Stellantis Ready to Make Compact and Midsize Electric Vehicles

The next round of electric vehicles from Stellantis will be smaller, with a range of more than 435 miles, the automaker says in introducing the STLA Medium platform that can be used by its 14 brands, starting with Chrysler in the U.S. All electric vehicles for Stellantis will be on one of four global platforms: STLA Small, Medium, Large, and Frame. STLA Medium will underpin front and all-wheel-drive cars, crossovers, and SUVs in the C- and D-segment, meaning compact and midsize vehicles which account for nearly half of all vehicles sold globally. Stellantis currently has 26 nameplates in these segments.

The first vehicle will be the Peugeot 3008, expected later this year. There will also be vehicles for the Opel, Lancia, and DS brands initially, says Stellantis CEO Carlos Tavares. In the U.S., the first vehicle will be for the Chrysler brand. We expect it will be an electric crossover, arriving in 2026. There will also be Jeeps as the platform can provide vehicles with almost 9 inches of ground clearance and AWD, which are a must for off-road capability.

Range will be up to 435 miles on a single charge with the long-range or Performance pack; the Standard pack is rated at 310 miles on the WLTP test cycle used in Europe. The figures will be less in EPA testing in the U.S. In terms of performance, power output will range from 160-285 kW.

Vehicles from STLA Medium will have up to 98 kWh of useful energy which Stellantis executives say is unique for this size of vehicle. The platform uses a 400-volt architecture which will charge from 20 to 80 percent in 27 minutes, a rate of 2.4 kWh per minute.

It is possible to offer an 800-volt system in the future, but the decision to use a 400-volt system was a tradeoff to keep cost down as Tavares has repeatedly expressed concerns that EVs be affordable to the middle class. It costs about 40 percent more to produce an EV than a vehicle with an internal combustion engine, he says, but that 40 percent cannot be passed onto the consumer.

In addition to pure EVs, the flexible platforms can also accommodate hybrids and internal combustion engines for the transition period until everything is EV-only. The platforms are also designed to accommodate future battery chemistries including nickel- and cobalt-free batteries as well as solid-state batteries.

Stellantis will build STLA Medium vehicles in several plants around the world, starting in Europe this year. There will be plants in France, Italy, Germany, and several locations in North America, Tavares says. The automaker forecasts it will eventually build more than 2 million vehicles on the platform annually when the company has total manufacturing capacity of 9 million vehicles globally.

Stellantis CEO Carlos Tavares says the company spent more than two years developing the platform. He says Stellantis is now ready to compete on performance, pricing, and attributes such as quality and edgy technology.