be a bigger global player, and Tavares realized Marchonne’s vision. Unfortunately, Tavares was never equipped to make the deal work. In his selection of managers, his reduction of engineering/product development in Michigan, and his constant bickering with suppliers/workers/governments, Tavares understood the potential of a combined global automaker but never quite understood what to do with it.
In the interim, market share in North America has taken a nosedive, and with it the profits needed to sustain the failing European operation (Stellantis lost a third of its share in Europe since Tavares took over, and Fiat is down by half to just 1.8% of Europe’s total market). Earlier this year I wrote that I didn’t think Stellantis, though coming off a profitable year, would be able to stick the landing. It clearly didn’t.
What can be done? I think Stellantis has two choices:
- Become a more American company
- Spin off the American brands
America needs a fourth major automaker, and Jeep is one of the strongest brands in the world, other than maybe Tesla or Ferrari. IF Stellantis wants to keep the American arm it needs to invest in making good products with American engineers, marketers, and designers. Tavares arrogantly assumed he could outsource much of the work to Europe, Brazil, and India.
In the impending Trump era, it’s clear that there’s going to be an industrial policy here that favors American production. Honestly, even if Harris had been elected, I think this was going to be the case. Rather than fight it, Stellantis needs to embrace it with vehicles and concepts that make the various brands fit within an American portfolio and not a ‘House of Brands’ that also includes Alfa, Fiat, and Maserati.
In fact, Fiat, Alfa, and Maserati have to leave North America. It was a fun experiment and it didn’t work. Oh well.
Dodge needs new products, badly, and it needs them to cover the entry-level of the market that the Korean and Japanese automakers are dominating. Ram needs to become a part of Dodge. While the Wagoneer and Wagoneer S can stay, Jeep needs to offer a fuller and better (newer!) range of crossovers on the lower/middle end of the market. Chrysler needs some flagships and, in fact, Chrysler should have been the EV brand all along while Pacifica should become the Dodge Grand Caravan again. That’s three brands, all distinct, that make sense. Make Ralph Gilles CEO. Easy. Done.
If Stellantis can’t do that, it should just let the American brands become a new company as it did with Ferrari. It worked out for Ferrari and it can work out for the newly re-minted Chrysler Corporation (with Ralph Gilles as CEO, just saying). It’s probably a bad time to become a public company, so I’m not sure how that’ll work, but perhaps there’s enough private capital out there to try.
What About The Rest Of The Brand?
John Elkann, pictured above with his brother Lapo and his sister Ginvera, is the Chair of Stellantis, CEO of Ferrari/Stellantis shareholder Exor. He’s also the grandson of famous Italian industrialist Gianni Agnelli and has long operated as the family leader following the death of his uncle.
He’s going to be running the company in the interim, and he’s going to have to help pick a leader with a vision for Stellantis. I’ve explained what I, a humble blogger, think needs to be done in North America. What about Europe?
Sell Peugeot and Citroën to Renault. Just get rid of it. It’ll make everyone happier and Renault has a hot hand right now. Sell Maserati to a Chinese automaker. Keep Alfa Romeo and let it be a sister brand to Ferrari so Ferrari dealers can get a car to its clients while its clients wait two years for a Ferrari. Fiat can be an Italian brand again, and one with eyes on cheaper cars in Europe and South America. OR, just sell that as well.
Honestly, the car business is an old business and you’ve already got Ferrari. What do you even want Fiat for? Let that be someone else’s problem.
Carlos Tavares Took The Money And Ran Away
Friends, readers, CJDR dealers, lend me your ears. I come to bury Stellantis CEO Carlos Tavares, not praise him. The capital expenditures men do live after them; the higher margin quarters often interred with their bones. So let it be with Carlos.
Tavares, not pictured above, is an interesting character. His reputation coming into the Stellantis deal was stellar. As longtime auto exec Dr. Andy Palmer put it, “Carlos is perhaps the most professional car guy I’ve worked with. He’s created some of the most iconic cars, including the Renault Megane series. That Stellantis exists at all is all down to Carlos.” He also added that Carlos is also a “bloody good driver.”
Other than Elon Musk, Carlos Tavares is probably the highest-paid automotive CEO in the world, having made about $40 million in 2023. He did it by driving margins up on cars in America by squeezing out the same old products at a much higher price to consumers who didn’t have much of a choice. It worked until it didn’t and, unlike his former boss Carlos Ghosn, it seems like Tavares is going to get out with the money. His reputation? That’s another story and seems related to why Tavares left.
Here’s what Reuters is reporting, though I haven’t heard the Tavares side of it yet:
A source familiar with the matter told Reuters that tensions grew after the board felt Tavares was moving too quickly and focusing on near-term solutions to save his reputation, not working in the best interests of the company.
The sudden announcement on Sunday indicated that the fissures between the board and Tavares had to be severe, given that the parties decided it was better to operate with no CEO on a short-term basis, Bernstein analysts said.
Yikes. Once the company announced it wasn’t going to pick up the Tavares contract it didn’t really make sense to keep him on as his motivations would be either to make as much money as possible or, as indicated above, try to make himself look better.
Here’s the kicker on that article, by the way:
“Tavares is leaving behind a mess of painful layoffs and overpriced vehicles sitting on dealership lots,” UAW President Shawn Fain said in a statement.
Double yikes.
Someone, Please Hire Carlos Tavares
I’ve been doing this bit with Carlos Tavares, pictured above, since at least February. The basic premise of the joke is that the actor Jon Lovitz tends to play characters who are always willing to say or do anything to get an advantage over other people.
I truly enjoy this bit and would like to see it continue. I also think Tavares blundered this, but he does have a great history and loves old cars.
So here’s my deal: If you’re a struggling automaker, an upstart firm, or any other carmaker in need of a CEO, please hire Carlos. If only to keep this joke going I will write more about KTM or Polestar or whatever way more than I would if you hired some normal MBA exec person.
What I’m Listening To While Writing TMD
With a shoutout to SWG, here’s a little Paul Simon from the excellent “Graceland” doing “Diamonds on the Soles of her Shoes.”
The Big Question
Do you also agree that Ralph Gilles should take over Stellantis? If not Ralph, then who would you pick?
What was Tavares’ severance? Give it to the employees that actually put real work into the company.
That has never happened in the history of history.
Oh i know, but maybe its time that this practice dies with his career.
Why the fuck should he get any severance for quitting!?!?!?!
He shouldn’t.
But I bet he did. Simple statement “Pay me $100,000,000 or I will continue to work here and drive this company into the ground.”
Turns out if you fail hard enough, people will pay you to go away (some restrictions apply).
As someone who lemoned a 2021 Jeep 4xe, I think I might be uniquely qualified to answer this:
For North American operations, focus on quality and cost. Once you have that under control, build affordable, desirable cars.
To have worsening quality issues, while at the same time having prices that rose the highest (over a five year period) of any manufacturer, have resulted in a nightmare for both dealers and owners.
They eliminated the highly profitable Challenger and Charger lines, without having the replacement ready and in production.
They released and immediately cancelled the Grand Wagoneer, Wagoneer sub-brand, which is only known for poor build quality, confused dealership experience.
They neutered Chrysler to selling just a single outdated minivan.
They turned Jeep into an SUV catch all, with lazy rebadge efforts in North America (Renegade) and Europe (Avenger). Specific to the Renegade, these are known in tech circles as the re-gernade, for its tendency to have engine failures. Specific to the Wrangler, they jacked up the price so much, it was cheaper for me to buy a Lexus GX460 than buy another Wrangler equivalent to the one I lemoned.
And this is before mentioning the various operational consolidation leading to job cuts of white collar (eg engineering) positions, typical of any merger/acquisition. Or the closure of North American plants. Or the planned opening of Mexico plants.
So yeah. TLDR. Quality and cost. Fix that first.
Spot on. I just traded my Gladiator because it went through 3 steering stabilizers in 31K miles. No lifts, no big tires- it was completely stock. That kind of issue shouldn’t be happening on a stock vehicle. New ones are now being discounted crazy amounts (which negatively affected the trade value) and they still won’t move on the lots.
I ended up with a CPO Ram 1500 with 30K miles. It’s quality is head and shoulders above the Gladiator, but a new one optioned similarly to mine is 60K+.
As you said- Fix the quality, fix the affordability.
Just rented a new Wagoneer for a week. Other than in parking lots, it was awesome. There’s got to be a future for a company capable of building something like that.
I would beg Tim Kuniskis to come back as CEO of an independent Chrysler, Dodge, Jeep (CDJ), and then see if he or Ralph would want to be his successor.
Then also bring back the Neon as a cheap AND cheerful subcompact REV
Rebadged Suzuki Samurai. Collaborate with them to offer open top and pickup variants.
Thus endeth the Lesson.
Rebadge a Maharindra.
Give it a shot. There are enough EV buyers out there pissed at Teslon that are not going to buy another Tesla. Make a CUV with decent range, power aplenty and a decent interface. I hear the Chrysler one is all right.
For the U.S. anyway, they need to suck it up and realize they have very little brand equity outside of the Jeep loyalists buying Wranglers. Dodge lost their fan base when they discontinued the Challenger/Charger Hemi. Chrysler might as well be a dead brand. Fiat too.
So you got a bunch of average (at best) vehicles, that aren’t known for being particularly high quality, and aren’t beating anyone in value. Hell, even the Wrangler isn’t the only game in town anymore for a convertible 4×4.
Aside from new products, they need to cut prices and slap an industry leading warranty on there.
Basically follow the Hyundai/Kia of the 00’s playbook. Offer value and peace of mind (if the dealer doesn’t screw the customer over) since you don’t offer anything else. Then hopefully your cars don’t suck so much that no one gives you a chance when your next generation of (ideally) better products come out.
Have you never seen a Chrysler product from the 70’s and 80’s? They were all average vehicles back then.
If I recall correctly, the K-Cars anyway were cheaper than the competition and more importantly the way they were built allowed Chrysler to make money.
The products from the 70’s had them on the brink of bankruptcy, so probably don’t want to emulate that at all.
Everybody remembers rich Corinthian leather.
De2roit!
(I discovered the fantastic Detroiters lately. Among the general insanity, Tim’s mint green Chrysler LeBaron sedan just makes it)
Yep. Just another mark on the underrated Detroit chalkboard.
I’m willing to bet that DT sometimes even pines for the pines and snow.
I love Tim Robinson’s absurdist humor, but having grown up in the midwest, I also appreciate the care taken on even the little things, like references to Meijer, pop and chips, the compellingly craptastic local ads, etc.
If you talk about Mort, them’s fighting words.
I feel like it’s too late to save them. After decades of sub par products and the insane price hikes they imposed after COVID. I think they milked all they can of anyone who would of still bought a dodge/ram/jeep.
I wouldn’t buy anything thing from them at this point even if 50% off.
Maybe that great grandson of Chrysler was onto something
This seemed inevitable. As Matt stated in the article, once he knew he was out, what motivation did he have to preserve the company’s best interests? He could focus on himself and not worry about it all. Of course he was going to leave before his tenure ran out.
Goddammit, it feels like it was only a few weeks ago that they finally swapped out the FCA signs in front of facilities with updated Stellantis ones.
Autopian satire claims another victim. Poor Carlos.
I’m going to miss the Jon Lovitz bit.
I said a long time ago, the new CEO should be an American and not a European but what do I know. If their main income comes from North America, you need someone that understands North America.
Agreed on all points. I love the Jon Lovitz joke, and will miss it when it’s gone. I also agree the new CEO should be someone from North America that understands the market, as Stellantis has shown they really don’t have a good grasp on how to succeed over here.
Is real life Carlos worse looking than all these funny memes of him?
Anyways, all these brands are dead but Ram and Jeep, and unless they pull their heads from their asses and cut their prices massivly, they are dead too. Thats literally the only solution. They are the “mainstream” discount American brand. Well, they were. Now they are just rust on a dealers lot. Cut prices by 30% and get back to what their customers want, not fancy ev’s and expensive bullshit, or die.
Restyle the Hornet to look like a Dodge and make it boxier even if it ends up looking like an updated Caliber or mini Charger. More importantly, depower it and lower the price, focusing on keeping interior materials decent and the safety tech up to date. Few CUV buyers care much about how powerful their little commuter runabouts are but they love style, touchscreens, whatever safety nannies are recommended by Consumer Reports.
Keep the old tech at Dodge and sprinkle some hybrids/ new tech but the vehicles should look unmistakably “American.”
Chrysler should have one “throwback” niche model a la the 300 and otherwise be the home for the bulk of Stellantis’ PHEV/BEV lineup and re-badged Euro vehicles in under-served niches where volume is not critical.
Jeep should stop trying to play the luxury truck card and move downmarket with the Grand Cherokee L being its flagship model (rename it Wagoneer if necessary). Whatever powertrains are offered, the Cherokee should return as a Passport competitor with both the Compass and Renegade growing slightly to fill the size gap to make them competitive with vehicles like the CR-V and Trailblazer respectively. Finally, build a Jeep model to compete with the Subaru Outback since, based on spy photos, Subaru intends to move away from the lifted station wagon profile which made it so popular.
Tavares needs to have his money seized and be given to the engineers and labor that make the cars.
Jeep needs to be given back to AM General, and the other brands should just go POOF!
Jeff_goldblum_jurassic_park.jpg
I approve the new John Elkann, pictured above, character selection. Bravo!
Stellantis Announces Sale of Jeep to The Autopian
December 2, 2024, Detroit, MI – Stellantis N.V. is pleased to announce the sale of its iconic Jeep brand to The Autopian, marking a significant milestone in the automotive industry. Jeep will become a wholly-owned subsidiary of The Autopian, an organization renowned for its innovative approach to car culture.
Leading this new chapter for Jeep, David Tracy and Jason Torchinsky have been appointed as co-CEOs. Known for their passion and dedication to automotive excellence, Tracy and Torchinsky are set to drive Jeep into an era of unprecedented innovation and creativity.
In a bold and exciting move, the new leadership duo has announced that effective immediately, all Jeep brand vehicles will feature upholstery crafted from genuine Kentucky horsehair, offering customers a unique and luxurious driving experience. This innovative use of primitive materials underscores The Autopian’s commitment to redefining automotive craftsmanship and comfort.
Additionally, Jason Torchinsky will soon unveil a revolutionary new tail light design for Jeep vehicles, promising to blend functionality with striking aesthetics. This announcement has already generated significant buzz within the automotive community, eagerly anticipating the next steps in Jeep’s evolution under The Autopian’s guidance.
For further information, please contact:
Media Relations Stellantis N.V. media@stellantis.com
Media Contact The Autopian press@TheAutopian.com
About Stellantis N.V. Stellantis is a global automotive group committed to providing clean, safe, and affordable mobility solutions. With a rich portfolio of iconic brands, Stellantis is driving the future of sustainable transportation.
About The Autopian The Autopian is an automotive-focused organization dedicated to celebrating car culture through innovation, creativity, and community engagement. With a passion for vehicles and their stories, The Autopian brings a fresh perspective to the industry.
Have Tracy, Torchy, et al yet announced any plans for new glove box opening mechanisms on upcoming models?
Does this era of unprecedented innovation include bringing back AMC inline 6s to power everything?
don’t forget an AX15 5 speed backing up said powerplants.
David Tracy should run Jeep.
Does he need to go back to Michigan and get rusty after he’s settled so nicely into the LA life? Might be a deal breaker for the new lady.
Yeah he is a carbon fiber BMW EV man now.
No timing belts – guaranteed!
5 years from now… “Rust was always intended to be a feature!” – DT
Inspired by the two greatest vehicles ever conceived, the unique carbon fiber/uncoated steel structure of the 2026 Cherokee allows the body to rot away as intended while the carbon fiber maintains structural integrity.
What do the rest of us get to do in this new organization?
Keep creating content for the readers, of course. Where else would I go for my morning dump?
I nominate that scion of truth and honesty George Santos to take over as CEO.
Might as well let this shit show play out to a non logical conclusion.
In keeping with the Trumpian norm, the new leader of Stellantis must be a totally unqualified billionaire, preferably with a criminal record or a history of unprosecuted sexual assaults.
Lotta redundancy in that description.
Wow, here’s an really interesting article about a hypothetical plan to save a revered, but ailing automaker. Lots of good thoughts and scenarios. Hopefully, someone clever comes along and brings politics into it and ……SSSHHHHHAAAADDDDUUUUUUUUUUPPPPPPPPPP!
So a republican?
Nah, the biggest difference between left and right these days is that republicans were just the first to stop pretending to care about anything other than money and power. Democrats still harbor their illusions. Not sure which is worse.
BS. Democrats get driven out of the party if there’s even a hint of real scandal. Biden got forced out after one bad night. Trump has nothing but bad nights and not only got the nomination, he got elected.
Both-sides-ism died in 2016. One is clearly worse than the other these days.
Illusions or delusions? There is a difference…
It takes a special kind of incompetence to actively harm the Jeep brand
Yeah right? The Wagoneer giants were a decade too late and totally missed the wave. The smaller CUVs were left to languish in update hell. And the icon, the Wrangler, was pumped and primped all the way to a 40k starting price, which is ridiculous.
It’s almost as bad as losing money by running a casino.
I put this exact idea in a Morning Dump months ago!
If he wants the job, he should get it. Get an unapologetic car guy in there.
I’m expecting the stock price to crash. Could be a great buying opportunity.
No. I’m putting it all on the DJT stock…/s
Or a good chance to lose it all in a bankruptcy. Catching a falling knife and all that.
Historically, these “too big to fail” companies have always been bailed out at taxpayer expense. I’m against such a bailout, but if it happens, I may as well profit from it…
The company was, but were the regular shareholders? Keep in mind that the GM bankruptcy essentially created a new company and left the “old GM” holding the bag for everything before 2008.
I didn’t own any stock in GM or Chrysler last time either so I’m not sure exactly how people made out on that, but I doubt small individual investors are getting priority in any bankruptcy proceeding.
Do what you like, but I’m not interested in paying for a Stellantis bankruptcy twice (once with my shares, once with my taxes).
In the case of GM in 2009, I do believe the stock owners were bag holders. In the case of Chrysler, the time to buy was when it was acquired by Stellantis, the Stellantis stock selling at about $3/share in 2010.
I’m looking for signals of an imminent bankruptcy, then getting in early when it gets taken over by someone else.
There’s been talk of BYD execs meeting with Stellantis execs in the USA, which may hint as to who might be the future owners of Dodge, Jeep, and Chrysler.