Chrysler’s electric crossover may be a pipe dream after all
If you are waiting on an EV from Chrysler, you’ll have to wait a little longer. The company is adjusting plans. Chrysler’s long-awaited electric crossover is officially on hold after an email leaked notifying suppliers of the changes. Here’s what to expect now.
Why is Chrysler’s electric crossover delayed again?
Despite announcing plans to have an all-electric lineup by 2028, Chrysler has yet to release a single EV. Now, it looks like it will be here even later than expected.
After an internal Stellantis email leaked last week, first reported by MoparInsiders, Chrysler confirmed it’s pausing its electric crossover. The email sent to suppliers said the program “has been put on hold until further notice.”
Chrysler’s electric crossover was initially scheduled to debut later this year, but the launch date has been pushed back.
At the 2023 Reuters Events Automotive USA Conference, Chrysler CEO Chris Feuell said the brand’s first EV will be a two-row crossover in 2025.
The electric crossover was expected to be an evolution of the Airflow concept from 2022. However, Stellantis’ head designer, Ralph Gilles, who oversees Chrysler, Dodge, Jeep, Ram, and Maserati, said the EV was “evolving in a new direction” in November 2023.
Inspired by the Airflow, Chrysler’s electric crossover was supposed to be powered by the STLA Large platform, which also underpins the new Jeep Wagoneer S and Dodge Charger Daytona EVs.
The Airflow was based on Chrysler’s RU platform, used for the Pacifica Hybrid, but the company said the EV platform would offer more capabilities.
Chrysler revealed its new vision with the radical Haylcyon concept show last year. Earlier this year, a brand spokesperson confirmed to Car and Driver that “Chrysler brand CEO Chris Feuell has said that we are working to develop a production version of the Chrysler Halcyon concept at some point in the future.” However, no launch date was confirmed.
Electrek’s Take
Chrysler’s electric crossover being put on hold is the latest in a series of setbacks for Stellantis EV ambitions in the US.
Stellantis sales fell another 15% in the US last year, marking its fourth straight YOY sales decline in the US. Chrysler (-7%), Jeep (-9%), Ram (-19%), Dodge (-29%), and Alfa Romeo (-19%) all sold fewer vehicles last year than in 2023.
The first Jeep and Dodge EVs, which were expected to hit US dealerships by the end of 2024, are finally arriving after encountering software issues.
Is Stellantis in trouble in the US? Over the summer, former CEO Carlos Tavares told reporters that unprofitable US brands could be shut down. “If they don’t make money, we’ll shut them down,” he said.
Despite this, Feuell told CNBC a year ago, “Chrysler brand is here to stay. It is being well invested in. The brand is not on the table for elimination, and it has a very bright future.”
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Mike Novogratz‘ crypto firm Galaxy Digital started trading on the Nasdaq Friday under the ticker GLXY. The stock opened at $23.50 per share on the U.S. exchange.
Galaxy Digital, which has been traded on the Toronto Stock Exchange since 2020, shifted its shares to the Nasdaq through a direct listing — a move that follows a grueling, multi-year battle with U.S. regulators.
Novogratz told CNBC’s “Squawk Box” Friday that Galaxy’s value now hinges on two high-growth areas: crypto and artificial intelligence.
“These are the two most exciting growth areas in markets, right. AI and the infrastructure needed for AI to exist and crypto finally … at the brink of institutional adoption,” he said. “We have built our company for this moment, so I couldn’t be more excited.”
Novogratz said Galaxy is effectively two businesses now: “We are a data center company and a crypto company.”
The Nasdaq listing comes after four years of regulatory delays, with Galaxy spending more than $25 million and enduring nine rounds of back-and-forth comments with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, according to Novogratz. What should have taken at most, 90 days, stretched to 1,320, he said.
“You needed to be very well capitalized — and a pretty big, strong company — just to stay in the game,” Novogratz told CNBC.
The billionaire also pointed to the U.S. market’s unmatched depth, saying Galaxy’s visibility in Canada was one-thirtieth of what it could achieve in the United States.
“If we had been in the U.S. markets those four years, we’d be a different company,” he said.
The listing follows eToro‘s successful Nasdaq debut this week, signaling renewed investor appetite for crypto-adjacent firms after years of regulatory caution.
Wait, Mazda sells an EV for less than $20,000? The EZ-6 is sold in China but will launch in Europe and other global markets later this year. With overseas deliveries kicking off, Mazda unveiled a sporty new EZ-6 edition that’s actually pretty sleek. Will it arrive overseas?
Meet Mazda’s sporty new EZ-6 electric sedan variant
The EZ-6 has been on sale in China since last fall. Mazda’s joint venture partner, Changan Mazda, launched the electric sedan on October 26, 2024, starting at just 139,800 yuan, or just under $20,000.
In its first month on the market, Mazda sold nearly 2,500 EZ-6 models, placing it among the top three mid-size NEV sedans from JV brands in China.
Mazda introduced the global version, the 6e, earlier this year. It will arrive in Europe and other regions later this year. Last month, the first 6e model rolled off the assembly line at Changan Mazda’s Nanjing plant, its new global R&D, Manufacturing, and export hub.
During a recent event in Nanjing, the company unveiled a sporty new EZ-6 variant that will likely also arrive overseas. Mazda Japan, Europe, and China developed the sports edition to give it distinct styling.
The EZ-6 sports edition gains a few upgrades, including black side skirts and wheels, red brake callipers, and more.
The interior features a new blacked-out “combat-style” cockpit, suede seats, and red stitching, making you feel like you’re in a sports car.
According to Mazda, the sporty new EZ-6 variant is designed for younger drivers. Mazda has not revealed prices, but you can expect a higher price tag than the base $20,000 model.
In China, the EZ-6 is available with all-electric (EV) and extended-range (EREV) powertrains. Based on Changan’s hybrid platform, the fully electric version has a driving range of up to 600 km (373 miles CLTC). It can also recharge from 30% to 80% in about 15 minutes.
In Europe, the 6e will be offered with two battery options, 68 kWh or 80 kWh, providing driving range of up to 479 km (300 miles) and 552 km (343 miles) on the WLTP rating scale.
Mazda’s electric sedan is about the same size as the Tesla Model 3 at 4,921 mm long, 1,890 mm wide, and 1,491 mm tall.
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Tesla has hired a new board member with no automotive background, but that’s not a problem as the main responsibility of Tesla’s board members these days is to sell stocks and let Elon Musk destroy the brand.
Tesla announced today that Jack Hartung, better known for being a long-time top executive of Chipotle, the Mexican restaurant brand, is joining Tesla’s board.
The company wrote in the announcement:
We are pleased to welcome Jack Hartung to Tesla’s Board of Directors, effective June 1, 2025. Jack joined Chipotle Mexican Grill, Inc. in 2002 and has held several leadership positions during his tenure. Most recently, Jack has been serving as President and Chief Strategy Officer, and previously served as Chief Financial and Administrative Officer, where he was responsible for all finance and accounting functions as well as supply chain, strategy and safety and asset protection.
Over the past 20+ years under Jack’s financial leadership, Chipotle has seen significant growth with over 3,700 restaurants today across the United States, Canada, the United Kingdom, France, Germany, Kuwait and the United Arab Emirates. Jack was named ‘CFO of the Year’ by Orange County Business Journal and Best CFO in the restaurant category by Institutional Investor. Jack will be retiring from his executive role on June 1st and transition to a senior advisor role with Chipotle. Jack serves on the Board of Directors for Portillo’s Inc., The Honest Company, Inc. and ZocDoc, Inc.
Hartung is joining the board at a critical moment for Tesla.
The board is being highly criticized for not doing its job of supervising the executive team, primarily Elon Musk.
Musk has long been seen as controlling Tesla’s board despite his minority ownership of Tesla. The issue led to his CEO compensation package being rescinded by a judge due to being seen as negotiating against himself.
The board have backed his every move, granted him a $55 billion CEO compensation package, and remained silent when he threatened Tesla shareholders that he would not develop AI products at Tesla unless given a larger, more controlling share of the company, or decided to fire Tesla’s entire charging team to make an example out of the head of the team.
Most recently, they have not addressed the protests at Tesla stores and product boycotts, which are attributed to Musk’s involvement in politics, angering a significant portion of the population and Tesla’s consumer base.
The board’s relaxed approach when it comes to Musk is often attributed to being populated by people who are close to Musk and have financial dealings with Musk and his businesses outside of Tesla.
They are also highly compensated to let Musk do what he wants. So much so that shareholders sued them for “overcompensation” and they agreed to return and cancel about $1 billion in compensation.
In the last few months, Tesla’s board members have sold hundreds of millions of dollars worth of Tesla stocks.
Due to all these issues, Tesla has been looking for a new board member who can be considered “independent” of Musk.
In its disclosure of having added Hartung to the board, Tesla claimed that his only connection to Tesla or the board is a son-in-law who works at Tesla:
“A son-in-law of Mr. Hartung has been a non-executive, salaried employee of Tesla since December 2016, and does not share a household with Mr. Hartung. He is currently a Service Technician at Tesla and earned total compensation for fiscal year 2024, including the value of equity incentives, of approximately $124,000. This compensation was determined in accordance with Tesla’s compensation practices applicable to employees with similar qualifications and responsibilities and holding similar positions.”
However, they didn’t disclose that Hartung knows Kimbal Musk, Elon’s brother and a long-time board member.
Kimbal was on Chipotle’s board from 2016 to 2019 when Hartung was a top executive at the company.
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