Stellantis, the parent company of 14 carmakers including Jeep, Ram, and Dodge, unveiled a $70 billion turnaround plan that spans new electric vehicles, better software, and higher levels of autonomy. The transatlantic automaker aims to launch dozens of new EVs and extended-range hybrids on a brand-new software-defined vehicle (SDV) platform.
It's also deepening its partnership with chip giant Qualcomm to improve in-vehicle infotainment and advanced driver-assistance systems (ADAS). Stellantis has struggled to keep up in the high-stakes EV and software race. Its sales and profits have cratered amid intensifying competition, and the company's EV launches in the U.S. have misfired.
View Price on AmazonBoth the Jeep Wagoneer S and Dodge Charger Daytona EV flopped, leaving owners frustrated by unfinished software. Earlier this year, Stellantis also pulled the plug on plug-in hybrids in the U.S. as regulations shifted, axing the Jeep Wrangler 4xe, Cherokee 4xe, and Chrysler Pacifica PHEV from its lineup to refocus on its profitable gas trucks and SUVs.
Now the company is restarting from scratch. Over the next five years, it plans to launch 29 new EVs, 15 plug-in hybrids or extended-range models, 24 traditional hybrids, and 39 combustion-powered vehicles riding on the new architecture. At the heart of the plan is STLA One, a new, scalable architecture that will consolidate five existing platforms into a single platform.
STLA One will support an 800-volt architecture for faster charging and better efficiency, with 70% parts commonality across segments. That kind of scalability is exactly what several automakers are chasing right now. Shared software and electrical architectures can reduce complexity and help offset the enormous capital costs of going electric.
With that Stellantis is joining several automakers, including Ford, Volkswagen, and Mercedes-Benz, who all have had to do a proper ground-up rethink of their EV plans. While the STLA One platform will be developed for multiple powertrains, its EV version will use lithium iron phosphate (LFP) batteries, a chemistry that's now dominant in China and lets battery makers reduce their dependence on expensive minerals like nickel and cobalt.
The trade-off has traditionally been lower energy density, but advances in LFP technology in China have narrowed the gap in range and fast-charging speeds. It also adopts a cell-to-body battery-pack design, integrating cells directly into the vehicle's structure rather than stacking them in separate modules.
The approach sheds weight, reduces complexity, and frees up space to pack in more cells, which boosts usable energy density. On the technology side, the automaker will expand its partnership with Qualcomm to integrate the Snapdragon Digital Chassis across its vehicles to improve infotainment and the cockpit.
For autonomy, the company will incorporate Qualcomm's Ride Pilot ADAS platform for driver-assistance features and partner with U.K.-based autonomous-vehicle startup Wayve to bring hands-free, supervised door-to-door automated driving, similar to Tesla's Full-Self Driving (FSD) system.
Source: insideevs.com
