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Stellantis’ annual communications event opens the curtain into the myriad brands under its stable. From Alfa Romeo & Jeep to Citroën and new EV brand LeapMotor, Stellantis next few years are filled with intent and big promises.
With fifteen brands under the Stellantis organisation, the relatively new group is the fourth largest automaker worldwide. Only four years in to its consolidated Stellantis state, the company hasn’t had an easy transition within South Africa with marked pressure on sales volumes, dealer dynamics and managing such a vast array of products. Some of our previous concerns about Stellantis were its sales volumes in the B and C segments as well as those of the glorious Alfa Romeo brand to name a few. There were also seemingly competing products from the group, vying for the same piece of the market and that, ultimately didn’t result in the sales volumes that Stellantis was hoping for.
When Mike Whitfield, MD of Stellantis in South Africa stepped up to address the media during Stellantis Week, these were the very subjects of his communication. The plan for Stellantis is to grow the Stellantis group in South Africa by way of three strategic points: The first is to consolidate the brands under what they term their ‘Brand House’ philosophy, in other words a Stellantis multi-brand dealership under which all of the brands live. There are a number of dealers operating like this already but the focus over the next 18 months is further centralize operations for a customer-centric operation. It will visually and experientially become less confusing and therefore do well to upsell/downsell customers within the same network. This customer-centricity is the next strategic pillar for Stellantis, and this is all well and good, but it’s pointless if you don’t have the right product at the right price. If there was one thing that stuck with us from Stellantis Week, it was the next point – to align the brand and products across the group within their own segments and to their own markets. It’s what was problematic before and clearly something that all of the Stellantis brand managers acknowledged as being fixable within this new strategic shift. This includes a full line-up of commercial products that will be operated under a newly launched sub-brand called ProOne. This is the professional part of the operation, delivering commercial products right from the basic mini and compact vans for last-mile and convenience deliveries, right up to the large and multi-purpose vans and LCV’s.
This means a concerted effort to take the Land Trek to new heights as a commercial partner. The Land Trek was displayed featuring Peugeot’s latest logo with a new front grille design for all the single cab and DC models.
Citroën: B-Segment focus on affordable entry into motoring and the Stellantis group.
Citroën certainly was one of the brands with its feet in segments where its group siblings played. There seems a more clear focus now and that focus is to target first time buyers, younger buyers, budget-conscious buyers into the stable. With a focus on vehicle that play under the R400k space, Citroën is aiming at the volume segments where, according to them, sales at this price level account for 60% of dealership sales. That is to say budget hatches and compact crossovers are the cars we’ll see from the French marque including, a new, entry-level hatch that will play in the commercial space. The new HOLA C3 Panel van will launch in the coming weeks, offering another alternative in the eCommerce, delivery type economy. Essentially, it’s a C3 hatch with the rear seats removed and instead replaced with a lot more load space. Key competitors that the HOLA is targeting are vehicles like the Nissan Magnite Move and the Hyundai Cargo.
Opel: Youthful energy, premium feel + An all-new Grandland
Opel’s presentation and physical appearance at Stellantis Week signalled a fresh approach and newfound energy for the brand that has lost some brand presence in the country from its heyday era. The head of the Opel Brand had flown in from Germany to introduce Opel’s future plans and pull the wraps off the all-new Opel Grandland. We’ve had a pre-launch exclusive drive of the Grandland and you can pick up the next issue of TopGear SA to see a more detailed review of it. Nonetheless, the brand is certainly young and energetic, bringing a new take on what German luxury is with a new focus on producing greener cars. The new Opel face, first seen in South Africa on the new Mokka, is now carried across to the Grandland, which is larger overall compared to its predecessor but its design and packaging doesn’t make it seem so. Boot space is larger now 550L before you fold seats down and it really is a practical tool for families looking for an honest, good-looking, fully loaded vehicle. I’m a big fan of it in the flesh, especially when compared to the outgoing model. It’s innovative and youthful and priced at just under R790 000.
JEEP
Not much news on the Jeep front for the remainder of 2025. The Jeep brand remains well-positioned and certainly well-defended in the Jeep circles. 2026 will see some new and exciting introductions, colours and special edition models. The local did point out that they were looking into the feasibility of a few new models for our market namely the Jeep Avenger, Compass and Recon, the all-electric rugged SUV. News of a local SAF vehicle project based on the Jeep Gladiator was also whispered but there’s really nothing more we know.
Alfa Romeo: Junior is here.
In the locally managed hierarchy of Stellantis products, the Alfa Romeo brand carries historically rich passion and loyalty, yet perhaps, in recent year especially, the brand’s sales have been very poor in South Africa. The future looks promising though, as the brand brings new models and new derivatives into the line-up that should see an increase in sales for the well-loved Italian marque. The first of these is the new Alfa Romeo Junior, a sharp compact SUV with sporty design and intent. The Junior in Rosso Alfa was unveiled and it certainly was the most intriguing and attractive model shown at the event. It is a taut, compact body with so much aesthetic attention to detail and heritage that it simply begs to be driven. The Junior will be on sale in the base FWD 1,2-litre, turbocharged engine with mild-hybrid tech as well as the all-electric ‘Elettrica’ that will dish out 209kW and run to 100km/h in less than 6-seconds. No pricing is available as yet but these car’s will be officially launched in Q4 of this year.
Updated versions of the Alfa Romeo Giulia and Stelvio will also arrive as well as a new all-wheel drive, PHEV Tonale that will be more powerful and more efficient than the current model on sale. That is good news.
Interestingly enough, the Alfa Romeo brand is 115 years old this year. Stellantis is adamant it will be able to spark that passion into local hearts once again – we certainly hope so.
LeapMotor: Teased for a few months, the electric LeapMotor brand is about to join the local dealership network.
LeapMotor is the newest of the car brands in the Stellantis line-up, the two having joined forces in 2023. LeapMotor is one of China’s emerging NEV makers and Stellantis saw potential in this company to bring new, agile technology and car-building to attract new new customers into the group. The first car to be introduced in South Africa under LeapMotor is the C10, also a small SUV that was unveiled to the media. On the face of it, its design is safe and attractive packaged to attract buyers looking for space and technology. Its suite of driving assistance with new operating systems and advanced infotainment and over-the-air update tech will make it appealing to South Africa’s younger buyers. Being an all-electric model would normally put it straight into the very small volume niche category, but with a range-extending version also said to be on the way with range of up to 970km, the option of a long-range BEV might just prove to be the very thing that a lot more car buyers want. The technology, similar to Nissan’s e-Power system uses a petrol-powered motor to charge the batteries, but the actual powertrain that drives the wheels is fully electric.
What of the new Stellantis Factory?
Stellantis continues with its plans to produce some products locally with earthworks having started at the Coega plant in the Eastern Cape. The only notable difference in terms of its media communication is that the plant, originally destined to build the Land Trek alone, is now being geared up to have at least three assembly lines for various products. Those additional two products are unknown at this time but the R3 Billion plant investment is continuing.
The vision and strategy are good. The product planning certainly looks positive and well considered. The next step is to roll these plans out and see how the South Africa public responds. Pricing and ownership incentives will of course be key, especially with brands like Opel, Peugeot, Alfa and Jeep, where strong competition poses a great threat.
