Stellantis seeks to overtake Ford in sales of pick-ups and vans by 2027

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Stellantis is aiming to overtake Ford as the world’s largest seller of pick-up trucks and vans within four years, banking that a range of electric and hydrogen models will allow it to pass its global rival.

The owner of the Ram and Peugeot brands believes that growth in Africa and among midsized businesses will help it claim the number one spot in commercial vehicles, as part of a plan unveiled on Wednesday to double revenues from vans and pick-ups by 2030.

Dominating delivery and work vehicles brings more than just bragging rights for carmakers, as they face rising costs and competition from China; pick-up trucks and vans have higher margins than passenger cars, and are in areas that are expected to grow strongly.

“I am convinced that this market for vans, and especially delivery vans, will boom in the coming years,” said Jean-Philippe Imparato, head of commercial vehicles for Stellantis.

Commercial vehicles already account for a third of revenues for Stellantis, which was formed by the merger of Fiat Chrysler and PSA in 2021, and about half of its profits. Its commercial vehicle unit sold 1.6mn vehicles last year, within 400,000 of Ford, Imparato said. The US group dominates the market with its F-150 pick-up and Transit van range.

Imparato said he expected Stellantis’s overall van profitability to remain stable, even as models switch to electric or hydrogen power. “We cannot crush the business model in this transition,” he told the Financial Times.

An electric Ram 1500 pick-up truck sold from late next year, one of four battery Ram models planned in the coming two years, will be at the “core of the battle in North America”, he said.

Stellantis will begin sales of the electric Ram ProMaster delivery van later this year, a model that has already been ordered by Amazon for its fleet. The third and fourth electric Ram models will be pick-up trucks and fully electric, or offered as hydrogen-powered, arriving in 2025.

Stellantis is the largest van seller in Europe and South America, but is second in the Middle East and Africa, and trails both Ford and General Motors in North America.

The company would “probably” have to overtake GM in US pick-up truck sales to hit its 2027 goal, Imparato said.

The Ram brand has launched the Ram Rampage, a smaller pick-up made in Brazil, for sale in Latin America. The model is key to expanding the company’s presence in a segment dominated by the Ford Ranger and the Toyota Hilux. It will need to localise production in North America in order to sell in the market for tax reasons.

Imperato said any pick-up truck sold in Europe would need to be fully electric.

Stellantis was also “closing the gap” with Toyota in Africa, he added, a market the Japanese brand has dominated for decades with its hard-wearing models.

Stellantis is aiming for 40 per cent of its global commercial vehicles sold worldwide in 2030 to be electric or hydrogen-powered, it said on Wednesday. While about 43 per cent of its sales of European vans are at present electric — the highest of any European manufacturer — the levels are far lower in the Americas.

The group also plans to generate €5bn a year in revenues by 2030 from offering connected services such as digital maintenance warnings.

Its van and pick-up division made about €47bn in revenues in 2021, the baseline for its targets. The expected service revenues of €5bn are included in its 2030 revenue target.