BREAKING: Stellantis CEO Carlos Tavares Will Step Down

BWS1 · Dec 3, 2024

WXman said:
This ^^^.

2000s Chrysler vehicles were ugly as sin. Bug eyed, weird edges, nasty interiors, just ugly. Americans don't want ugly. The exterior and interior design updates we saw during the 2010s were HUGE in terms of popularity and sales. They did such an amazing job on the new body design for Charger, Grand Cherokee, and Ram 1500. Just an amazing turn-around. By the early 2020s Ram was selling more trucks than the Chevy brand. That hadn't happened in my life and may never happen again.

Agree , the North Americans did a good job guided by Giles in riding these old Daimler models for all they were worth. Good cars. Solid, beautiful cars with a sound design. I Own several now. I love them. But with the exception of the marginally successful Cherokee, I ask again , what NEW model did sm being to market that was a sales success? I’m still waiting on an answer.

patfromigh · Dec 3, 2024

One executive most likely won't be the next CEO, but he understands the challenges of globalization.

“There is no going global without being locally relevant.” Olivier Francois

Mopar426 · Dec 3, 2024

Mopar392 said:
Sure under Sergio no new product was developed, but he perfected what was there.

They re-developed the core vehicles that sold. What were the sales of the lo-po tupperware 2010 challenger or charger versus, I dont know, a 2018 challenger or charger? They didnt need to introduce anything new. The products needed to be as good as they could be and Marchionne did that. Do I disagree with some of his decisions? Of course. Dodge should still be connected to the trucks and there should be a new RamCharger to do battle with Scout, Land Cruiser and Bronco. A new Dakota is also desperately needed and calling it Ram Dakota is just stupid

Imagine a new Dakota R/T with 420hp for an afforable price - maverick what?

Mopar426 · Dec 3, 2024

BWS1 said:
Agree , the North Americans did a good job guided by Giles in riding these old Daimler models for all they were worth. Good cars. Solid, beautiful cars with a sound design. I Own several now. I love them. But with the exception of the marginally successful Cherokee, I ask again , what NEW model did sm being to market that was a sales success? I’m still waiting on an answer.

What were they supposed to add to the line up? They already had everything - this is an amateur hour argument you are trying to make

BWS1 · Dec 3, 2024

Mopar426 said:
What were they supposed to add to the line up? They already had everything - this is an amateur hour argument you are trying to make

They already had everything? Talk about amateur hour. So you’re going to argue that the Chrysler and Dodge brands were kept in fresh product through various segments they had participating through the SM years? They were both allowed to die on the vine!!! Jeep was the only brand kept relevant and even there the core product was bungled (Cherokee). Ram HD now exists on a 20 year old platform because money was shoveled to “boutique “ Italian brands that were sales Disasters across the board instead of reinvesting in American brands when it was needed. Keep in mind my argument here began because some chose to make asinine statements that Lee Iacocca was the reason we now have Tavares. I would argue SM positioned , even orchestrated this marriage. So those that chose to trample Iacocca’s grave for the umpteenth time really just need to lay the hell off. Lee
Was far from perfect for sure. But you can bet your ass we wouldn’t have had to worry about this argument in 2024 if he hadn’t come along and did a MASTERFUL job of saving the company in 1980.

Danno20 · Dec 3, 2024

bill burke said:
He certainly made a mess of things. Like others trying to run an American car company with a European background, he could not make the connection or inculcate the respect for American excellence that eventually torpedoed all these executives. Watching too much soccer does strange things to people it seems.
Big lesson is that an American leader with deep roots in Chrysler culture must lead this whole company. Europeans, sincere sometimes, disrespectful most times and egotistical at all times just will never succeed. The sooner Carlos leaves the better and the sooner an American Mopar person is put in charge of all operations the better. Can’t do worse.
Things are really chaotic and disorganized. I have no kind words of farewell to offer. Close the door when you leave, like now.

Kind of like when Dahmer tried to run things?

Bili · Dec 3, 2024

This is all sort of game of thrones.

Based on what I've read from press it seems that French Unions in general are the only one which are clearly not happy with this decision.

But this was my opinion all along. Some choices were made to keep French supplier base and engineering in tact.

Now some things are back in the Italian hands and even American hands or ex FCA in general. We should be happy if it goes this way.

One important note.
As you know JP Imparato is new EMEA COO. His office and all governance will be at Turin/Torink HQ starting form January 1st 2025. It seems that it was in Paris till now.

Jeeper1961 · Dec 4, 2024

Stellantis isn't the only company to lose it's way the last 5 years or so. Boeing and many others are having quality issues and are losing public trust. The company that I used to work for, which shall remain nameless, decided some years back that profits were more important than quality. We hired incompetent engineers, overstaffed projects with non-essential staff, stopped hiring and training younger employees, treated everyone as expendable, implemented sweeping DEI policies and monthly training sessions in an industry that was already extremely diverse for at least the last 25 years. We lost clients, projects, and worst of all, good employees. I couldn't wait to retire early and I did. It also became a foreign owned company whose new management didn't understand the NA market. It is a company that is still in decline. I worked there for almost 34 years and it is sad to see.
So when I see one of my favorite companies, the makers of my favorite car and truck brands, going thru some of the same issues, I know things can get turned around if they get the right people in charge. The company needs a dynamic new leader. One that can challenge, motivate and lift morale. He needs to set the bar high because we can't be satisfied with mediocre product and the American public won't buy it in this very competitive market.
I agree with the removal of Carlos Taveras as CEO because his strategy moving forward was cost cutting and slowing down the development of new product. While I do believe there should be some cost cutting, I think they need to look at management first and not the engineering department. With 14 brands under the Stellantis umbrella, maybe it is time to combine some brands or remove them altogether for the sake of the company survival and transfer the savings into product development and quality.

TripleT · Dec 4, 2024

Global industry is in a shambles at the moment Nissan and Jaguar at the top of the list, VW next, Ford in Europe. STLA is at middle level crisis mostly because it leader had very French and Cheapskate bias. Sort of Private Equity mentality.

Mopar426 · Dec 4, 2024

BWS1 said:
They already had everything? Talk about amateur hour. So you’re going to argue that the Chrysler and Dodge brands were kept in fresh product through various segments they had participating through the SM years? They were both allowed to die on the vine!!! Jeep was the only brand kept relevant and even there the core product was bungled (Cherokee). Ram HD now exists on a 20 year old platform because money was shoveled to “boutique “ Italian brands that were sales Disasters across the board instead of reinvesting in American brands when it was needed. Keep in mind my argument here began because some chose to make asinine statements that Lee Iacocca was the reason we now have Tavares. I would argue SM positioned , even orchestrated this marriage. So those that chose to trample Iacocca’s grave for the umpteenth time really just need to lay the hell off. Lee
Was far from perfect for sure. But you can bet your ass we wouldn’t have had to worry about this argument in 2024 if he hadn’t come along and did a MASTERFUL job of saving the company in 1980.

Lots of yelling and screaming but I ask again, what should they have added? And for the time - not today. You anti Sergio guys really cannot grasp the fact Chrysler would not exist had he not stepped up (go read Steve Rattners book from back then, they WERE going to be liquidated if nobody stepped up). They had a good line up, they were just cheapened junk and Sergio fixed that (with gov't loans at 25% interest...high stakes, you dont take chances)
The floor is yours...

TripleT · Dec 5, 2024

Mopar426 said:
Lots of yelling and screaming but I ask again, what should they have added? And for the time - not today. You anti Sergio guys really cannot grasp the fact Chrysler would not exist had he not stepped up (go read Steve Rattners book from back then, they WERE going to be liquidated if nobody stepped up). They had a good line up, they were just cheapened junk and Sergio fixed that (with gov't loans at 25% interest...high stakes, you dont take chances)
The floor is yours...

Product was absolute garbage.... people have no idea how close it was .... we were prepped to take the volume hit and have to try and collect from 3 new companies one of which we had no current business with, the other was secret but from country that didn't even do returnables yet. And the 3rd is now in worse shape then any other.

BWS1 · Dec 5, 2024

Mopar426 said:
Lots of yelling and screaming but I ask again, what should they have added? And for the time - not today. You anti Sergio guys really cannot grasp the fact Chrysler would not exist had he not stepped up (go read Steve Rattners book from back then, they WERE going to be liquidated if nobody stepped up). They had a good line up, they were just cheapened junk and Sergio fixed that (with gov't loans at 25% interest...high stakes, you dont take chances)
The floor is yours...

I can grasp it about as well as the folks who can’t accept that without Lee the whole sad story would have ended even sooner. As I’ve said before, I understand what he did…… yay. I also understand the abysmal marketing failures he rode herd over. And he, like every other auto exec of the time, was riding a wave of market growth post 2007-08 recession across the board that didn’t make it too hard to look like a genius. He did ok. Stop trying to make him out as a genius. Many of us are not drinking that Italian koolaid. He wasted huge sums that could have been much better spent solidifying Dodge line with some midsize offerings, and putting some focus on the Chrysler marque instead of letting it die off. If your a “ Mopar” fan wouldn’t you want that, would you really care if another Alpha popped up to languish on dealer lots? Or another Fiat to lay on lots for years on end with no buyers ? This is “Mopar “ insider , right? But of course what is Mopar now anyway.

Mopar426 · Dec 6, 2024

BWS1 said:
I can grasp it about as well as the folks who can’t accept that without Lee the whole sad story would have ended even sooner. As I’ve said before, I understand what he did…… yay. I also understand the abysmal marketing failures he rode herd over. And he, like every other auto exec of the time, was riding a wave of market growth post 2007-08 recession across the board that didn’t make it too hard to look like a genius. He did ok. Stop trying to make him out as a genius. Many of us are not drinking that Italian koolaid. He wasted huge sums that could have been much better spent solidifying Dodge line with some midsize offerings, and putting some focus on the Chrysler marque instead of letting it die off. If your a “ Mopar” fan wouldn’t you want that, would you really care if another Alpha popped up to languish on dealer lots? Or another Fiat to lay on lots for years on end with no buyers ? This is “Mopar “ insider , right? But of course what is Mopar now anyway.

I agree 100% their profits should have been spent back on Dodge, Chrysler (especially) trucks and Jeep - but he had obligations to Italy. This is why I argue they dont and never did need a partner. This however should not shade on Sergios leadership back then - he fixed them, period. Lets find a similarly hard working and focused CEO - but without the Euro side rubbing their hands together how to piss away the profits on their own projects

TripleT · Dec 6, 2024

Sure, the moments they put back the Trillions reviving the dead corpse left by PE New Yorkers and the Germans.

Complete xenophobic nonsense.... part of larger international corporation is to balance out the ebbs and flows of international markets.

It not like Chrysler tore it up after the NA management convinced him that he had to have midsized, when that market was over capacity and on a margin free fall, and he also needed to match previous capacity investment in the shrinking minivan market.

Fiat took the risk and made the improvements delayed the Alfa investment by nearly 3 years using those funds as part of the NA rehab. Saying that Italy shouldn't have had a turn is selfish ungrateful nonsense.

redriderbob · Dec 13, 2024

Carlos Tavares Breaks Silence on Stellantis Departure

Strategy Differences Led to "Amicable" Exit...

Carlos Tavares, the former CEO of Stellantis, has spoken publicly for the first time since his unexpected resignation on December 1, shedding light on the reasoning behind his departure. In an interview with Portuguese newspaper Expresso, Tavares emphasized that his exit was the result of mutual agreement with Stellantis Chairman John Elkann, stemming from differences in strategic direction.

Carlos Tavares Breaks Silence on Stellantis Departure

Carlos Tavares, the former CEO of Stellantis, has spoken publicly for the first time since his unexpected resignation on December 1, shedding light on the reasoning behind his departure. In an interview with Portuguese newspaper Expresso, Tavares emphasized that his exit was the result of mutual...

moparinsiders.com

Leuname · Dec 13, 2024

vbondjr1 said:
First and foremost, I wish Carlos Tavares well on whatever future endeavors he will be undertaking wherever life leads him and I pray he remains prosperous. With the brand under new leadership, I hope that we will be able to see some positive changes coming in the upcoming year. However, being realistic, I don't expect the return of hellcats and Hemis anytime soon, or hopefully, EVER!!! This is not to say that I don't want to see or hear a V8 Mopar in the future, but trudging through another Jurassic Park catastrophy of big cubic inch pushrod V8s Dinosaurs is a sleep inducing rerun that I'd rather not watch. It always ends the same way with the EPA coming to kill everything and everyone being all butthurt because the adults keep taking our toys away. With the new regime in the presidential office come January and now the CEO of Stellantis now embarking on a new journey elsewhere, we have been given a bit of a reprieve but let's not be so anxious to run back to what got us in trouble in the first place. Hopefully the new CEO will have a better understanding of what the Mopar brands really need and will make the best judgement calls and decisions needed to move the brand into the future properly.

While I'm not a fan of everything that Mr. Tavares did, I will say he left behind a blueprint that can move the brand into an amazing future and really help Stellantis shape the Mopar brands to where they need to be. With the STLA platforms, Stellantis can really make some amazing models for each of the brands and with the Hurricane engines and the 880RE Gen-4 the horsepower potential is through the roof. As far as the V8 is concerned, Mopar has a few options that would allow them to stay in range of what everyone else is doing. The Mustang has its 5.0L & 5.2L V8 engines while the Corvette just came out with a ridiculous 5.5L twin turbo V8. Dodge could easily release a 5.2L and 5.6L DOHC V8 engine with the 5.6L being supercharged. For any of us that know what those engine sizes are in cubic inches, the 5.2L V8 would come in a 318cubic inches and the 5.6L comes in at 340 cubic inches. If cross town rival Ford can squeeze 526hp out of a naturally aspirated 5.2L V8, 500hp out of a naturally aspirated 5.0L and over 700hp out of a supercharged 5.2L V8, and GM can squeeze out over 1,000hp from a 5.5L V8, why can't Dodge pull similar numbers from a 5.2L DOHC V8 and a 5.6L DOHC V8? A 530hp 5.2L V8 with AWD and a 800hp Supercharged 5.9L V8 with AWD shouldn't be out of the question.

As I said before, the brands need to be back to what they should have been all along, Jeep needs to be a Jeep brand, Ram needs to be a truck brand, Chrysler needs to be a luxury brand and Dodge needs to be DODGE! Put it this way, if Chrysler brought back a 550hp twin turbo Chrysler 300M that was a modern reincarnation of the sleek sedan from the late 90s, put in on the STLA Large platform with all wheel drive and that gen-4 transmission and marketed it as a 5-series competitor and then made a coupe variant and called it the new Chrysler Lebaron with a convertible option, nobody would complain. If Chrysler took the Grand Wagoneer and the Wagoneer S and renamed them Imperial and New Yorker and gave them Hurricane powertrains, nobody would complain. Even if all four of those vehicles had EV options with the Chrysler 300M adopting the Banshee as the top tier American luxury EV designed to go head to head with cars like the Lucid Sapphire and the Tesla Plaid, No one would complain at all. Even to market them at $70K wouldn't be out of the question because they're now competing in the luxury class. There is nothing wrong with the EV market and honestly I welcome the EV market into the Mopar umbrella with open arms, I 100% am all for Mopar EVs. Just not Dodge. I'm cool with the Fratzonic exhaust system on an EV Chrysler 300M or Lebaron sports coupe/convertible or even an Imperial SUV and New Yorker SUV. Why? because on those kinds of EVs it makes sense. As I said before, Jeep really needs five models, Cherokee & Grand Cherokee (STLA Large), Wrangler, Wrangler Unlimited and the Gladiator (STLA Frame). All five vehicles should either come with the base 4Xe powertrain, a Hurricane S/O option and Hurricane H/O option. That's it. Ram needs to get back in the game with a Dakota pickup on the STLA frame platform to stomp on the Ranger and all of the other mid-size trucks. Other than that the lineup is fine. If they want to put a supercharged 5.6L V8 in to compete with the Raptor R that's fine but honestly, not necessary. This pretty much consumes the bulk of the Stellantis Mopar lineup and it does so without relying heavily on any type of V8 engine. The 5.2L & 5.6L DOHC V8 engines would strictly be for the Dodge lineup so this way it keeps the EPA at bay for awhile. The Charger Coupe & Convertible and a next gen STLA: Large platform Durango would see these powertrains but this literally only touches base on on aspect of the Dodge brand. While the 420hp Hurricane S/O would be the base engine for these three, Dodge needs more than these three cars in their lineup and I think the STLA Medium platform could help out alot in offering affordable performance that's still 100% Dodge and that is with a revised Hornet and the rebirth of the Dart. The STLA medium platform can produce an SUV the size of a Jeep Grand Cherokee Trackhawk and a car the size of an Acura TLX Type S. Drop a 270hp turbocharged 2.0L I-4 under the hood with a FWD setup controlled by a 9-speed automatic and then drop in a 214hp EDM at the rear for AWD and a system total of 484hp and you have two GLH mid-size Mopars with 392-levels of horsepower. Hopefully this new CEO will kick Direct Connection into high gear so that we can get some factory backed upgrades for these cars.

Again, the future of Mopar should be a balanced future that offers different powertrains that can keep everyone pretty much happy. No big 7-liter pushrod dinosaurs but also not going full tilt on EV and upsetting the customers and fans of the brand either. And maybe, just maybe, with a little bit of magic, maybe we could get TK back into the Mopar scene and all will be right with the world.

patfromigh · Dec 14, 2024

Total BS. The auto industry isn't going through a storm, because it is really enveloped in fog. The trouble is, being in fog can be a dangerous thing. A person can't see where they are going and the sense of direction is lost. There have been horrific mass collisions on interstate highways during foggy conditions. People can't see where they are going and are unaware of what is ahead. The worst thing someone can do is increase their speed when driving in fog. When in the fog slow down.

Carlos Tavares crashed the company because when in this fog created by the leftist woke media and government propaganda onslaught, he put the pedal to the metal.

TripleT · Dec 14, 2024

Worst then that they have to respond to doing business in Multi-regulatory environment that was once regional or country specific but now vary vastly per Municipality. So not only country to country, but state to state, providence to providence. City to Rural to City.

Not set by consumers but by regulators who don't mind you moving from individual, in fact individual transport is the enemy, to public transport.

patfromigh · Dec 14, 2024

TripleT said:
Not set by consumers but by regulators who don't mind you moving from individual, in fact individual transport is the enemy, to public transport.

Wrong, 15 minute cities.

patfromigh · Dec 14, 2024

Here is what they have planned for us. You must make a reservation with your smart phone to use it. If your social credit score is high enough, the service will come pick you up. There are five demo busses in service here in the frozen North. They are battery electric and only take four hours to fully charge.

BREAKING: Stellantis CEO Carlos Tavares Will Step Down