Stellantis raised some eyebrows last October when it announced it was buying a 21 percent stake in Chinese automaker Leapmotor for $1.5 billion. But in another shock, the Euro-American corporation has now suggested it could build Leapmotor EVs at Fiat’s famous Mirafiori plant in Turin.
If the alleged plan comes to fruition, up to 150,000 budget EVs could be built annually at the site starting in 2026 or 2027, Automotive News Europe reports. The cars would be sold through Stellantis dealers in Europe and avoid tariffs that could be placed on Chinese EVs being shipped in from their homeland. The European Commission is currently looking into whether Chinese cars landing in Europe benefit unfairly from government subsidies.
“If we have the opportunity because it makes economic sense to manufacture Leapmotors’ cars in Italy, of course we will do,” Auto News reports Stellantis CEO Carlos Tavares saying. As part of last year’s buy-in, a joint venture based in the Netherlands was established, called Leapmotor International and controlled by Stellantis. It hopes to generate 500,000 sales outside of China by the end of this decade, while Stellantis also thinks the deal will help it get its Western brands a better foothold in the Chinese market.
Related: Stellantis Signs Deal To Sell Chinese Leapmotor EVs in Europe
Mirafiori, which is Europe’s oldest car factory and dates back to the late 1930s, is currently underutilized, making only the slow-selling Maserati Levante that dies soon, and the electric Fiat 500, amounting to around 95,000 units. But in its heyday in the second half of the 20th century, it churned out millions of Fiat models including the Topolino, 500, 600, 124, 127, 131, Panda, Uno, and Punto.
In the summer of 2023, before the Leapmotor deal was revealed, Stellantis had already announced plans to invest up to €200 million ($215 m) in the Mirafiori plant. The project, which is due to be completed by 2025, is “part of a plan that aims at transforming Stellantis’ top facilities into new carbon neutral bases for the group’s design, R&D and central functions,” Reuters reported at the time.
Stellantis and Leapmotor won’t be ready to build cars together in Europe for a couple of years yet, so will plug the gap by importing vehicles from China. The first one expected to land is the Tesla Model Y-sized C10 SUV, which has recently been launched in Asia with a choice of electric and PHEV powertrains. The BEV version employs a single 228 hp (231 PS) motor on the rear axle and claims 329 miles (530 km) of range.
Source: Auto News Europe