Last week, news broke that Ferrari was plotting a third assembly line in Maranello dedicated entirely to EV production. But this turned out to be little more than a preamble for the obligatory announcement that the company would eventually transition toward building electric vehicles.

On Thursday, the Italian automaker told investors that all-electric and hybrid models will make up 80 percent of its global sales volume by 2030. This is to be done via a slew of new products it hopes to launch between now and 2026. Though the first Ferrari to run exclusively on battery power isn’t scheduled to arrive until 2025. According to the manufacturer, it’s plotting to launch 15 new vehicles as part of the overarching strategy. While some of those will undoubtedly be duplicates boasting open-air cockpits and slightly different powertrains, it has still got to be some kind of record for the brand.  (Read More…)

Mike Manley will head Americas operations for Stellantis, as FCA chairman John Elkann said in a letter to employees today.

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Ferrari CEO Louis Camilleri has abruptly resigned from the company with the official announcement providing few details to build upon. Despite numerous news outlets fixating on his testing positive for COVID-19 and subsequent hospitalization, Ferrari failed to mention it in the release. But Reuters had reported that an inside source had claimed Camilleri, 65, had suffered health complications that required him to be hospitalized for weeks, adding that he was also stepping down as executive chairman of Philip Morris International.

However, he’s now said to be recovering at home and the coronavirus diagnosis apparently had nothing to do with his decision to retire. Ferrari only cited “personal reasons” and stated it had already begun considering his replacement, noting that it had no intention of rushing the process.

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Perhaps sensing that Nissan and its alliance partner, Mitsubishi, feel like third wheels in the romancing of Renault by a merger-happy Fiat Chrysler, FCA Chairman John Elkann had kind words for the pair.

You’re appreciated. You’re valued. And you’re invited to the party. (Read More…)

Fiat Chrysler Automobiles chairman John Elkann, like the company’s sweatered CEO, is making come-hither eyes in the hopes of luring a suitor.

FCA needs a partner to turn its lofty debt pile into capital, so Elkann wants other automakers to know just how thrilled he’d be if they helped FCA save $10 billion a year, he told shareholders of the investment company controlling FCA (via Bloomberg).

The problem, he lamented, is that other automakers are all wrapped up in trying to develop autonomous technology, often with outsider help. Like a wallflower with a heart of gold, FCA feels ignored despite having a lot to offer.

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FCA Chairman John Elkann confirmed CEO Sergio Marchionne did email General Motors CEO Mary Barra about consolidation, though GM wasn’t the only one.

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Fiat Chrysler Automobiles CEO Sergio Marchionne — who will be retiring from the company after the next five-year plan runs its course after 2018 — believes mergers between automakers will one day result in a new No. 1 automaker.

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Fiat announced that it has completed the acquisition of all remaining shares in Chrysler Group that it did not own. The United Auto Workers’ retiree healthcare trust, known as a voluntary employee beneficiary association or VEBA, received $3.65 billion in cash for its 41.46% stake in the Auburn Hills based automaker, $1.9 billion of which came from Chrysler and $1.75 billion from Fiat. The total deal is worth $4.35 billion, with Chrysler committed to pay the trust the remaining $700 million in four annual equal payments, the first of which was made when the deal was consummated. (Read More…)

Fiat’s John Elkann (not the one with a penchant for camo Ferraris and MTF escorts) put to rest any notions of Fiat acquiring a stake in Mazda, despite collaborating on some of their most iconic products.

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Fiat doesn’t need other partners. We have a strong relationship with Chrysler and that is what we are actively working on

Fiat’s new Chairman, John Elkann, told shareholder’s in his family company Exor, exactly what every good, newlywed husband would say. Then again, not every husband had, shall we say, the appetite for partners that pre-Chrysler Fiat had. Just ask GM. Or BMW. Or Tata. Or Sollers. Or Zastava. Or SEAT. Or, you get the picture. Literally.

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