Stellantis, the parent company of Jeep, is reportedly taking a unique approach to the electric vehicle (EV) market in the United States.
CEO Carlos Tavares told reporters Tuesday (Feb. 20) that small cars are not the way to win over American consumers, who tend to love trucks, Bloomberg reported Tuesday.
Instead, Stellantis will offer a variety of battery-powered options, including pickups, SUVs and muscle cars, according to the report.
This strategy contrasts with competitors like Ford, who are focusing on compact electric cars, the report said.
Stellantis will test this approach with the launch of its first full battery-electric offerings for U.S. consumers this year, including the Jeep Recon, Jeep Wagoneer S and an electric muscle car under the Dodge brand, per the report. The company is also refreshing its Ram pickup lineup with electric options.
Tavares points to the segmented strategy, with offerings like the all-electric Ram Revolution for coastal consumers and the Ramcharger, a battery-powered truck with an on-board gas generator, for consumers in middle America, according to the report.
Stellantis recently acquired a stake in Chinese electric vehicle maker Leapmotor, aiming to leverage that company’s EV technology to build competitive vehicles outside of China, the report said.
With EV sales growth slowing and supply chain disruptions easing, carmakers are facing a challenging environment, per the report.
Consumers are increasingly ambivalent about electric vehicles because of range anxiety and the time it takes to charge these vehicles, PYMNTS’ Karen Webster wrote in January.
“In the meantime, OEMs should shift their focus from getting people to buy EVs to getting people to buy their cars, making them smarter, safer and more fun to drive,” Webster wrote. “And then their EV models, once the fundamental problem of battery life can be solved.”
Electric vehicle makers have suffered a number of setbacks in recent weeks. For example, Volvo announced that it will no longer provide further funding to its affiliate, electric car brand Polestar; Renault announced the cancellation of an initial public offering (IPO) for its electric car unit Ampere; and Ford scaled down production of its battery-electric pickup truck, the F-150 Lightning.
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