Antonio Filosa, president of Stellantis (Fiat, Peugeot, Citroën and Jeep) foresees two moments for entry-level cars in Brazil
When it comes to a popular car in Brazil, Antonio Filosa, president of Stellantis South America, knows that the brunt of the weight lies with Fiat, the group’s leading brand that also has Peugeot, Citroën and Jeep producing vehicles in the country. Therefore, he draws attention to the fact that only Fiat Mobi and Renault Kwid are true entry-level cars.
“Perhaps we should change the term popular car to entry-level car,” suggests Filosa. “Today it can’t be electric. For a range of 400 km you need to spend 15,000 euros on the battery. In the near future it will be hybridized with ethanol. In the future, the popular, or entry-level, car will have all the new technologies.”
But what future? For the immediate future, Filosa said Fiat (possibly also Citroën and Peugeot) could collaborate on an affordable popular car program. “Today the entry-level car is expensive, but we are unable to make it cheaper,” she said. Therefore, he says that the initiative should be led by Fenabrave, as it is more linked to trade, and not by Anfavea, which has internal differences.
“I have seen the interest of associations such as Fenabrave. I was asked for an opinion. Something is moving,” Filosa said. “I say that Stellantis is interested in supporting this, as long as it is a medium and long-term project”. One of the alternatives would be to have a car with specific legislation for the entry-level segment, without many equipment requirements.
Filosa clarifies that this is not a dodgy car, but one with lower equipment requirements, so the price comes down. Along with this, the reduction of the tax burden on this category and better financing conditions would also be fundamental.
electric popular car
Stellantis is pragmatic: it respects the country’s legislation and commitments. “Brazil is a serious country and respects its commitments,” Filosa said. “There is a commitment to reduce carbon emissions by 50% by 2030 and to zero emissions by 2050.” It is with these deadlines that Stellantis works.
Therefore, a popular electric car, according to Filosa, will occur only after the market is mature, with the industry locally producing not only hybrid and electric vehicles, but also batteries. “The popular electric car will be possible when it has scale,” he said. “Today there are cheap Chinese electric cars with a range of 100km.”
Filosa also said that “the government should not discuss electrification, it should discuss the problem; and the problem is decarbonisation”. Filosa made this statement defending the use of ethanol in hybrid technologies. Which, by the way, Toyota already does, but Filosa sees it differently.
“We’re not talking about taking an imported kit to assemble a hybrid car in São Paulo,” said the boss of Fiat and Jeep, in a clear reference to Toyota, which produces Corolla Hybrid Flex and Corolla Cross Hybrid Flex with an imported system from Japan. .
“The technological path is less expensive because learning is needed, which requires more money or more time,” said Antonio Filosa. Within this landscape, the range of possibilities for the future product portfolio of Stellantis South America is very broad.
At first, it is possible to launch mild hybrids in models from the mid-range upwards, such as Jeep Renegade and Compass, Fiat Pulse, Fastback and Toro, Peugeot 2008 and Citroën Cactus.
Subsequently, some cars can become full hybrids or plug-in hybrids and the mild hybrid can migrate to cheaper models, such as the Fiat Mobi, Argo and Cronos, Peugeot 208 and Citroën C3. And there is always the possibility of importing and then producing a 100% electric car, such as the future Fiat Panda, which will be built on the e-CMP platform of the Peugeot e-208.
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Source: Terra
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