Fiat-Chrysler Automobile Group 5-Year Plans (including all of the FCA brands)

[King T]

[Jeep]



Jeep lays out 5-year plan, including rebirth of Grand Wagoneer and new C-segment offering

Fiat Chrysler CEO Sergio Machionne presented a five-year plan for the company brands this morning, with Jeep first up on a long day of presentation. Jeep's head honcho Michael Manley wasted no time in laying out what the foreseeable future will look like for what he calls the "lead global brand" of the company.

Big goals for the next half-decade will include expanding the lineup from five nameplates built in one country, to six nameplates build in six countries. That expansion of models will include both a three-row competitor, and, of course, a small vehicle to slot below Cherokee. The company is also seeking to add a whopping 1,300 dealers over the next few years, to sell all this new metal, and has an aggressive goal of doubling Jeep sales by the time 2018 rolls around.

As expected, that first salvo from the off-road brand will be the debut of the much ballyhooed Renegade small crossover in the third quarter of this year. Jeep has already designated that Renegade will get refreshed for the 2017 model year, as well.

The three-row vehicle in question will be a redux of the Grand Wagoneer nameplate, slated to come to market in the second half of 2018. Manley called the upcoming product the "most premium Jeep we will have ever made," which sounds promising considering recent product offerings.

2016 will be an unusually important year for Jeep; fitting as it will also mark the company's 75-year anniversary. An as-yet unnamed C-segment SUV will make its debut in '16, and the current Cherokee will be due for its mid-cycle refresh as well while both the Patriot and the Compass lines will meet their maker by 2016.

Finally, on to brand cornerstones Wrangler and Grand Cherokee. According to the company, we should expect a completely new Wrangler in the second quarter of 2017, though there is, as of yet, little to no detail on what we should expect. The current Grand Cherokee is slated to get a refresh in the fourth quarter of 2015, before the next generation debuts in the third quarter of 2017.

[King T]

Jeep's Five-Year Plan is Hardcore Awesome

Consider Jeep safe and sound these days. The iconic off-road brand is finally back on track after several years of being somewhat lost in the wilderness. Fiat-Chrysler announced its big five-year plan yesterday and with that came details regarding what’s in store for Jeep. The bottom line is really quite simple: Jeep is being turned into a fully-fledged global brand while still remaining true to its roots. So what can we expect?

First up, the new Renegade will launch later this summer, and in 2015 the Grand Cherokee will be given yet another update. 2016 is the 75th anniversary of the brand, so as a present to itself the embarrassing Compass and Patriot will finally be killed off. In their place will be an all-new model that’ll be smaller than the Cherokee, but we don’t have any details about just yet. The Cherokee will also be given an update. 2017 will see a Renegade refresh and, more importantly, an all-new redesigned Wrangler and Grand Cherokee. And in 2018 we'll see the return of the Grand Wagoneer, Jeep’s also entirely all-new three-row SUV. Overall nothing but good news for Jeep in the years ahead.

[King T]

New Wrangler, Grand Wagoneer Confirmed As Part Of Jeep’s Global Expansion

Jeep’s revival plans for its Grand Wagoneer nameplate date back all the way to 2011, but we now have confirmation of the vehicle’s development and a date of release. The confirmation was made during yesterday’s Fiat Chrysler Automobiles five-year strategy announcement, where we also learned about the future of Jeep’s entire portfolio of vehicles.

FCA wants to see Jeep return to the number one spot when it comes to sales of SUVs and crossovers (at present it’s ranked sixth), and it plans to do so by strengthening the brand’s rugged image, growing its production and distribution footprint, and launching all-new models. Essentially, Jeep’s localized portfolio will be expanded from five nameplates built in one country to six nameplates in six countries (new locations will include Brazil, China, India, Italy and possibly Canada or Mexico).

FCA estimates Jeep sales to top one million units this year, up from roughly 732,000 units last year, but by 2018 it hopes Jeep sales will reach 1.83 million units annually. While North America accounts for most Jeep sales at present, FCA sees the Asia Pacific region growing to be the dominant market in the near future.

So what about the new models? Below is a rough outline for Jeep’s future over the five-year period starting 2014:

2014: New Renegade subcompact launched.

2015: Grand Cherokee to receive major update.

2016: Patriot and Compass to be replaced by new compact crossover. Cherokee small SUV to receive major update.

2017: Renegade to receive major update and new versions of the Wrangler and Grand Cherokee to be launched.

2018: New Grand Wagoneer to be launched.

Few details about the new models were specified but the Grand Wagoneer was confirmed to feature third-row seating. As previously reported, the new Wrangler will likely be lighter than the current model, come with independent suspension, and offer more engine options.

[King T]

[Stew]

Originally Posted by shine2013

2018? The Charger/Challenger combo better be one hell of a car to arrive a couple years after the Camaro and probably during the Mustang refresh.

They are already a hell of a set of cars, especially the 15s.......

[King T]

[Fiat]



Fiat 500X coming in early 2015, 'specialty' product later that year

With its name freshly on the mailbox at the Chrysler Technical Center, Fiat took its turn on the stage for Fiat Chrysler's five-year plan. Unlike the other members of FCA, though, the maker of the mustachioed minicars didn't have a great deal to talk about.

The big (and most heartbreaking) news is the announcement that Fiat will begin selling a trucklet. There was no mention of specifics, although we are sad to report that it will be reserved for Latin America alone. Sigh.

For US Fiat consumers, you can look forward to the rumored 500X, which as we've reported before, will be quite closely related to the Jeep Renegade. We can expect the bigger, all-wheel-drive 500 to hit showrooms in early 2015 after the 500X makes its debut in Paris.

Fiat also mentioned a "specialty" product for late next year. The jury is still out on what this may be, although popular opinion seems to think it'll be a small roadster, potentially related to the next-generation Mazda MX-5, which is being jointly developed by Mazda and Alfa Romeo. That would be dynamite, were it the case (all in favor of reviving the Barchetta name?), although FCA execs were mum on details during the brand's presentation.

Finally, our friends in Europe can expect an all-new Panda in 2018. Sadly, we shouldn't count on the popular hatchback to cross the pond any time soon.

[King T]

Fiat Plans New Specialty Car For U.S. By Late 2015: Mazda MX-5-Based Roadster?

With Maserati, Alfa Romeo, Dodge, and Chrysler all laying their cards on the table through 2018, the Fiat brand didn’t want to be left out. For the U.S., however, there’s precious little news to come from the brand for the next four years.

In fact, there are just two new models due in North America from the Fiat brand: the 500X and an as yet unnamed “specialty” car.

The 500X is a relatively known quantity, with spy shots revealing the core proportions of the coming off-road-ish subcompact crossover. Sharing its core architecture with the 500L, the 500X will offer more rugged design and slightly more svelte proportions than its city-bound brother. It's due early next year.

Fiat’s specialty car, however, remains something of a mystery. Enthusiasts would undoubtedly welcome a re-targeting of the now-in-doubt (and notably absent from today's five-year Alfa roadmap) Alfa Romeo convertible based on the Mazda MX-5 as a new Fiat model, and the choice could make good sense for Fiat as well, aligning with the brand’s small, efficient, and fun image.

A fourth-generation Mazda MX-5 in Fiat guise also makes some historical sense, at least insofar as Fiat offering a sporty, rear-drive roadster. The Fiat 124 Sport Spider, built from 1966-1982 before moving to the Pininfarina brand, followed a similar formula to today’s MX-5: light weight, moderate power, reasonable price.

With the “specialty” car due in late 2015, it also aligns well with Mazda’s plans for the ND MX-5, which is expected to arrive in the first half of 2015 as a 2016 model.

Fiat is looking to grow worldwide sales from 1.5 million in 2013 to 1.9 million by 2018; the company wants to double U.S. sales to about 100,000, but expects South America and Asia-Pacific to add 330,000 sales. Latin America is expected to become Fiat’s largest market, followed by Europe, Asia-Pacific, and North America.

[King T]

[Alfa Romeo]




Alfa Romeo 5-Year Plan: AWD/RWD Lineup and 8 New Products by 2018, Semi-Autonomy from Fiat-Chrysler

Claiming that Alfa Romeo’s “DNA had not been respected,” Fiat-Chrysler (FCA) is taking strong and swift action to rectify its sporty yet mainstream Italian brand problem. During a hugely long, 55-slide (!) presentation at its latest investor meeting, FCA outlined Alfa’s rich production- and racing-car histories before boldly admitting that Fiat’s 1987 takeover of Alfa Romeo unraveled a bit of that mojo.

ON ITS OWN, SORT OF
Citing the 1984 Nissan Pulsar–based Arna as a particular low point in its history, Alfa Romeo is refocusing its efforts on the five key attributes that previously defined the brand: advanced innovative engines, near-50/50 weight distribution, unique technical solutions, class-leading power-to-weight ratios, and groundbreaking and distinctly Italian design. Alfa has assembled a team of approximately 200 hand-selected engineers to spearhead the brand’s reinvention (a number which will grow to 600 by 2016). Operating with “no interference” from the FCA machine—presumably set up similar to the semi-autonomy enjoyed by Ferrari—the team is led by two senior heads from, well, Ferrari.

ENGINES
Operating in so-called “skunkworks” facilities, the team’s objectives include designing a new, flexible rear- and all-wheel-drive architecture (front-drive is dead for now) and unique solutions for gas and diesel engines; no specifics on those engines’ vehicle applications have been divulged. The gas engines—two four-cylinders and one six—will produce roughly 110–180 horsepower, 180–350 horsepower, and 400–525 horsepower. The four-cylinder and six-cylinder diesels will put out an estimated 110–200 horsepower and 250–365 horsepower. We like the sound of all those numbers.

THE VEHICLES
Alfa plans to dump front-drivers like the Guilietta and release eight new products by 2018. (Alfa currently sells just the Giulietta and MiTo; the wonderful 4C is just now coming online.) Included in the eight-car lineup are two compacts, one mid-size (with a high-performance mid-size variant), one full-size, two utilities, and a “specialty” model, which most likely is a sports car. It’s worth pointing out, of course, that that sports car, while likely a new Spider, will be different from the Spider that was being co-developed with Mazda’s next-gen MX-5 Miata; that Italian/Japanese mashup will become a new Abarth or Fiat model instead.

BIG SALES GOALS
While quadrupling its lineup in just four years is optimistic, arguably Alfa’s most ambitious announcement is that the brand is planning on pushing the its global sales numbers past the 400,000-unit mark by 2018. Putting that figure in perspective, Alfa Romeo sold just 74,000 vehicles in 2013. Surprisingly, Alfa says its engines and cars will be “industrialized in Italy,” which we take to mean the brand’s home country will produce the bulk of its vehicles and components. Of course, all of this brand transformation and DNA recapturing will take money, and lots of it. And so FCA will dump a colossal €5 billion into Alfa, or about $6.96 billion at current conversion rates.

After a seemingly never-ending back and forth regarding Fiat-Chrysler’s Alfa Romeo plans—they’ll be in the U.S. in 2004! No, wait, 2013! No, 2015!—the attachment of hard figures, an admission of how badly Fiat mismanaged Alfa, and an influx of a lot of euros means this finally looks like the we’re-done-screwing-around plan. We agree with FCA that the smokin’ hot and awesomely sporty 4C coupe and Spider are great starts to turning Alfa around, but we also agree the brand desperately needs more than two carbon-fiber two-seaters. On the bright side, there’s no way Alfa will get to 400,000 sales without the U.S., so we finally can bet on the brand’s return to America.

Alfa ended its presentation with this loin-tickling tease: “A cloverleaf arriving in showrooms in late 2015.” Since Alfa’s not joining the highway-building industry as far as we know, that could only be code for “Quadrifoglio,” Alfa’s venerated performance sub-brand. We sort of feel like suckers, but we’re getting excited all over again.

[King T]

Alfa Romeo To Have Eight-Car Lineup By 2018

Alfa Romeo’s future product portfolio has finally been confirmed and as predicted the brand will be targeting Germany’s mainstream luxury brands with light and sporty vehicles with feisty engines and plenty of Italian flair. Revealed today in a presentation made by Sergio Marchionne, the boss of Alfa Romeo parent company Fiat Chrysler Automobiles, Alfa’s lineup will be expanded from the current three cars to eight by 2018.

Those cars will all feature five core attributes: Advanced, innovative engines; perfect 50-50 weight distribution; a set of unique technical solutions; class exclusive power-to-weight ratios; and groundbreaking and distinctive Italian design. They will also be offered exclusively with rear-wheel drive, all-wheel drive or both configurations.

The bad news is that that majority of Alfa’s new models will be launched in 2016 or later. In fact, the only new vehicles this year will be the 4C sports car and a new 4C Spider variant. And the picture is even bleaker for 2015 as only one vehicle launch is planned.

Below is a rough outline for Alfa Romeo’s future over the next couple of years:

2014: 4C and 4C Spider to be launched.

2015: New midsize model to be launched, most likely the 159-replacing ‘Giulia’ sedan. MiTo and Giulietta hatchbacks sold overseas to be discontinued.

2016-2018: Two new compacts, a midsize model, a larger sedan, two crossovers and a specialty sports car to be launched. 4C to be phased out.

The new compacts are likely to be a sedan and hatch to replace the Giulietta and to go up against the Audi A3/Mercedes-Benz CLA-Class. The midsize model will likely be a wagon version of the Giulia and the large sedan will likely be Alfa’s version of the Maserati Ghibli. The two crossover models will likely fill the compact and midsize segments and share their underpinnings with similar models from other FCA brands. Finally, the new specialty sports car is likely to be a halo model badged 6C or 8C.

Along the way, there will also be high-performance clover leaf ‘Quadrifoglio’ versions of many of the cars. Interestingly, during the presentation, it was also confirmed that engineers from Ferrari will help develop some of the new Alfa Romeo cars. Also, there was no mention of a new convertible to share a chassis with the 2016 Mazda MX-5 Miata, as was previously confirmed. This ties in with previous reports that the chassis would be used by another brand at FCA.

[King T]

The Alfa Romeo presentation slideshow

[2010-1SS-IBM]

I wish Jeep would launch that pickup they talked about a few years back. I loved the looks and the idea.

[KMPrenger]

A lot to take in here, but overall pretty cool stuff. No one brand will offer everything, say like Ford or Chevrolet does. Instead, they will all be pieces of the Fiat pie: mainstream, performance, and utility.

Hope it all works out. I'll be very interested to see how it all plays out over the next few years.

[King T]

[Maserati]


Maserati To Launch Alfieri Sports Car, Kill GranTurismo Convertible By 2018

It’s a big day for Fiat Chrysler Automobiles, with the roadmap for all group brands through 2018 being released in a series of presentations this morning. Among the news is Maserati’s future, which will see the addition of both coupe and convertibleforms of the Alfieri sports car, the production of the Levante SUV, and the end of the GranTurismo Convertible, or GranCabrio as it’s known outside the U.S.

Fans of the GranTurismo hardtop can remain calm, however, as a new version of that car is scheduled to reach the market around 2018. Details haven’t been revealed as yet, but it’s likely to continue its grand touring status in the range, with the smaller Alfieri below it to fill the sports car role. There’s even a chance the GranTurismo will transmogrify into a four-door coupe, to better complement the Quattroporte sedan and offer some competition for the Porsche Panamera.

Also included in the future model lineup is Maserati’s plans for its powertrains, which will see significant increases in power and a much wider rollout of all-wheel drive.

Existing products will see upgrades, including a power increase for Ghibli and Quattroporte, with the 350-horsepower turbocharged V-6 becoming the base engine, and a new 450-horsepower turbo V-6 joining both lines with available all-wheel drive. Both Ghibli and Quattroporte will also receive a 560-plus-horsepower V-8 engine with all-wheel drive only. The diesel engine offerings for the Ghibli and Quattroporte will remain unchanged, though the Quattroporte will add a 340-horsepower diesel engine that will be shared with the Levante SUV.

The Levante, due to enter production in 2015, will likewise make use of the 350-horsepower gasoline V-6 found in the Ghibli and Quattroporte, but will forego the upgrade to the 450-horsepower V-6 in favor of a 425-horsepower option. The Levante will also offer the 560-plus-horsepower V-8. All Levante variants will come with standard all-wheel drive.

Maserati’s new sports car line, the Alfieri, will skip the V-8 and diesel engines entirely, subsisting on a trio of gasoline V-6s. The base engine will offer 410 horsepower, with 450-horsepower and 520-horsepower upgrades available. The base model will offer rear-wheel drive only, while the two upper-tier variants will be all-wheel-drive only.

When it returns as an all-new model, the GranTurismo will be available in just one form: rear-wheel drive with a 560-plus-horsepower V-8 engine.

Precise timing and more detailed product information has yet to come from Maserati, but with 2014 already almost half in the books, expect to begin seeing and hearing more about the four-car product assault due over the next four years very soon.

[King T]

Maserati’s Wester Confirms Alfieri Production

AUBURN HILLS, Michigan – Maserati will launch a production version of its scintillating Alfieri concept around 2016, with a cabrio to follow in about 2017, according to a presentation by brand chief Harald Wester. The product plan presented to Fiat Chrysler’s Investor Day was not very specific, although it did say that the new LeVante crossover utility, built on Maserati’s architecture, will launch next year.

Rear-wheel-drive Alfieris will be have a 410-hp V-6; Alfieris equipped with all-wheel drive will have 450- and 520-hp V-6s. The new LeVante is shown as AWD-only, with 350-hp and 425-hp V-6 and 560-hp-plus V-8 gas engines, plus 250-hp, 275-hp, and 340-hp diesel engines.

A new GranTurismo coupe arrives at the end of the five-year plan, in 2018. The GranTurismo cabrio apparently would launch a year after that, in calendar 2019, which is outside the purview of Tuesday’s five-year presentation. The new products represent a 2-billion euro investment in Maserati, Wester said, adding that the brand expects to cap production at roughly 75,000 units per year globally under the current product plan.

Wester believes that with limited production and its Italian design and heritage, Maserati can flourish as an alternative to unnamed German brands, which obviously means Mercedes-Benz, Audi, and, most important, BMW, from the 5-series up.

Maserati expects massive sales increase under new Fiat Chrysler plan

Maserati sales are expected to increase nearly five-fold by 2018, according to Fiat Chrysler Automobiles.

Sales of the exclusive Italian luxury brand, according to a new five-year plan released today, are expected to jump from 15,400 units last year to 75,000 in 2018.

To help drive the expected sales increase, the company also plans to go from four models to six in 2018, adding three new SUVs and phasing out the Grancabrio.

Maserati also predicts revenue to jump from 1.7 billion euros ($2.4 billion) last year to 6 billion euros ($8.4 billion) in 2018.

Maserati did not breakout the expected sales by region, but expect the U.S. to play a main part. Earlier this year, FCA debuted Maserati's first-ever Super Bowl ad. The 90-second ad called “Strike” for the luxury brand’s all-new Ghibli, Maserati’s first-ever midsize four-door luxury sports sedan.