In a difficult automotive industry, Stellantis faces challenges. As we recently pointed out, The benefits of the company fell 70% in 2024And his CEO Franc, Carlos Tavares, left at the end of the year.
Although many traditional car manufacturers have found the transition to disruptive electrification, Stellantis seems to have been particularly difficult to negotiate the new market. Now there is yet another brand added to its huge wallet that promises more electric options, but it’s a little different from the others. Could Leapmotor be the Stellantis brand which transforms the fortune of the multinational giant?
Leapmotor joins the 14 other members of the Stellantis group (although only eight are active in Europe). The name of Stellantis was born when PSA Group (which combined Peugeot, Citroen, Vauxhall / Opel and DS) merged with Fiat Chrysler Automobiles (Abarth, Alfa Romeo, Fiat, Lancia, Chrysler, Dodge, Jeep and Ram). But all these brands fully belong to Stellantis. Leapmotor is a Chinese company, which has been operating in its country of origin since 2015. Stellantis bought 20% of the company in China in 2023, but now has 51% of the Leapmotor international wing which was launched in Europe in 2024 to bring the brand to a global market.
Why Leapmotor?
From another point, it is valid to ask why Stellantis needs another brand. But Leapmotor potentially branches a gap like nothing else in his wallet. When the current battery-electric transition (BEV) started around 2020, Stellantis seemed to have mainly a proposed transmission. This combined a 136 hp engine driving the front wheels of a vehicle with a 50 kWh battery. He appeared in everything, compact hayons like the Peugeot E-208 to important vans like the Citroen e-Dispatch (although some vans offer larger batteries).
From another point, it is valid to ask why Stellantis needs another brand. But Leapmotor potentially branches a gap like nothing else in his wallet.
The results were not terrible, and the prices either (according to BEV standards), but these are platforms shared with the internal versions of the combustion engine (ICE). This meant that they have missed some of the advantages of design innovations that pure-behavioral platforms make possible, such as larger under-building batteries for many range, double-engine performance and an increase in interior space.
More recently, the company has developed more advanced EV transmissions, such as Stla Small and Medium. These were presented as being specifically intended for the BEV, but they still support the ice. They are more “Bev first” than pure Bev, but it is always a considerable improvement compared to the previous compromises platforms. This allowed new models such as the Peugeot E-3008 to offer more competitive features than previous EV Stelllantis, such as much larger batteries capable of more than 400 miles of reach. The technological battery also feels much more transparent in the car.
However, vehicles built on these new Stellantis platforms still have a continuous problem for most European car manufacturers – they remain relatively expensive. It is not a disaster when most car manufacturers have the same problem with BEV pricing. But now that Korean and Chinese brands are starting to offer strong competition in Europe, the electric vehicle market becomes more and more small and sensitive to prices, which makes it difficult to stand out. For example, the Chinese car manufacturer byd poses a considerable challenge and in the United Kingdom MG has expanded electrical possibilities.
Outgoing stellantis advantage
However, although Challenger brands can try with very convincing prices, they often do not have the support network to continue the right experience after sales. What Stellantis hopes is that there is a powerful synergy between what he has to offer as an in -practice car manufacturer – a well -established network of dealers and service centers – and what Chinese brands can provide. These days, it is not only low costs, but also advanced technologies. Leapmotor cars arriving in Europe have innovative bev features, and have a lot of steady cutting -edge safety technology.
However, the price is always a key characteristic of the Leapmotor offer. The most shocking model The market among the first two launched in Europe is the T03, a small four -door tailgate. The T03 arrives in Great Britain at £ 15,995 ($ 20,500). According to EV standards, this is a good deal. The Spring Dacia begins at £ 14,995 ($ 19,500), but it is without infotainment screen, that the T03 has as a standard. The spring also has a smaller battery (signifying less beach) and a less powerful engine. Leapmotor aims to match the spring at the price but exceed the functionality and the quality of electric vehicles.
The story is similar with the other car that Leapmotor has been launched in Europe so far – the C10. At first glance, it seems much more “me too” than the T03. It is an average electric SUV costing £ 36,500 ($ 47,000), and there are many competitors from other brands around this price. However, Leapmotor offers only one level of higher quality finish for the C10, such as the T03, with characteristics such as a panoramic sunroof, a heat pump (improvement in the winter range), heated and ventilated front seats and a kick tailgate as a standard. Other brands have much more invoicing once you add this type of luxury. The C10 was initially launched as BEV with 263 miles of WLTP range, but a “series hybrid” is also imminent.
Bracing for Chinese automotive invasion
The Leapmotor company is not only an excuse for Stellantis to import cheap cars made in China. The cheapest model, the T03, is manufactured in Tychy in Poland, so it should resist the World Trade War that evolves daily. The C10 is imported from China, but the next model to be published, the B10, will be built in Slovakia and Germany. Three other models will be introduced by the end of 2027. Leapmotor aims to continue its philosophy of supply of premium functionalities for lively prices with these launches.
There is a growing range of Chinese or Chinese EV brands of quality entering the European market, including Zeekr and Lynk & Co. brands belonging to Geely and Geely is also the strength behind the Swedish Volvo and Polestar. Changan (who has Ford and Mazda joint ventures) is another Chinese brand about to enter Europe. The challenges of European car manufacturers should not increase.
Even if prices can temporarily protect European brands at home, they cannot make them competitive on the world market against the Chinese. Stellantis seems to have adopted a policy more “if you cannot beat them, join them” with its international Leapmotor strategy. The prices are competitive but for a more premium specification than the alternatives, which gives cars a potential advantage. This might not be enough to reverse the 70% drop in the profits of 2024, but it could certainly help keep Stellantis in the game while Europe is increasingly electrified.
This story was initially presented on Fortune.com
