Although car brands like Chrysler, Dodge, Jeep, and Ram Trucks are familiar names known to many American buyers from Stellantis’s 14 brands, some brands are considered protected institutions in other countries.
While four of Stellantis’s (STLA) brands originate from the United States, five of the names in its portfolio hail from one European country: Italy.
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Alfa Romeo, Abarth, Fiat, Lancia, and the luxury sports car manufacturer Maserati are all famous, distinct and unique entities that are pillars of the Italian auto industry; a source of love and national pride besides other exports like influential art, literature and food.
But during the tenure of then-CEO Carlos Tavares, moves meant to protect Stellantis’s pocketbook put a dent in something worth much more than dollars and Euros: pride. However, new leadership is extending a new olive branch to keep Italian factories humming.
Workers at work inside of the new Hybrid and PHEV Vehicles Stellantis Group eDCT Assembly Plant on April 10, 2024 in Turin, Italy.
Stefano Guidi/Getty Images
Stellantis’s investment into Made in Italy
Following tensions between Stellantis and the Italian government over its long-term commitment to keeping jobs in the country, the automaker is solidifying its commitment to Italy by pledging the equivalent of $2.1 million as an investment in Italian production.
Earlier this week, Stellantis executives, including the automaker’s new de-facto leader, chairman John Elkann, met with Italian Industry Minister Adolfo Urso and representatives from Italian trade unions to confirm that none of its Italian factories will close and that it will also produce new models.
The bulk of the new cars will be badged as Alfa Romeos, as three models: the next iteration of the Stelvio SUV, the next iteration of the Giulia sports sedan due in 2026, and a currently unnamed flagship vehicle for Alfa Romeo. Both the new Stelvio and Giulia are being developed to be offered as EVs or hybrids.
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Beginning next year, Stellantis will produce a selection of cars from various brands at its Melfi plant in southern Italy. The EV and hybrid versions of the Jeep Compass, the Lancia Gamma fastback, the DS 7, and the all-electric DS 8 will be produced at its assembly line.
At Stellantis’s Mirafiori site; Fiat’s original factory, production of a hybrid version of the venerable Fiat 500 is planned to begin sometime in late 2025. The automaker has committed to producing Fiat 500s at the factory until 2032 or 2033. In addition to the pint-sized 500s, Mirafiori will also see an increase in gearbox production, from 600,000 units to 900,000 units per year.
Stellantis’ European boss Jean-Philippe Imparato also announced that its Turin offices will continue to act as a home for its Italian brands and that it won’t seek out any public funds for any financial commitments.
Related: Stellantis extends olive branch to help revive Italian auto production
Stellantis’s Italian woes
The new developments from Stellantis following the departure of its CEO come as a way for the embattled auto giant to make amends in one of its key markets.
Much like in the United States, the Tavares regime saw opportunistic cost-cutting measures taken at the expense of Italian factory workers, which included voluntary lay off packages for employees hitting retirement age or willing to take new professional opportunities, production stoppages as well as actual layoffs.
Around the same time, the Italian government made symbolic gestures to signal their rough relationship with Stellantis, as their Fiats and Alfa Romeos meant to be “rightfully” made by Italians were being made beyond the borders of Italy.
“If you want to sell a car on the international market by advertising it as an Italian jewel, then that car must be produced in Italy,” Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni said in a January 2024 speech to lawmakers.
In late May, Italian authorities seized 134 Fiat Topolino electric city cars at the port of Livorno because of a small, centimeters-big Italian flag sticker affixed to the car’s bodywork, a violation of an obscure law designed to protect the sanctity of Italian-made goods.
Despite being branded as a Fiat, the Topolino is made in Stellantis’ facility in Morocco alongside its badge-engineered counterpart, the Citroën Ami.
A few months earlier, Alfa Romeo changed the name of its new compact EV crossover from Milano to Junior due to vocal opposition from key government officials after it was revealed that it would be produced in Poland.
Stellantis NV is traded on the New York Stock Exchange as STLA.
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