Could Chrysler Get The Axe Amid The Stellantis Merger?

Last year, automotive brands Fiat Chrysler and Peugeot announced plans to merge into a brand that would be known as Stellantis.

As of this morning, shareholders voted to go ahead with the creation of the world’s fourth-largest auto company. The Stellantis name will be used exclusively at the Group level, as a Corporate brand. The names and the logos of the Stellantis Group’s constituent brands will remain unchanged.

The last major hurdle left is to list shares of the new company, which is expected to be finalized January 16. What does this mean for current brands? Some industry experts are saying it could mean that the already slow-selling Chrysler products may be on their way out of showrooms.

The experts talked to AP saying, Stellantis will be headed up by current PSA CEO Carlos Tavares, who has been known to cut poor-performing brands and products. This means any slow-selling Fiat Chrysler products (including but not limited to the entire Chrysler brand) could be on the chopping block.

And while it may seem shocking or dramatic to cut an entire brand, it really shouldn’t be all that surprising. From a purely financial and business perspective, the brand doesn’t offer as much as other automotive brands. It currently is only offering the Pacifica minivan and the 300 sedan. With both pickups and SUVS/crossovers steadily taking over the market, a minivan and decade-old sedan aren’t key vehicles to be selling.

That being said, people can expect minimal changes from Ram or Jeep under the new management since trucks and SUVs are so popular in the U.S.