Positive news for Fiat, which will once again occupy segment B, that of small cars, from which it has been absent since the Punto left the stage in 2018. This was announced by Carlos Tavares, CEO of Stellantis, during the teleconference to present the financial statements of the second quarter and the semi-annual report, anticipating some points of the industrial plan (which we will know at the end of the year/beginning of 2022) related above all to Italian brands.
The roadmap toward the electric evolution of the brands appears more and more defined, starting with Launch, which will begin to be electrified from 2024 and will exclusively produce battery-powered models from 2026. Alfa Romeo will be electric from 2027 but limited to some markets, while in others there will continue to be models with internal combustion engines onboard for a while.
Returning to Fiat, there are still no details on the integration of electric propulsion, although it is plausible that the new B-segment is born ready for electricity. Everything is already defined, instead for the French luxury brand DS, which from 2024 will present new battery-only models.
New Fiat Punto, as it will be
Say today what the style of the new Fiat Punto is a bet, even if some time ago we tried to risk a style hypothesis with our render. On the other hand, the adoption of the CMP platform of PSA origin, that of the other small Stellantis, seems obvious: Peugeot 208 and Opel Corsa, as well as the compact Peugeot 2008, DS 3 Crossback, Opel Mokka, and Citroen C4 crossovers.
Multi-energy architecture, thanks to which an electric Fiat Punto could thus be born, to combine with the variants with non-electrified classic endothermic engines. The CMP includes hybrid propulsion systems, neither full nor plug-in.
Within the range of small Stellantis, the new Fiat Punto could represent the Basic Level, with competitive prices – also possible thanks to economies of scale – but with autonomy for the electric variant that can stand up to the competition. The “cousins” in fact exceed 300 km on a single charge.
21 electric and hybrid will arrive in 2 years
The programs partly resume what was already announced during the recent EV Day, in particular the electric offensive that will see the introduction of 11 new 100% electric models and 10 more plug-in hybrids in the next 24 months and the complete electrification of the range of light commercial vehicles.
This last part is already very advanced if we consider that almost all the LCVs of the “French part”, that is to say of the ex-PSA brands (including Opel) already have electric variants on the list and that the first medium fuel cell vans of hydrogen have already been presented and will be on the market by the end of the year.
New associations also “aerial”
Still, on the subject of electrification programs, Stellantis management also reiterated the creation of the third gigafactory in the former FPT plant in Termoli and the total conversion, by the end of 2022, of the British factory in Ellesmere Port (where assemble Vauxhall brand models) to the production of electric vans for that and other group brands. The operation that will make it the first Stellantis factory dedicated entirely to electric vehicles.
Then announce your collaboration with Engie for the electric charging network and the curious association with Archer for the development and production of vertical take-off vehicles.
Positive balance despite everything
The chip crisis and the general market crisis did not affect too much the financial results and especially the production programs of Stellantis, which confirmed that it closed the first half of the year in profit, even revising the operating margin estimates for 2021 to 10%.
