Chrysler Could Face the Axe as Soon as Two Years From Now

The hydra of troubled brands that is Stellantis isn’t far from becoming an Ouroboros. Back in 2021, company CEO Carlos Tavares gave every one of its struggling makes an ultimatum: get it together within a decade, or clear out your offices. Well, the first round of performance reviews is coming up soon, and they could bring some difficult “decisions” about the future of brands like Chrysler.

So said Tavares at this year’s Paris Motor Show, as recorded by Automotive News. Tavares indicated that Stellantis will check in on individual brands about two-thirds of the way through its Dare Forward 2030 strategic plan, when viable marques will be separated from those that aren’t. He pointed to a timeframe about two to three years from now, or around the end of the five-year period during which the brands’ turnarounds are fully financed.

“We will review each brand’s performance at about two-thirds of the way through the Dare Forward 2030 plan, so you could expect decisions in two to three years,” Tavares told AN. “So far we delivered on our commitments. We already launched the STLA Medium platform, which debuted with the Peugeot 3008 and, when needed, we re-scheduled some product launches due to changing conditions, but we did not cancel any.”

What those decisions are wasn’t specified by Tavares, but it’s not certain that he’s talking about culling any makes so soon. Initially, the CEO suggested the brands would have until at least 2030 to prove their worth, so this milestone may instead mark the point when Stellantis decides to allocate further resources to brands under pressure. The Drive reached out to the company for clarification but did not receive a response at the time of publication.

In any case, the call is expected to fall on Tavares’ successor, now that the executive has announced a decision to retire after his contract ends in early 2026. Stellantis will name his replacement before the end of next year.

Chrysler is one of the most imperiled companies in Stellantis’ portfolio, with only two models and no clear roadmap to recovery. One is the Pacifica minivan, while the other is a continuation of the last-gen Pacifica rebadged as the Voyager. While Chrysler seemingly planned to roll out an electric crossover styled after the Airflow concept, poor reception drove it to restart from a clean slate. The result was the more promising Halcyon concept, which, if anything, looks far too radical for Chrysler to actually sell. Then again, rumors a while back pointed to a Chrysler twin to the Charger Daytona EV, and the Halcyon at least looks like the right shape to be that car.

If it is, then it could signal a return to the days of its namesake—or at least send Chrysler out with a bang.

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