Stellantis expects 50% of U.S. sales to come from electric vehicles by the end of the decade and to accomplish that goal, dealers will need to be ready.
Thankfully, preparations are already underway as the automaker as revealed they’re working with more than 2,600 dealers to assess their readiness to transition to electric vehicle sales and service.
As part of the effort, dealers are “identifying energy requirements, electrical infrastructure changes, and necessary utility service upgrades” as well as “calculating charging needs to support different areas of their business and locate ideal installation areas for EV charging stations inside and outside the building to address business flow challenges.” Dealers are also educating their staff and “reviewing the technology solutions for EV charging and energy management.”
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Nearly 70% of dealers are already in the process of assessing their individual readiness and this is important as the company plans to offer more than 25 EVs in the United States by 2030. This will include the Fiat 500e and Jeep Wagoneer S, which will wear a different name once it’s in production.
To assist in the transition, Stellantis is working with Future Energy to provide dealers with staff training, guidance with financial assistance applications, and “coordination of all construction, logistics, networking and commissioning to install and activate EV charging stations across the necessary areas of their business.”
While the upgrades won’t happen overnight, the company’s head of network development said “Stellantis is in full-execution mode with an electrification strategy designed specifically to address the needs of our dealership network. Phil Langley went on to say, “From business operations and inventory management to service centers and employee culture, our goal is to work directly with our dealers to best prepare for, be successful in and address any challenges they may face as the automotive industry continues to move toward electrification.”
Despite a lack of electric vehicles, a number of dealerships already have experience with electrification thanks to the Chrysler Pacifica Hybrid as well as the Jeep Wrangler and Grand Cherokee 4xe.
Stellantis didn’t go into many specifics, but Automotive News is reporting that the company isn’t setting a price on required dealer upgrades. This contrasts with Ford and General Motors, but Langley told the publication that Stellantis wants all dealers to sell EVs and is aiming for them to have charging infrastructure in place by the first quarter of 2024. However, it remains unclear if the company will buyout dealers that don’t want to go electric.
