Fiat Chrysler Automobiles intends to give up on Europe’s minicar segment altogether due to increasing development costs and tougher emissions regulations.
According to FCA CEO Mike Manley, the automaker wants to shift Fiat’s minicar customer to the B-segment (sub-compact), which means that the Panda and possibly even the trendy yet retro-styled 500 could be ditched in favor of a Ford Fiesta rival. Manley did not specify a timetable for when all of this might happen, reports Autonews Europe.
“In the very near future you will see us refocus on this higher-volume, higher-margin segment, and that will involve a move away from the minicar segment,” said the FCA boss during a Q3 earnings call with financial analysts.
Losses piling up
FCA posted a 55 million euro loss ($61 million) in Europe in Q3 of this year, with Manley specifying that Fiat’s “commercial challenges” on the Old Continent are due to a very high exposure to the low-margin minicar segment, plus a model lineup whose average age is “the highest in the industry.”
The plan then seems to be simple: Jump back into the sub-compact segment with possibly an all-new Punto (the last iteration of this nameplate was discontinued last year) – which used to be the Italian brand’s best-selling car in Europe.
Also read: New Panda Trussardi Is The First Luxury Version Of Fiat’s City Car
Manley recognizes that the B-segment is Europe’s biggest and is “a much higher profit pool than the A-segment.”
However, he did not mention which new models Fiat might introduce moving forward, nor did he comment on the future of the Panda and the 500.
