It's truly sad, to watch something that you love fall and fail because of mismanagement and pride. Stellantis came in thinking they could run the brands in a way that they would their small european brands but that DOES NOT WORK for North American automotive brands, these markets aren't the same. Dodge, Ram and Jeep are brands that a driven by passion, nostalgia and history. Even the Chrysler brand carries a bit of that but more rooted in affordable luxury with a bit of hot rod in them as well. Stellantis truly messed up in a major way and now with so much momentum and money invested in their mistakes, they can't stop the runaway train and it's about to wreck in a devastating way that could seriously destroy not only Detroit, but a major part of the US Auto industry and economy as well. In Europe, most cars are just basic transportation, there is no real passion involved in most of the european Stellantis brands except for maybe Maserati and Alfa Romeo and to an extent, Fiat. All of those other goofy brands such as Peugot, Citroen and Opel, aren't really an issue to run because they're just basic transportation and for them to evolve in to electric cars or some 80hp 1.0L 3-cylinder non-turbo hybrid powered cars that operate just above the level of a quadracycle wouldn't mean much at all. You can't do that with Dodge, Ram, Jeep and Chrysler. Those brands weren't meant for that.
I will say that Stellantis has a decent idea with the STLA platforms, as I've said before, and it could very well be the thing that saves them from complete destruction. The problem, stellantis is truly facing however, is their decision on the powertrains for the North American Market. EPA and UAW be damned, the full electric business model that Stellantis has for the Mopar brands will effectively kill Jeep, Dodge and Ram and with Chrysler already border lining extinction, If Stellantis CEOs keep moving in the Electrification direction they are going we are going to loose all of these brands, PERIOD! That's not an assumption or an opinion, that's a fact! It's not just about having raw power, it's about the brand being what it has been for the last several generations. Now, I am not saying that electrification doesn't have it's place, even in the performance world, electrification has it's place and as I've said before if the four Mopar brands were repurposed in the way that they are supposed to be along with having fuller, better lineups, Stellantis wouldn't be having the issues that is has with EPA regulations or the tremendous amount of pushback they're receiving about their new electric vehicles.
Stellantis' four platforms, Small, Medium, Large and Frame, were solid ideas and a great direction forward for the brand and really could be a future-proof strategy for their global markets. I do think that dropping Citroen, Opel and Peugot may be a good move for Stellantis, leaving Fiat, Alfa Romeo and Maserati as the sole three for their European/African markets, Fiat and Ram for the South American Market and Mopar for the North American and Australian Market. Overseas, Stellantis should do well with the STLA Small and STLA Medium platforms. I've commented on the STLA Medium platform before, commenting on the dimensions and capabilities of the car and in size, comparing to Ford's Mustang and BMW's M3/M4 cars. but to broaden that The STLA Medium platform has a wheelbase range that spans from 106"-114", putting vehicles such as the BMW X3, BMW X4, Mercedes C-Class and Mercedes GLC in range of competitors as well as some of the small crossover/SUV entries from companies like the Honda Pilot, Acura MDX, Genesis or even the Toyota Landcruiser (112.2" wheelbase) Hyundai Palisade and Kia Telluride wth their 114.2" wheel base. not to mention sporty sedans like the Acura TLX Type S. While that may be a bit large for most things on Fiat's plate, All of that fits right into Alfa Romeo's wheelhouse being that Alfa Romeo plays within that price point. The Telsa Model 3 and Tesla Model Y also fall into that size bracket and price point but also Telsa falls into that bracket of car buyers. Now done properly with the right powertrains (mostly hybrid variants of Turbo 4 & 6-cylinder engines) This could seriously set Alfa Romeo into a winning spot both in the European and North American markets, it could also have a positive effect on Chrysler as well but I'll touch more on that in a second. Utilizing the same Hybrid tech Stellantis uses on the Hornet for the Hybrid cars, pairing a rear mounted EDM with a gasoline powered set of powertrains could really solidify Alfa Romeo across the board. The wheelbase also brings a few supercars and sports cars into the STLA: Medium's size as car's like the Corvette C8 wth it's 107.2" wheelbase. With the STLA Medium's platform already utilizing a 400V architecture and being capable of using a 800V setup, is it hard to imagine an all electric Alfa Romeo 4C with the same 496hp 400v setup that the Charger Daytona has? Not really. As far as Chrysler is concerned, allowing the brand to reinvent itself as a direct competitor to Tesla, Lucid and even Rivian as the American electric brand would be a positive way to introduce fully electric vehicles into the Stellantis Mopar world. Chrysler's electric fleet could utilize nameplates from not only Chrysler, but also Plymouth and AMC to keep alot of the Nostalgia alive with names such as a Chrysler Barracuda (electric i4-M50 fighter), a Chrysler Marlin (AMC Marlin) (electric M3/Telsa Model-3 fighter), Chrysler Rebel Machine (AMC Rebel Machine) (electric Acura TLX Type-S fighter), Chrysler AMX (X5M/ Tesla Model-Y fighter) and so on. With the South American market, Stellantis currently has the Fiat and Ram brand small trucks and SUVs, which seems to work well for them. With 85% of the STLA: Medium vehicles flooding the market as hybrids that have can be driven with emissions-free driving, plus the other 15% being full BEV as Chrysler models, that right there can free up alot of fines that Stellantis is facing and reduce the number of tax credits need for the brand to operate successfully. That still leaves one other North American brand that could benefit from the STLA: Medium platform and that is, in fact, Dodge. For the last several years, Dodge has lost out on its non muscle car market and that's kind of sad given that SRT started out with the SRT4 Neon back in the early 2000's. Dodge had two great opportunities with small vehicles being the Dart and the Hornet but they never followed through with them when they really could have and should have. Up in paragraph above, I made mention cars that fall into the STLA: Medium's wheelbase range and those vehicles included the Acura TLX and the Acura MDX. Both of those have S-Type trim levels with a 3-Liter V6 Turbo powertrain producing around 355hp somewhere around that number in torque. While by itself the 3.6L "E-Torque" V6 makes only 305hp and about 273lb-ft of torque, What happens when you take that powertrain, Mount it longitudinally with a FWD transaxle (similarly to what Dodge did with the intrepid back in the day) and then gave it a decently sized 400V EDM in the back as the RWD motor like what is done in the hornet, have the Chassis tuned to give the car a more balance RWD feel to it and then go after the TLX and the RDX Type S with a Dodge Dart GLH Demon and a Dodge GLH Murder Hornet? The Original Dart Demon wasn't a insane big block car in the first place it was a hot 340 small block. Let's say the new cars pack 390hp @ 6,000rpms and 390lb-ft of torque @ 3,500rpms and have alot of Direct Connection goodies baked into the factory GLH package all while having an emissions-free driving mode with a range of about 25miles, where's the problem? Sure it would make the Hornet a little bit bigger and maybe lower to the ground and better proportioned but that's not a problem either. It makes sense! Stellantis could then drop in a hybrid 2.0L as the regular R/T powertrain and a base 2.0L FWD powertrain as the GT model or whatever powertrain the Hornet GT already has and there you have it. BTW, Those horsepower and torque numbers I mentioned for the 3.6L Hybrid aren't random. Those are the listed specs of a very well respected and very powerful for it's time Supercharged V8 American muscle car, the 2003 Ford SVT Terminator Cobra. Want a more traditional daily driver crossover, bring back the Dodge Nitro. While this vehicle could have a decently punchy R/T model, it would be more of something to compete with vehicles like the new Santa Fe, the new Honda Pilot, the Kia Telluride and even the Toyota Land Cruiser in size and somewhat in capability. Give it a turbo 4-cylinder hybrid power and decent all-terrain capability and there you have it. Right here is really the meat and potatoes of the market and to go after the market like this would definitely put Stellantis in a more solid position because now they are playing in the markets with vehicles that are better suited to the brands. None of this is crazy new technology or anything else really spectacular, it's as I said before, mostly re-purposing what is already there and making better use of the resources we already have.
I'm going to jump to the STLA Frame platform for a moment just because I always jump on the STLA Large platform because of the muscle car potential the brand has but I want to really touch base on broad-spectrum vehicles for a moment and again, brand re-purposing and better utilization of what Stellantis has is their arsenal. I've said before that Chrysler is the perfect brand platform to focus EV technology on and I still 100% stand on that due to its position as a luxury brand and it's price point in the marketplace. The current Grand Wagoneer, Wagoneer, Wagoneer S and current Jeep Grand Cherokee are vehicles that DO NOT belong under the the Jeep nameplate. Those are 100% luxury vehicles that are misnamed and should be the Chrysler Imperial (Grand Wagoneer), Chrysler Newport (Wagoneer), Chrysler Fifth Ave (Wagoneer-S) and Chrysler New Yorker (Grand Cherokee-L). While the Last two are on the STLA: Large platform and should receive the 400V & 800V full BEV systems, the Imperial & Newport should both have what Stellantis is calling the RAMCHARGER system in their new Ramcharger trucks which feature a full BEV powertrain with a 3.6L "Range extender" on board. Having this as the upper echelon of the Chrysler BEV lineup, we already know the 400V system can put out 670hp in a Charger Daytona Scat Pack and the Banshee system will be upwards of 800hp which makes sense in all four of these vehicles, given their size and their levels of luxury. The STLA Frame platform will also underpin vehicles such as the Ram-series pickup trucks and of course the Wrangler and Gladiator jeep vehicles as well. Jeep has been famous for the inline-6 engine for many decades and it would be remiss of Stellantis not to put the Hurricane-6 under the hood of the Wrangler and the Gladiator along with the 375hp 4Xe powertrains. This is where you blend new tech with nostalgia and this is how you do it properly. Let the Wranglers and Gladiators be the ultra high powered rock crawling, desert high speed running, mud bogging American vehicles that they should be while also still being trail rated vehicles but with much more utility space. As far as the Ram 1500 pickup trucks are concerned, personally, I wouldn't have put the 3.0L standard output in any of them except for the base model work truck. I would have just gone with the 510hp version and then the 550hp version simply because they are trucks and then when I need more power, I would have backed the engines with a ZF Gen-4 8-speed hybrid transmission which should put a high performance Ram 1500 back in the TRX and Raptor-R range, which would have been fine.
This brings us to the STLA: Large platform and I'm going to start out with Chrysler, then Jeep, then Maserati, then Ram and lastly, the Dodge brand. I briefly touched base on the two STLA Large Chrysler SUVs, the Fifth Ave and the New Yorker (Wagoneer-S & Grand Cherokee-L respectively). two, all electric vehicles with 400V & 800V power architectures in a new direction of the brand that would make it America's electric vehicle company, but Chrysler's Performance History is something that can not be denied nor should it be removed from the brand just because it moves to a future of electrification. The Chrysler 300 is still one of the original American muscle cars and even with it's luxury status, should be the vehicle to go up against the Tesla Plaid and Lucid air and not so much the Dodge Charger. It wouldn't be hard to re-imagine the next generation Chrysler 300 as an EV as the 1970 Chrysler 300 Hurst has a very similar look to a Dodge Charger, albeit a lot bigger. Keeping the R-Wing design in the front and adding one in the rear along with a fuselage body, and four doors, an 800V AWD fully electric, loud, powerful Chrysler luxury muscle car with 1,320hp would certainly be enough to dethrone both the Lucid Air Sapphire and the Tesla Plaid as the big horsepower kings of the EV hill. Again, utilizing what is there and re-purposing the brands to do what they are supposed to do makes everything work out smoothly. One last vehicle being the Chrysler Town and Country minivan. While obviously not needing to be some high-horsepower, high performance machine, the AWD 400V system with 496hp wouldn't be a bad choice for Americas original luxury minivan. Should it have huge Brembo brakes? Absolutely, safety first, should it have a performance type suspension for added control and less body roll? Yes it should. Where Chrysler is concerned, that covers the full lineup from STLA: Medium, to STLA: Large, and STLA: Frame. Now we can move to Jeep. I purposely did not mention Jeep when I mentioned the STLA medium platform, because to me, Jeep doesn't need those kinds of vehicles, they're not Jeeps. Jeep needs two platforms STLA: Large and STLA: frame. That's it! On the STLA Large platform would be the Jeep Cherokee Type SJ 2-door, the Jeep Grand Cherokee Type-SJ 4-Door, and then the Jeep Grand Wagoneer Type SJ 4-door which would take the place of today's grand Cherokee-L. Three powertrains, one mission: Destroy the Ford Bronco and Bronco raptor and look as nostalgic doing so. Three powertrains, the 375hp 2.0L 4Xe, the 420hp 3.0L Hurricane Standard Output and the 550hp 3.0L Hurricane high output which should be standard on the Grand Wagoneer and optional on the Cherokee and Grand Cherokee Rubicon X. These three Jeeps need to take Jeep back to being all terrain vehicles that are rugged but have comforts and luxuries but geared towards being useful on the trail and not super focused on high-speed desert dune jumping missions. bring back the SJ styling but in a modern way the same that Ford did with the Bronco. This is Jeep, this is what Jeep is really about, being awesome at all terrain life. Lastly for Jeep is the Jeep Recon. With the Wrangler moving to the STLA Frame platform, this vehicle isn't a bad EV option for those wanting to get outdoors while not giving off emissions and still having that authentic Jeep experience and with 600hp on tap, towing an Airstream E-Stream trailer behind it would actually be fairly iconic, classic and emissions free all at the same time. That lineup rounds out the Jeep lineup in ways that, keep jeep customers happy, reduces carbon footprint with no V8 engines, increases the electric and electrified vehicle portfolio for North America and respectfully stays true to alot of Jeep's roots. Moving along to Maserati, if Fiat is going to be the king of STLA: Small and Alfa Romeo, the Ruler of STLA: Medium, the Maserati would undeniably be the European king of the STLA Large platform. We already know the Platform lends itself to insane powertrains like the Banshee and the 400V EV powertrain but also it is a proper chassis for the 621hp twin turbo 3.0L Nettuno V6 or it's 800+hp Hybrid variant. Any way you look at it, Anything from the Quattroporte, the Ghibli, the Grecale and the Levante could either compete or lay waste to nearly all of their German competitors in a very distinct Maserati type way. Another Stellantis brand with crazy amounts of power, hybrid and EV powertrains and not one V8. Still keeps its identity, still keeps the EPA happy with a lower carbon footprint and all of that so no one should complain. As I said, Ram being the next brand in line for the STLA: Large platform. Ram could legitimately bring the Rampage and the Dakota back both on the STLA; Large platform but having them as two very different trucks with the Rampage being a FWD based truck competing more with the Santa Cruz and Maverick while the Dakota would compete with trucks like the Ranger, the Colorado, Canyon and Tacoma. Give the Rampage the same 4-cylinder powertrains it already has in the South American market while Giving the Dakota a base 4Xe powertrain, a 400V EV powertrain and the 420hp Standard Output and High Output 510hp Hurricane powertrains.
And now, after all of that, I get to my favorite brand, Dodge. The quintessential brand of MOPAR and the last brand of all that is good and decent in the world. I've already mentioned above the STLA Medium vehicles for Dodge with hybrid powertrains that can expand the lineup into a broader range of everyday vehicles and entry level GLH performance vehicles, but now it's time to really get to some real Dodge vehicles. First, bring back the Dodge Caravan and Grand Caravan but make them less "soccer mom" material. Give them flare and flavor like the Street Vans of the '70s and give them the 375hp 2.0L 4Xe hybrid powertrains along with a 400V 496hp EV option, both with AWD. Make American Minivans Great Again! Next in line is the Durango. A base 375hp 2.0L Hybrid AWD powertrain, a 420hp Hurricane SO, a 550hp Hurricane HO, 400V & 800V EV powertrains and a plug in Hybrid 3.0L High Output Hurricane powertrain should make the Mopar Muscle SUV undisputed in the American Market place. Great vehicles and great powertrains but now we get to the next gen Dodge Charger. There is no reason with the lineup above that we can't get a V8 powered Charger and Stellantis not be okay. Especially when that V8 comes in the form of an updated 5.7L Hemi V8. Dodge could literally offer the 5.7L in a few different flavors and Stellantis should not get penalized at all for it. The first variation of the 5.7L would be a naturally aspirated version with the full 6.4L top end, a Forged 6.1L Crankshaft, a full 6.4L style exhaust system for the new platform with the new selectable AWD system, the 1320 torque converter and a few other things pushing roughly 480hp and 470lb-ft of torque as the Charger R/T. Next up is that same setup but with the new ZF-Gen-4 hybrid transmission behind it pushing 580hp and closer to 600lb-ft of torque with AWD as the Charger Scat Pack, Lastly a 5.7L V8 with a fully forged rotating assembly, a hellcat supercharger and a redeye type valvetrain with that plug in hybrid transmission behind it pushing over 700hp as the next Generation Charger Hellcat. At the bottom of this totem pole should be the Charger GT with a 405hp 3.6L E-torque V6 with the plug in Hybrid ZF Gen-4 8-Speed transmission and the new AWD system. Nearly every single version is a hybrid with eco modes for emissions free driving but still gives us one vehicle that carries on the Mopar tradition of a V8. Every single trim level of this car should have Direct connection options and jailbreak packages and everything else that will make this car a legend for the next generation of American Muscle. This is how you move the Mopar brands forward. This is how you make the brands profitable. Purpose, Passion, heritage, etc. This is the direction that could carry Stellantis into the future. This is how you move forward in electrification and full electric vehicles. Not just in the North American market but in the global markets as well. Just my thoughts! goodnight guys!
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