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Stellantis Launches First Vehicle Dismantling Center In South America

New São Paulo Facility Aims To Recycle Up To 8,000 Vehicles A Year

Stellantis has officially opened its first Circular AutoPeças Vehicle Dismantling Center in Osasco, São Paulo, Brazil — marking a major step forward for sustainable automotive practices in South America. The company becomes the first automaker in the region to invest in a dedicated vehicle dismantling operation, a move designed to extend the life of auto parts, reduce waste, and help the environment.

This is only the second Stellantis dismantling center in the world, following the one at the company’s Circular Economy Hub in Mirafiori, Turin, Italy. The São Paulo site is part of Stellantis’ broader global push to build a Circular Economy ecosystem — where vehicles, parts, and materials are reused, repaired, or recycled instead of ending up in landfills.

Investment and Job Creation – 

Circular AutoPeças Vehicle Dismantling Center. (Stellantis).

Stellantis invested R$13 million (about $2.3 million USD) into the project, which is expected to create roughly 150 jobs. The facility has the capacity to dismantle up to 8,000 vehicles per year — everything from total-loss accident cars to older vehicles at the end of their life cycle.

How It Works – 

Circular AutoPeças Vehicle Dismantling Center. (Stellantis).

The process starts with vehicle decontamination, where all fluids — like oil, coolant, and fuel — are safely drained. From there, the car moves to the dismantling line, where technicians inspect, test, and remove parts that can be reused or remanufactured.

Each reusable part is cleaned with eco-friendly products and labeled with a traceable ID tag issued by Brazil’s Detran vehicle authority. This tag ensures the part’s origin, quality, and legality, with up to 49 parts per vehicle being cataloged.

Non-reusable materials like metals are also recovered — including steel, aluminum, copper, and other valuable materials — and sent to partner companies for recycling. Stellantis says 100% of dismantled vehicle materials are processed responsibly.

Buying Used Parts –

Circular AutoPeças Vehicle Dismantling Center. (Stellantis).

The recovered parts will be sold in two ways:

  • In-person at the dismantling center’s retail outlet in Osasco.

  • Online through the Circular AutoPeças store on Mercado Livre, with a dedicated Stellantis e-commerce platform coming soon.

All parts meet Stellantis’ strict standards for quality, safety, and legal compliance.

Why It Matters In Brazil – 

Circular AutoPeças Vehicle Dismantling Center. (Stellantis).

Brazil’s car recycling rate is shockingly low. Out of the country’s estimated 48 million vehicles, about 2 million reach the end of their useful life each year — yet only 1.5% are recycled in an environmentally responsible way.

Experts say the country’s automotive recycling market could be worth R$2 billion (about $360 million USD) annually if more vehicles were dismantled and recycled properly. Stellantis’ facility could help move the industry in that direction by proving that large-scale, regulated dismantling is both possible and profitable.

A Larger Sustainability Push – 

Circular AutoPeças Vehicle Dismantling Center. (Stellantis).

This dismantling center is part of Stellantis’ South American sustainability network, which also includes:

  • Vehicle Reconditioning Center in Betim, Minas Gerais — opened in 2024 to restore used cars to “like-new” condition for resale.

  • OEM Parts Remanufacturing programs to give components a second life.

Both facilities follow Stellantis’ 4R Strategy — Remanufacture, Repair, Reuse, and Recycle — aiming to extend vehicle life cycles and reduce environmental impact.

As Stellantis South America President Emanuele Cappellano puts it:

“This is about innovation, sustainability, and efficiency. We want to keep products in use longer, reduce waste, and put materials back into the production cycle. It’s not just good for the planet — it’s good business.”

Key Specs & Facts:

  • Capacity: 8,000 vehicles/year

  • Investment: R$13 million (~$2.3M USD)

  • Jobs Created: ~150

  • Location: Osasco, São Paulo, Brazil

  • Traceable Parts: Up to 49 per vehicle

  • Vehicle Market Size: ~48 million cars in Brazil

  • Annual Vehicle End-of-Life Rate: ~2 million units

  • Recycling Rate: Only 1.5% disposed of responsibly today

Robert S. Miller

Robert S. Miller is a diehard Mopar enthusiast who lives and breathes all that is Mopar. The Michigander is not only the Editor for MoparInsiders.com, 5thGenRams.com, and HDRams.com but an automotive photographer. He is an avid fan of offshore powerboat racing, which he travels the country to take part in.

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My buddy Marlos Vey Nidal from AutosSegredos got to go here and see it first hand

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Seems like a good test bed for Stellantis to evaluate this process. It does, at first blush, seem to have positive economic and environmental value and it gives manufacturers more control over the true lifespan of their vehicles.
No doubt after market salvage businesses will not be pleased, but it would seem that corporate involvement in the dismantling of useful, and at the same time, potentially pollution generating byproducts would be handled with more care and accountability by manufacturers.
In my first ventures as a young teen into hot rodding, on too many Saturdays I would wander the junk yards in Queens searching for treasure, parts that would augment my weekend hobby. How many times I returned home and my dad would scold me for bringing that “crap” home and I better “use it or lose it” because our driveway wasn’t an auto graveyard. Every junked Chrysler, Dodge, DeSoto and Plymouth became precious finds that I couldn’t resist. If it weren’t for junk parts my fast (not really) first drag cars would have never been built and my Saturday mornings might have been spent studying Algebra or mowing the lawn. These days you can find everything on line so the Junkyards are fading away. Kind of sad in a way. Yea, I still managed to do well in Algebra, but importantly, I hot rodded my junk yard worthy ‘56 Plymouth, (AKA on front fenders as COMMANDO 1 ) into a cool, loud, ridiculous symbol of youthful adventure.
I still have some junk from that Plymouth in my garage to this day. One man’s junk is another man’s treasure.

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