Stellantis’ Leapmotor partnership points to a wider — and riskier— industry gamble

Eric Haan, director of the Stellantis Poissy plant, poses for a portrait next to cars at the Stellantis multinational car manufacturer's plant in Poissy, west of Paris, on April 15, 2026. Simon Wohlfahrt | Afp | LONDON — A recent tie-up between Jeep maker Stellantis and China's Leapmotor is seen as a watershed moment for the future of European carmaking. In a deal announced late last week, Stellantis said it will expand its strategic partnership with Leapmotor, paving the way for the latter to start production of a model for sale in the European market in 2028. Leapmotor will also work with the multinational conglomerate, which owns household names including Jeep, Dodge, Fiat and Chrysler, to jointly develop an electric SUV under the Opel brand, with production set to take place at Stellantis' plant in Zaragoza, Spain. The move appears to be designed to shore up Stellantis' European operations, while providing Leapmotor with a platform to sidestep the European Union's " Made in Europe " manufacturing targets, as well as avoiding tariffs on electric vehicles imported from China. Stellantis is not alone in exploring the prospect of tie-ups with Chinese automakers. U.S. carmaker Ford is reportedly in talks with China's Geely to create a European partnership and Germany's Volkswagen has said it is open to sharing under-utilized European factories with Chinese car brands as part of a push to cut costs. …