Man, Stellantis cannot catch a break right now. The transatlantic automaker’s North American shipments fell 20% in the first quarter of 2025 because of extended holiday downtime and a ramp-up for the updated 2025 Ram Heavy Duty. The news wasn’t much better across the world, either. Global shipments fell 9% to 1.2 million vehicles. Ouch.
To go along with the 20% dive in North America, sales also dropped 8% in Europe, 15% in the Middle East and Africa, and 20% in China, India and Asia Pacific. The only real bright spot was a 19% bump in South America, according to Automotive News. None of its myriad of brands did particularly well, but one was the clear loser: Maserati. The Italian automaker’s global shipments dropped a whopping 48% in the first quarter.
Stellantis has apparently hired consulting firm McKinsey & Co. to figure out what to do with both Maserati and Alfa Romeo — two brands that are struggling mightily. It could end up that the two companies partner with other brands to access new technology. All I know is that something needs to be done.
Once President Trump’s global trade war really takes shape, things will probably only get worse for Stellantis, though we have reported that it does plan to build more vehicles in the U.S.
Some good news
There were some bright spots, though. The Jeep Compass and Grand Cherokee, as well as the Ram 1500 and 2500, saw volumes rise 10% compared to the same time last year. New retail orders in March were also at their highest levels since July of 2023, Automotive News reports.
As I mentioned, shipments in Europe fell 8%, but two-thirds of that can be attributed to transition gaps as new generations of smaller cars roll out, like the Citroën C3 Aircross, Opel Frontera and Fiat Grande Panda. Slow sales of commercial vehicles are likely the cause of the other third. Regardless, market share in Europe was at 17.3% — a 1.9% increase over the fourth quarter of 2024.
Stellantis struggles