It’s no secret in the trade that things haven't been going well for Stellantis for some time now. And over the past few weeks, one man in particular has been singled out for the company's woes: CEO Carlos Tavares.
There were even rumours recently of a move to replace him. Those have been met with official denials, but a statement released by Stellantis today confirmed Carlos Tavares will retire at the end of his mandate as CEO, i.e. at the beginning of 2026.
The situation for Stellantis is particularly difficult in the U.S., to the extent that the country's National Stellantis Dealer Council has warned the company that it faces disaster. Declining sales, an uncertain electric gamble for brands that have hitherto sold emotion with V8 engines, and substantial financial losses are creating strong headwinds.
Carlos Tavares has been at the helm since 2021, when Stellantis was founded. He was appointed to the position after the merger of Groupe PSA (Peugeot Société Anonyme) with FCA (Fiat-Chrysler Automobiles), on a five-year contract that expires at the beginning of 2026.
A few weeks ago came serious reports that the process leading to the appointment of a replacement has already begun. It is being conducted by a special committee of the board of directors, which is chaired by John Elkann, also Ferrari's chairman.
Stellantis says it will take about 15 months (until the end of 2025) to complete the process of choosing the person to succeed Carlos Tavares. In recent weeks, Tavares has been very vocal about the challenges facing Stellantis, notably in regard to Maserati's poor sales, attributed to poor marketing, and the need to improve quality at the Sterling Heights plant in Michigan given that too many Ram 1500 pickups have to be repaired as soon as they leave the factory.
For the moment, it's important to remember, none of the empire's 14 brands is under threat. In 2021, at the time of his appointment, Carlos Tavares had mentioned that he was giving each one 10 years to prove itself. This timetable will be respected, the automaker says.
Stay tuned.