Stellantis is currently facing difficulties as it deals with several problems in the U.S. market. These include steadily declining sales, excessive inventory levels, and high production costs, which have forced the automotive group to announce a series of layoffs at various facilities across the country. To recover from this situation, Stellantis has announced that it will offer a series of discounts to clear its warehouses. Thus, it appears that Stellantis’ difficulties could become an advantage for consumers.
Stellantis offers discounts to clear vehicle inventory: a good opportunity for buyers
The third quarter of 2024 was particularly difficult for the automotive group, which recorded a 27% decline in revenue, falling to $36 billion (approximately €33 billion), compared to 2023. Worldwide, Stellantis sales fell by 20%, while in North America they plummeted by 36%. In Europe, Middle East, Africa, and Asia-Pacific, the decline is less pronounced at 17%.
The situation is therefore becoming very difficult for Stellantis’ American brands, such as Chrysler, Dodge, Ram, and Jeep, which are struggling to attract customers. The Jeep Grand Wagoneer, for example, is in the top 3 slowest-selling cars in the United States. Nevertheless, Doug Ostermann, Stellantis’ new CFO, remains optimistic about the future and says he is satisfied with the progress made on operational issues. The automotive group’s goal is to reduce inventory from 430,000 vehicles to 330,000 units by the end of 2024.
These difficulties are therefore becoming an opportunity for consumers, who now have the chance to purchase Stellantis vehicles at lower prices. With the imminent debut of Dodge Charger Daytona and Jeep Wagoneer S, dealers need to make room and clear excess inventory. Stellantis has already announced a series of discounts for the Charger Daytona. The same will happen for the Jeep Wagoneer S, which will arrive on the market “when it’s perfect.”
Other cars from brands like Jeep have discounts of up to $3,000, such as the Compass and Wrangler, while the Grand Cherokee gets up to $6,000 in discounts. A Stellantis dealer in Tennessee commented: “It’s difficult to order 2025 vehicles when you still have 2023 and 2024 cars in inventory.” This shows that dealers are doing everything possible to sell Stellantis brand models, even at discounted prices. However, this strategy doesn’t work with Maserati models, which according to Tavares cause damage to the brand’s image.