This past week, Fiat Chrysler Automobiles took an unusual step for an automaker, laying out its ambitious business and product plans for the next five years. Here’s the bullet-point summary.
At its Auburn Hills, Michigan headquarters in mid-week, Fiat Chrysler Automobiles (FCA) assembled several hundred investment analysts, journalists, and stakeholders for a full slate of detailed presentations on the company’s future. The program was thorough, covering everything from changes in the organizational structure to product launches for the next five years. There was a ton of info to be processed, in other words.
Because this is how we roll here at Mac’s Motor City Garage, we’re going to spare you the yards of verbiage and deal the facts to you in bullet-point form. FCA’s aggressive five-year plan, in a nutshell:
+ FCA plans to be listed and trading shares on the New York Stock Exchange by the end of 2014, and CEO Sergio Marchionne has pledged to stay on through 2018.
+ The company also announced that its financial and administrative headquarters, including the executive board and Marchionne’s office, will be based in London rather than in Michigan or Italy.
+ The SRT performance brand will be folded back into Dodge, so the refreshed Viper introduced in 2015 will once again wear a Dodge emblem.
+ Chrysler will unveil a revamped 300 sedan at the Los Angeles Auto Show this fall, a 100C sedan in 2015, and a redesigned Town & Country minivan in 2016.
+ Dodge will no longer offer a minivan after 2016, but will receive a new Dart and Journey crossover that year. The Durango SUV will be refreshed for 2017, and a new Charger and Challenger, and their SRT variants, will launch in 2018.
+ The Ram 1500 pickup will be refreshed for 2015 and an all-new version will arrive in 2017.
+ Jeep will roll out a Compass/Patriot replacement in 2016, a new Wrangler and Grand Cherokee in 2017, and a three-row Grand Wagoneer for 2018 that will compete with Land Rover, according to Marchionne.
+ Maserati will offer new product launches in each of the next five years, as will Alfa Romeo, though not necessarily for North America. New Ferrari models each year are also promised.
+ According to the FCA forecast, Alfa Romeo sales will increase to 400,000 units annually by 2018, compared to 74,000 units last year.
+ Jeep has boosted its 2014 sales projections from 800,000 to an even one million in 2014, and plans to increase sales to 1.9 million in 2018, in major part through increased production and sales overseas.
+ FCA is projecting an ambitious increase in global sales over the next five years, from 4.4 million in 2013 to around 7 million in 2018. The company is also forecasting a boost in earnings before interest and tax (EBIT) from $4.9 billion in 2013 to $12.1 billion-$13.6 billion in 2018.
Thanks for the timesaving summary, Mac. Ambitious indeed. I see why the stock got hammered.
Amibitious goals but it always helps to have a plan. This looks like a good one and Marchionne has proven to be a good leader. Let’s hope it works.
A 250% rise in earnings over 5 yrs? Good luck.
I’ll bet there will be a lot of layoffs.