Fiat will shut its Mirafiori manufacturing unit down for 4 weeks, beginning Friday.
Stellantis claims that it is because of low demand for the two-door EV metropolis automobile.
Information of an “EV slowdown” actually is a headline grabber. Though gross sales of EVs proceed to develop throughout the globe, that development isn’t preserving tempo with entrenched automakers’s authentic plans to rapidly and seamlessly shunt ICE automobile patrons into EVs. Many automakers have reevaluated their EV plans, inflicting them to fast-track once-sidelined ICE automobile initiatives, and hit the brakes on their EVs.
The most recent sufferer of a softer-than-expected EV market? The Fiat 500e. In line with reporting from Reuters, Stellantis introduced that will probably be idling the plant that produces the two-door electrical metropolis automobile for 4 weeks, partly attributable to poor demand. Stellantis advised Reuters that this measure was obligatory as a result of there weren’t sufficient orders inside and out of doors Europe to maintain the output from the Italian manufacturing unit. The shutdown interval will begin this Friday, and final for 4 weeks.
At present, the Fiat 500e is just made in a single manufacturing unit—the Mirafiori manufacturing unit in Torino, Italy. This can be a historic manufacturing unit, located within the hometown of Fiat itself. It’s additionally the positioning of Italy’s Automotive labor union grumbling — native employees desire a larger quantity, extra inexpensive mannequin to be constructed on the plant, as a substitute of simply the Fiat 500e. Thus, Stellantis will make investments $110 million within the plant and undertake what it calls a “larger efficiency battery,” to provide a hybrid model of the brand new 500e in the identical plant.
Though there’s a very actual softening of EV demand, I can’t assist however suppose that a part of the dearth of demand for the 500e is partially attributable to Stellantis not preserving the mannequin present sufficient. Coincidentally, I’ve a 500e on mortgage from the producer this week. My full driving impressions will are available in an extended kind, however the 500e’s cute styling and charming driving dynamics can’t overcome its horrible worth proposition. Even in Europe, the place patrons are extra prepared to pay a premium for smaller EVs with much less vary, the 500e isn’t the one choice as when it launched in 2020 for many European markets.
Simply contemplate this: in Italy alone, a base mannequin Fiat 500e is 29,950 EUR for a 93-horsepower mannequin with a dinky 24 kWh battery. An MG 4 could possibly be had for not rather more at 31,970 EUR. The MG 4 has 51 kWh, 168 horsepower, a usable again seat and an additional set of doorways. Even in Stellantis’s personal umbrella, the Peugeot e-208, and bigger Fiat 600e aren’t all that rather more than the 500e, however they provide extra vary and area.
Fiat was adamant that the period of the $ 49-per-month lease would by no means come again. However, I don’t see a manner out right here: the Fiat 500e’s Achilles heel is its excessive value. If Fiat needs to get extra folks in seats, it wants to determine a option to convey the value down. That’s not simple, subsidies and intelligent accounting to get lease costs artificially low aren’t wholesome for the model. Maybe the hybrid mannequin due in 2025 or 2026 will get extra folks behind the wheel.
Contact the writer: kevin.williams@insideevs.com
