There may be some good news in store for Lancia enthusiasts. Now that it falls under the new group Stellantis, it seems that a future for the brand is being rethought.
Lancia is one of the best known and at the same time one of the least visible car brands in Europe. It still exists, if you would say it doesn’t. After all, Lancia only sells one car: the ten-year-old Ypsilon. It is also only sold exclusively in home country Italy. The Ypsilon has been on its own since 2014, when Lancia pulled the plug on the Thema. So you can say that there is almost nothing left of what Lancia once was. Under Fiat Chrysler, people seemed quite visionless when it came to a future for the brand. Now that that has merged with Groupe PSA into Stellantis, there is finally another cautiously hopeful sign for the brand.
As Stellantis CEO Carlos Tavares stated in November 2019, all brands will be retained in the merger. In a statement from the group it becomes clear how Lancia falls within the group. Stellantis ranks Lancia next to DS and Alfa Romeo among the premium brands. That is a first indication that there may be plans again. The second sign is leadership. Stellantis reports that Luca Napolitano will be at the helm of Lancia. We already know Napolitano as the head of Fiat Europe. Not the least. It is not said in so many words, but it undoubtedly also means that Antonella Bruno will step down as CEO of Lancia. She has been in charge since 2013 and since then has actually been as invisible as Lancia itself.
What will actually happen for Lancia is still unclear. Rumors pop up here and there that Lancia will be getting a new compact SUV on the PSA-developed (e) CMP base. A similar plan is already on the table at Alfa Romeo. That basis would of course mean that there is also a fully electric car in the barrel at Lancia. After all, it is the same platform as where, for example, the Peugeot e-2008 and the Opel Mokka-e are on. In this phase all still a bit speculative, but it could well be that Lancia will revive under Stellantis. In any case, there is now at least a ‘fresh’ concern that watches over the brand, with more technical knowledge and resources.