In the hard car industry, Stellantis faces challenges. As we recently reported, The company’s profit fell 70% in 2024.and his open -minded director Carlos Tavares gave up at the end of the year.
Although many traditional car manufacturers have discovered that switching to electrification is disturbed, Stellantis seems to have fought in particular to negotiate a new market. Now another brand is added to the huge portfolio that promises more electrical options, but it is slightly different from the others. Can Leapmotor be a stellantis marque that turns the richness of a multinational behemot?
Leapmotor is joined by the other 14 members of the Stellantis group (although only eight are active in Europe). The name Stellantis was born when PSA Group (which combined Peugeot, Citroen, Vauxhall/Opel and DS) merged with the Fiat Chrysler Automos (Abarth, Alfa Romeo, Fiat, Lancia, Chrysler, Dodge, Jeep and Ram). But all these brands are completely owned by Stellantis. Leapmotor is a Chinese company that has been operating in its country since 2015. In 2023, Stellantis bought 20% of business in China, but now he also owns 51% of the Leapmotor International Wing, which was launched in Europe in 2024 to bring Mark to the global market.
Why Leapmotor?
From one perspective, it is valid to ask why Stellantis needs another brand. But Leapmotor potentially inserts a gap like nothing else in his portfolio. When the current battery transition (Bev) began around 2020, Stellantis seems to have mostly had one propulsion assembly. In doing so, he combined 136 hp engine front wheels of a 50 kWh vehicle. Appeared in everything, from compact hatchbacks such as Peugeot E-208 all the way to significant vans like Citroen e-Dispatch (Although some vans offered larger batteries).
From one perspective, it is valid to ask why Stellantis needs another brand. But Leapmotor potentially inserts a gap like nothing else in his portfolio.
The results were not terrible, nor prices (according to BeV standards), but these were platforms that shared the engine versions with internal combustion (ICE). This meant that they missed some of the benefits of designer innovations that allow pure-beg platforms, such as larger batteries under noon for many range, double motor performance and increased internal space.
More recently, the company has developed more advanced EV drive circuits, such as Stla Small and Medium. They are presented as if they were particularly conceived for Bev, but they still support the ice. They are more “bev first” than pure Bev, but it is still a significant improvement over the compromised previous platforms. This made it possible for new models like Peugeot E-3008 to offer more competitive features than previous Stellantis EV, such as much larger batteries that can be over 400 miles of range. Technology also feels much imperceptible integrated into the car.
However, vehicles built on these new Stellantis platforms still show a continuous problem for most European car manufacturers – remain relatively expensive. This is not a disaster when most car manufacturers have the same problem with BeV prices. But now that Korean and Chinese brands begin to offer strong competition in Europe, the EV market is becoming cramped and sensitive to prices, which makes it difficult to highlight. For example, a Chinese car manufacturer byd is a significant challenge and in the UK MG has expanded electrical capabilities.
Stellantis’s superior advantage
However, although Challenger brands can experience very convincing prices, they often lack a support network to continue their good experience after sale. What Stellantis hopes is that there is a strong synergy between what it can offer as a traditional current car manufacturer-a well-established network of MPs and service centers, which Chinese brands can provide. These days, these are not only low costs, but also advanced technology. Leapmotor cars coming to Europe can boast innovative BeV features, and they have a lot of leading security technologies built in as standard.
However, the price is still a key feature of the Leapmotor offer. The most market model among the first two launched in Europe is T03, a small four -door hatchback. T03 arrives in Britain of £ 15,995 ($ 20,500). According to EV standards, it’s a hit. Spring Dacia starts from £ 14,995 ($ 19,500), but it’s without a screen for fun, which has a T03 standard. Spring also has a smaller battery (which means less range) and a less powerful engine. Leapmotor aims to reconcile with spring, but surpass the features and quality of EV.
The story is similar to the other Leapmotor car that has launched in Europe so far – C10. At first glance, this looks a lot more “I” than T03. It is a medium-sized electric SUV that costs £ 36,500 ($ 47,000), and there are many competitors from other brands around this price. However, Leapmotor offers only one level of C10 lining, such as T03, with features such as a panoramic roof, thermal pump (improving the winter range), heated and ventilated front seats and a standard for the trunk. Other brands charge a lot more after you add that kind of splendor. The C10 was initially launched as a Bev with 263 miles of WLTP range, but it is also inevitable and “serial hybrid”.
Attachment for Chinese car invasion
However, the Leapmotor venture is not just an excuse for Stellantis to import cheap cars made in China. The cheapest model, T03, was made in Tychy, Poland, so it should be resistant to a global trade war that develops daily. The C10 is imported from China, but the next model to be published, B10, will be built in Slovakia and Germany. Three more models will be introduced by the end of 2027. Leapmotor aims to continue its ethos offer of top -notch features for key prices with this launch.
There are a growing range of quality Chinese or Chinese EV brands that enter the European market, including Xpeng and Geely Marques Zeekr and Lynk & Co. Geely, also a force behind the Swedish Volvo and Polestar. Changan (who have a Ford and Mazda joint venture) is another Chinese brand that will just enter Europe. Challenges for European car manufacturers just increase.
Although tariffs can temporarily protect European brands at home, they cannot make them competitive in the global market from Chinese. Stellantis seems to have adopted more politics “if you cannot beat them, join them” with his international strategy Leapmotor. Prices are competitive, but for premium specification from alternatives, which gives cars a potential advantage. This may not be enough to completely reversal a drop of 70% entirely than 2024, but it could certainly help stellantis to remain stellantis in the game, as Europe is increasingly electrified.
This story is originally shown on Fortune.com
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