Stellantis gearing up for Vauxhall Grandland successor
Shelling out a chunky €130m into German plant
There’s a new Stellantis battery-electric SUV in the making, or at least there will be from next year. The Eisenach plant - birthplace of the original Astra - already spits out the Vauxhall Grandland. It’s set to start assembling the all-electric successor to the Grandland from the middle of 2024, on the STLA medium platform.
In a move that looks suspiciously set up to antagonise Tesla Motors - listed on the NASDAQ as TSLA - the so-named STLA platforms were described in more detail at Stellantis’ 2021 AGM by the conglomerate’s chief Carlos Tavares.
The medium platform - intended for premium vehicles - will support up to 104kWh batteries, 180kW electric motors and aims to provide over 400 miles of range. It’s already earmarked for DS, Lancia and other Vauxhall/Opel models, such as the Insignia.
It’s all part of Stellantis’ big move to be fully electric by 2028, to which it’s committed $30 billion (£24 billion). Workers at the Eisenach plant have had a stepping stone intro to full EV, as they’ve been already producing the Grandland plug-in hybrid (PHEV).
Arnaud Deboeuf, chief manufacturing officer for Stellantis, said: “With this allocation of Stellantis’ new fully BEV platform, STLA Medium, Eisenach plant’s highly skilled workforce will continue to improve the cost and the quality of the vehicles they produce.”
Florian Huetti, big boss of the Opel/Vauxhall brand followed up with: “We will stay on this clear path with the electric successor to the Grandland. This decision is another important step for Vauxhall on the way to the declared goal of being a purely electric brand by 2028.”
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