Brand extinction
It is part of the history of the automobile that brands come and go. Many more car manufacturers and brands have gone than have stayed. And if it weren't for the constant emergence of new suppliers in China, we would probably be talking about a very shrunken brand landscape.
Even major manufacturers such as Chrysler or Opel, whose future is currently the subject of intense debate, could be affected. And also brands that have achieved epoch-making things, such as Lancia or Citroën. Who would have thought 20 or 50 years ago that these car manufacturers would be worried about their future?
Stellantis is currently in the process of realigning its brand portfolio. Only the four core brands Fiat, Peugeot, Jeep and RAM are to remain. Other brands would not necessarily disappear, but would lose their independence and take on regional roles based on the technology platforms of the core brands.
We've been through all this before, remember? BMC, for example, also marketed the Austin/Morris 1100 as MG, Innocenti, Vanden Plas, Riley or Wolseley. Neither the specialized small brands nor the parent company survived. And today, such brands are only known to classic car enthusiasts, with the exception of MG. But even today's MGs no longer have anything to do with British tradition, but are Chinese cars with and without octagons.
